168. Imminent

From, “Syria unrest: 'Humanitarian' vote pressed at UN,” BBC News, 2/29/12:

Residents of Homs fear the army is planning an imminent ground assault there.

Imminent: about to happen; impending

Do not confuse with eminent which means famous and respected; distinguished

167. Sclerotic

From, “Game Plan for HP,” by Tiernan Ray, 2/20/12, Barron’s:

If she's successful, Whitman's [Meg Whitman, CEO] mark on the $127 billion-in-revenue company (ticker: HPQ) could be as great as that of Louis Gerstner Jr., who turned around a flagging International Business Machines (IBM) in the 1990s -- a task many thought impossible -- by streamlining its sclerotic organization and bulking up its software offerings and service practices. Indeed, many observers look to IBM's software and services strategy as a model for the revivification of HP.

Sclerotic: becoming rigid and unresponsive; losing the ability to adapt

166. Elicit

From, “Show Me the Love... Or Not,” by Elizabeth Bernstein, 2/21/12, The Wall Street Journal:

Giving people often find reserved people intriguing; they like to elicit affection from someone who doesn't express it easily. And deep down, reserved types often like to be drawn out.

Elicit (verb): evoke or draw out (a response or fact) from someone by actions or questions

Do not confuse elicit with illicit (adjective) which means unlawful

165. Summon

From, “Syria unrest: Reporters' deaths spark Western outrage,” 2/23/12, BBC News:

Later, the Syrian ambassador to London was summoned to be told that the UK expected Damascus to arrange for the immediate repatriation of the journalists' bodies and to provide medical treatment for the injured British journalist.

Summon: authoritatively or urgently call on (someone) to be present

Repatriate: to send [someone] back to their own country

164. Avert

BBC News World headline...

"Greece averted nightmare scenario - finance minister"

Ponder: What do you infer will be the major content of the article?

Avert: prevent; avoid; ward off [an undesirable occurrence]

163. Tether

From, “60 Lives, 30 Kidneys, All Linked,” by Kevin Sack, 2/18/12, The New York Times:

Many of the 400,000 Americans who are tethered to dialysis dream of a transplant as their pathway back to normal. But with the demand for kidneys rising faster than the number of donors, the waits have grown longer. While about 90,000 people are lined up for kidneys, fewer than 17,000 receive one each year, and about 4,500 die waiting, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, which maintains the wait list for the government.

Tether: to fasten or restrain; tie (an animal) with a rope or chain so as to restrict its movement

162. Luster

From, “Young Mothers Describe Marriage’s Fading Allure,” by Sabina Tavernise, 2/18/12, The New York Times:

Marriage has lost its luster in Lorain, Ohio. Sixty-three percent of all births to women under 30 in Lorain County occur outside marriage, according to Child Trends, a research center in Washington.

Luster; soft reflected light- sheen; brilliance or radiance of light- brightness

161. Encroach

From, "Latvia votes on making Russian an official language," 2/18/12, BBC News:

 

Ethnic Russians make up around a third of Latvia's two million population, and have long complained of discrimination.

But many ethnic Latvians believe the referendum is an attempt to encroach on the country's independence.

Encroach: intrude on (a person's territory or a thing considered to be a right)

160. Impropriety

From, “Rupert Murdoch in UK to tackle Sun arrests fallout,” 2/12/12, BBC News UK:

Last year News Corporation closed the News of the World over impropriety.

Revelations that staff employed by the newspaper hacked the phones of public figures prompted the closure of the 168-year-old paper.

Impropriety: a failure to observe standards or show due honesty or modesty; improper language, behavior, or character

159. Infectious; Entrancement; Imperiousness

From, “Out of Office, but Not Out of Things to Say,” by Erica Goode, 2/14/12, The New York Times:

The lunches are mentioned frequently in Mr. Brown’s [Willie Brown, former mayor of San Francisco] own Chronicle column, Willie’s World. And in their way, the gatherings capture the qualities that have made him so lastingly compelling to both his fans and critics — his mischievous wit and infectious charm, his entrancement with power and celebrity, his fondness for $5,000 suits and $2,000 shoes, his loyalty and, at times, imperiousness on full display.

Infectious: easily or readily communicated

Entrancement:  filled with delight, wonder, or enchantment

Imperiousness: arrogance; haughtiness

158. Ruminate

From, “Mindful Eating as Food for Thought,” by Jeff Gordinier, 2/7/12, The New York Times:

For many people, eating fast means eating more. Mindful eating is meant to nudge us beyond what we’re craving so that we wake up to why we’re craving it and what factors might be stoking the habit of belly-stuffing.

……

The average American doesn’t have the luxury of ruminating on the intense tang of sriracha sauce at a monastery.

Sriracha: a Thai-style hot sauce, typically made from sun-ripened chili peppers, vinegar, garlic, sugar and salt

Ruminate: think deeply about something

157. Harbinger; Effluent

From, “As ‘Yuck Factor’ Subsides, Treated Wastewater Flows From Taps,” by Felicity Barringer, 2/9/12, The New York Times:

Almost hidden in the northern hills, the pilot water treatment plant here [San Diego] does not seem a harbinger of revolution. It cost $13 million, uses long-established technologies and produces a million gallons a day.

….

