(YAIR), adjective
Quick and agile; lively.
adroit (uh-DROYT). Skilled or clever in a particular pursuit.
“It’s kind of sad,” Betty said to Barbara, “that Will thinks his ADROIT opera-singing abilities will impress women.”
ebullient (eh-BULL-yuhnt). Feeling joy and positive emotions at an extreme level; the state of being wildly enthusiastic about something.
Lorne was EBULLIENT when he found that his mother had given the college enough money to overturn his rejection.
effervescent (ef-ur-VESS-ent). Bubbly; upbeat; cheerful; possessing a positive attitude and joyful personality.
After getting the acceptance letter from Cornell, Sabrina was EFFERVESCENT and celebrated with a trip to Neiman Marcus.
effusive (eh-FEW-siv). Profuse and overflowing, without reservation.
In an effort to butter up the senator, the lobbyist was transparently EFFUSIVE in his praise of the new bill.
jocund (JOE-kund). Having a lust for life; possessing a positive attitude and desire to enjoy life to the fullest.
Ron’s JOCUND façade shattered when he found himself the victim of identity theft.
élan, (a-LON). Enthusiasm, energy, flair, zest.
Bryanna reacted with ÉLAN when she was tapped to be part of a feature for Elite Travel Magazine.
fillip (FILL-uhp). Something that revives or arouses excitement.
“Faithful horoscope-watching, practiced daily, provides just the sort of small, but warm and infinitely reassuring FILLIP that gets matters off to a spirited start.”—Shana Alexander, American author
gambol (GAM-bull). To run, skip, or jump about in a playful or joyous fashion.
“We all have these places where shy humiliations GAMBOL on sunny afternoons.”—W.H. Auden, Anglo-American poet
bovine (BO-vyn). Anything related to or reminiscent of cows or other dull, docile, slow-moving, grazing mammals.
“The cow is of the BOVINE ilk; One end is moo, the other, milk.”—Ogden Nash, American poet
enervate (EN-er-vayt). To rob a person, organization, place, or thing of its energy, strength, and vitality.
Greenhouse gases ENERVATE the protective ozone layer surrounding the Earth.
etiolate (EE-tee-uh-layt). To cause to become weak and appear sickly.
Over time, Brad’s excesses—and his refusal to see a plastic surgeon—increasingly ETIOLATED his once-handsome appearance.
lugubrious (loo-GOO-bree-us). Pessimistic, emotionally downtrodden, spiritually low, sad, or depressed.
Prozac failed to ameliorate the patient’s LUGUBRIOUS outlook on life.
morose (muh-ROHSS). Gloomy and ill-humored.
Now that his parents have taken away his private plane, Anthony has become positively MOROSE.