- Great reverencepermeates the state funeral of a former U.S. president.
[Syn. honor, awe]
revulsion (riv UHL shin) n. extreme shock, disgust, or repugnance; a feeling of
great loathing - Revulsionswept through the world at the untimely demise of President
Kennedy. - To avoid causing your revulsion,we aver that no animals were harmed in
the making of this book.
[Syn. aversion]
rhetoric(RET oer ik) n. 1. the art or skill of using words effectively in speaking
or writing; 2. language that is showy or elaborate, but lacking in clarity or originality
of ideas or emotions; phony eloquence - Former President Reagan was extremely good at connecting with the pub-
lic through use of rhetoric. - Political conventions are always filled with rhetoricfor the party faithful
but unrelated to the real world.
ridicule (RID ik yool) vt. the act of making someone or something the object of
scorn; to mock; to poke fun at - Certain political leaders are easier than others to ridiculeby drawing carica-
tures of them. - Political cartoonists are specialists in the art of ridicule.
[-d, ridiculing] [Syn. deride, mock, taunt]
rite(RYT) n. 1. a formal ceremony or act associated with a relegious procedure
or observance; 2. any customary formal observance, procedure, or practice - Almost every religion has some sort of riteof passage from childhood into
adulthood. - Stravinsky celebrated the pagan riteof spring in his tone poem of the same
name.
[Syn. ceremony]
romantic* (roh MAN tik) adj. 1. having the nature of or characterized by romance
(idealized imagined love and adventure stories); 2. without factual basis; 3. not practi-
cal; guided by emotion rather than thought —n. a romantic person; romantic litera-
ture or music from the Romantic Movement (early to mid-nineteenth century) - The Arthurian legend is a romanticstory of the love triangle between
Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot. - Many girls have a romanticnotion about being carried away by Prince
Charming to live happily ever after. - Karl Marx’s notion of a society where each person does what he can and
receives what he needs was a romanticone. - Beethoven’s later works ushered in the RomanticMovement in music.
[-ally adv.]
ruffian(RUHF ee in) n. a hoodlum; a violent, lawless, brutal person; a tough guy - Allen’s mom did not want him hanging out with ruffiansafter school.
- Ruffiansare often the bane of an otherwise nice neighborhood.
R: SAT Words 205