Page 229 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

19_571656 ch15.qxd 11/10/04 12:40 PM Page 220
Essential Vocabulary
220
suppress (suh PRES) vt. 1. to subdue; put down; quell; crush; 2. to keep from
appearing; 3. to check or stop; keep back; restrain
• The Chinese government’s tanks suppressed the protest in Tiananmen
Square.
• The plan of the rock group to appear onstage was suppressed by the theater’s
owners who feared a riot.
• When Diane saw the kindergartener take a melted ice-cream bar from her
pocket after getting off the school bus, she suppressed her urge to laugh.
[-ed, -ing]
surfeit (SOER fit) n. 1. excess; too great a supply; 2. pigging out; 3. nausea or
discomfort resulting from overindulgence —vt. to feed or supply to fullness or
excess; to satiate
• Each year, American farmers produce a surfeit of wheat.
• Brad had to loosen his belt, having eaten a surfeit of shrimp from the
appetizer platters at Rose’s wedding.
• Ian felt surfeit from having drunk too many beers on an otherwise empty
stomach.
• The wedding feast surfeited every one of the 103 guests.
[-ed, -ing] [Syn. satiate]
surreptitious (SOER ep TISH is) adj. 1. clandestine; done in a secret or stealthy
way; 2. acting in a secret or stealthy way
• The guests to Joanne’s birthday celebration all received surreptitious invita-
tions so as not to spoil the surprise.
• The concealment of the Greek soldiers inside the Trojan horse had to be
surreptitious so the Trojans would not suspect anything.
• For those of you planning a prison break, it is a good idea to keep your
plans surreptitious (wink, wink!).
[-ly adv.] [Syn. secret, clandestine]
susceptible (suh SEP ti bl) adj. easily affected or emotionally moved; sensitive
in nature; easily influenced
• Some children are very susceptible to ear infections.
• Most men are susceptible to the appeal of a teary-eyed woman.
• Some people who might not give you the time of day are still susceptible to
an appeal to their better natures.
[susceptibly adv., susceptibility* n.]
sustain (sus TAYN) vt. 1. to keep up; maintain; prolong; 2. to provide food and
sustenance to; 3. to carry the weight and/or burden of; 4. to encourage
• The right pedal on a piano is used to sustain a note long after the key has
been released.
• It takes a lot of puppy chow to sustain a growing St. Bernard puppy.