Words

Pronunciation

 (part of speech)

Word Charge

Word Group

Balk

\BAWK\ (v.)

– charge STOP

to refuse, shirk; prevent

The horse balked at jumping over the high fence and instead threw his rider off.

Banality

\buh NAL ih tee\ (n.)

– charge ORDINARY

the quality of being trite, commonplace, or predictable

All the critics complained about the banality of the movie last night—it had a completely predictable and inane plot.

Bane

\BAYN\ (n.)

– charge HARMFUL

cause of harm or ruin; source of annoyance

Speeches were the bane of Jenny’s existence; she hated having to stand up in front of a crowd.

Banish

\BAN ish\ (v.)

– charge ALONE

drive away, expel

After his defeat at Waterloo, the European leaders chose to banish Napoleon to the remote island of Elba.

Bard

\BARD\ (n.)

= charge PEOPLE

lyrical poet

Bards in medieval times were usually illiterate and so memorized incredibly long tales and songs.

Barricade

\BAR ih kayd\ (n.)

– charge STOP

obstacle, barrier

During the French Revolution, students set up barricades in Paris to keep the army from moving through the streets.

Basic

\BAY sik\ (adj.)

+ charge TYPICAL

essential, fundamental

A basic tenet of the Bill of Rights is the claim that “all men are created equal.”

Belated

\bee LAY tid\ (adj.)

– charge TIME

having been delayed, done too late

Although Sara initially forgot her brother’s birthday, she sent a belated card to him the following week.

Belligerent

\be LIJ er ent\ (adj.)

– charge AGGRESSIVE

hostile, inclined to fight

Although he had a reputation for being peaceable, Gerald could actually become quite belligerent when he felt he was being mocked.

Benefactor

\BEN eh fak tur\ (n.)

+ charge LUCK

someone who helps others financially

Throughout most of Great Expectations, Pip speculates about the identity of the mysterious benefactor that paid for his schooling.

Beneficial

\ben uh FISH ul\ (adj.)

+ charge LUCK

advantageous, helpful

Mayor Bolder decided not to increase taxes because he decided that having more money in the marketplace would prove to be more beneficial in the long run.

Benevolent

\bu NEV uh lint\ (adj.)

+ charge LUCK

friendly and helpful

Ben and Eve volunteer at the shelter, which is typical of their benevolent nature.

Benign

\bi NIYN\ (adj.)

+ charge HELPFUL

gentle, harmless

Although many children in the neighborhood feared the old dog, he was actually quite benign.

Bequeath

\bi K WEETH\ (v.)

+ charge SAVING

pass on, hand down

Fred thought that his grandmother was penniless and so was shocked when she bequeathed to him a beautiful gold watch.

Berate

\bee RAYT\ (v.)

– charge CRITICIZE

to scold harshly

After the class’s dismal performance on the exam, Professor Wilson berated everyone for their laziness and lack of preparation.

Bereft

\be REFT\ (adj.)

– charge DEPRIVED

deprived or lacking of something

The television show was bereft of anything resembling wit or intelligence.

Betray

\be TRAY\ (v.)

– charge HARMFUL

to be false or disloyal to

Unable to withstand the power of the dark side of the force, Darth Vader betrayed his teacher’s confidence.

Bewilder

\be WILL der\ (v.)

– charge UNCLEAR

to confuse or puzzle

The class found themselves bewildered by Professor Yasmeet’s lecture on advanced photonics.

Biased

\BY ust\ (adj.)

– charge INAPPROPRIATE

prejudiced

The defendant’s lawyer filed a motion to move the case to a new town because the people in this one were all biased against her client.

Bilk

\BILK\ (v.)

– charge DECREASE

to defraud, swindle

Several lawyers were caught bilking clients out of millions of dollars in an illegal real estate scheme.

Blaze

\BLAYZ\ (v.)

+ charge BOLD

shine brightly, flare up suddenly

The fire blazed through the night, providing heat and light to the campers as they slept.

Blemish

\BLEM ish\ (n.)

– charge UNATTRACTIVE

imperfection, flaw

The designer used a computer program to remove all blemishes from the model’s face.

Boast

\BOHST\ (v.)

– charge PROUD

speak with excessive pride

“I can beat all of you at that video game any day of the week,” boasted Derrick last night.

Boon

\BOON\ (n.)

+ charge LUCK

blessing, something to be thankful for

The oasis in the desert was a boon to us after a week of wandering.

Bourgeois

\boor ZWA\ (adj.)

– charge ORDINARY

middle-class

The bourgeois family was horrified at their new neighbor’s crudeness.

Braggart

\BRAG ert\ (n.)

– charge PROUD

someone who boasts continuously

After a week of listening to his self-aggrandizing stories, we tired of the braggart and his tales.

Brandish

\BRAN dish\ (v.)

– charge AGGRESSIVE

wave menacingly

Wyatt Earp’s reputation had grown so spectacularly that by the end of his career he could make outlaws surrender by simply brandishing his weapon.

Brutality

\broo TAL ih tee\ (n.)

– charge AGGRESSIVE

ruthless, cruel, and unrelenting acts

The brutality of the locust plague overwhelmed the farmers as it destroyed a whole year’s crop.

Buffer

\BUFF uhr\ (n.)

+ charge HELPFUL

something that separates two entities

Miss Phillips placed Lenny between Rachel and Sari, as a buffer through which they couldn’t talk during class.

Buffoonery

\bu FOO ner ee\ (n.)

– charge FOOLISH

acting like a clown or fool

Jimmy’s buffoonery had gotten him thrown out of class more often than any other student.

Buttress

\BUT riss\ (v.)

+ charge ADD

to reinforce or support

The construction workers attempted to buttress the ceiling with support pillar.