Page 329 - WEBSTER Essential vocabulary

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Essential Vocabulary
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prescience (PREESH uhns) n. to have an apparent knowledge of events before
they occur; foreknowledge
• Prescience is not unlike having a presage, except that it is a complete fore-
knowledge rather than just a sign.
• Admiral Yamamoto is credited with prescience of Japan’s defeat if it attacked
America.
• Alexander the Great was supposed to have had prescience that he would
live a glorious but short life.
[prescient adj., presciently adv.] [Syn. foreknowledge]
pressure (PRESH er) n. 1. a pressing, squeezing, compressing, or being pressed;
2. compelling influence; demanding force; 3. (physics) force per unit of surface area
• Pressure is usually used to squeeze the extra water from a sponge mop.
• Automobile salesmen are infamous for pressuring customers to buy right
away.
• In physics, one foot-pound is the amount of pressure it takes to raise one
pound one foot.
prevaricate (pri VAR i kayt) vi. to equivocate; to evade the truth; lie
• Prevaricating while under oath is a classy definition of perjury.
• Sometimes people prevaricate to be polite because nobody asks “How do I
look?” expecting to be told “Terrible!”
[-d, prevaricating, prevarication n.] [Syn. lie]
primacy (PRY mi see) n. 1. the state of being first in order, time, rank, and so
on; 2. the office or authority of a church primate
• A five-star general has primacy of rank in the U.S. Army.
• The winner of a race is the contestant with primacy reaching the finish line.
• The number one has primacy among counting numbers.
proliferate (proh LIF er ayt) vt. 1. to reproduce new parts in quick succession;
2. to create or produce in large numbers
• A pair of rabbits tends to proliferate at a very rapid pace.
®
• During a fad, a particular item (such as the Hula Hoop ) proliferates in
short order and then, just as suddenly, stops.
• The U.S. fighter plane proliferated during the Second World War as a result
of the strength of American industry.
[-d, -proliferating]
prolixity (proh LIKS i tee) n. tending to use more words than are necessary;
long-windedness; verbosity
• Cuba’s Fidel Castro has always been known for his prolixity, with an aver-
age speech running about four hours.
• Brevity is a characteristic of wit; prolixity is not.
[prolix adj., prolixly adv.]