With climate change threatening to diminish water supplies in the fast-growing Southwest, more cities are considering the potential of reclaimed water. A new report from the National Academy of Sciences said that if coastal communities used advanced treatment procedures on the effluent that is now sent out to sea, it could increase the amount of municipal water available by as much as 27 percent.

Harbinger: one that indicates or foreshadows what is to come; a forerunner

Effluent: Something that flows out or forth, especially: A stream flowing out of a body of water, an outflow from a sewer or sewage system, a discharge of liquid waste, as from a factory or nuclear plant

156. Redacted

Steve Jobs FBI File Reveals Bomb Threat, 'Tendency To Distort Reality' And More

Bianca Bosker, 2/9/12, huff post

Though sections have been redacted and more than two dozen interviews are narrated in dry officialese, the Federal Bureau of Investigation's 191-page file on Steve Jobs, released Thursday, reveals numerous lively details about the Apple co-founder's personal life and professional past, as recounted to FBI agents by his colleagues, neighbors and friends.

Redact: edit (text) for publication; censor or obscure (part of a text) for legal or security purposes

154. Salutary

From, “Fannie Mae's Fire Sale,” by Jim McTague, 2/4/12, Barron’s:

IN CONTRAST, the U.S. rental market is hot. The supply of rentals is barely keeping pace with demand, and, consequently, rents have been rising. Crowe says that virtually all household formation since 2009 has been in rentals. 

A successful series of auctions could have a salutary effect on both localized rental markets and the economy as a whole, according to Martin Regalia, chief economist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 

But adding to the supply of rental units, the auctions could slow the rise in rents and even bring them down in some places. 

This, Regalia says, would not only benefit renters but have a salutary effect on the overall economy. Renters would have more cash to spend on other things.

Salutary: producing good effects; beneficial

153. Antithesis

From, “Why French Parents Are Superior,” by Pamela Druckerman, 2/4/12, The Wall Street Journal:

After a while, it struck me that most French descriptions of American kids include this phrase "n'importe quoi," meaning "whatever" or "anything they like." It suggests that the American kids don't have firm boundaries, that their parents lack authority, and that anything goes. It's the antithesis of the French ideal of the cadre, or frame, that French parents often talk about. Cadre means that kids have very firm limits about certain things—that's the frame—and that the parents strictly enforce these. But inside the cadre, French parents entrust their kids with quite a lot of freedom and autonomy.

Antithesis: A person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else

152. Pontificate

From, “No More Angling for the Best Seat; More Meetings Are Stand-Up Jobs,” by Rachel Emma Silverman, 2/2/12, The Wall Street Journal:

Stand-up meetings are part of a fast-moving tech culture in which sitting has become synonymous with sloth. The object is to eliminate long-winded confabs where participants pontificate, play Angry Birds on their cellphones or tune out.

Pontificate: to speak or express your opinion about something in a way that shows that you think you are always right

151. Exact; Exert

From, “U.S. Planning to Slash Iraq Embassy Staff by as Much as Half,” by Tim Arango, 2/7/12, The New York Times:

American officials believed that Iraqi officials would be far more cooperative than they have been in smoothing the transition from a military operation to a diplomatic mission led by American civilians. The expansion has exacted a toll on Iraqi ministries, which are keen to exert their sovereignty after nearly nine years of war and occupation, and aggravated long-running tensions between the two countries.

Exact: to force/demand something from someone or yielding of

Exert: to put to use or effect; put forth

150. Acrimony

From, “Russia and China Block U.N. Action on Crisis in Syria,” by Neil MacFarquhar and Anthony Shadid, 2/4/12, The New York Times:

A United Nations Security Council effort to end the violence in Syria collapsed in acrimony with a double veto by Russia and China on Saturday, hours after the Syrian military attacked the city of Homs in what opposition leaders described as the deadliest government assault in the nearly 11-month uprising.

Acrimony: bitter, sharp animosity, especially as exhibited in speech or behavior

149. Milieu

From, “Poland's Nobel Poet Szymborska Dies at 88,” 2/1/12, The Wall Street Journal:

Ms. Szymborska was born in the village of Bnin, now part of Kornik, near Poznan in western Poland on July 2, 1923. Eight years later she moved with her parents to Krakow, and developed deep ties to the medieval city, with its rich artistic and intellectual milieu. She lived there until her death.

Milieu: the physical or social setting in which people live or in which something happens or develops

148. Inconspicuous and Unpretentious

From, “Made Better in Japan,” by Tom Downey, 1/27/12, The Wall Street Journal:

The place, located in the tony, mostly residential district of Shirokanedai, is small, inconspicuous and unpretentious – everything that three-star restaurants in France generally aren’t.

Inconspicuous:  not clearly visible or attracting attention; imperceptible

Unpretentious:  pleasantly simple and functional; modest

147. Acerbic

 From, “On ‘X Factor,’ 2 Judges and Host Get the Ax,” by Brian Stelter, 1/31/12, The New York Times:

Ms. Abdul, who has been close to the acerbic Mr. Cowell for years, having served as a fellow judge and constant foil on “American Idol,” said in a statement on Tuesday that she has “absolute understanding of the situation” and added that Mr. Cowell would remain a “dear friend.” She said, “I’ve learned through my longevity in this industry that business decisions often times override personal considerations.”

Acerbic: sharp or biting, as in character or expression

146. Haute bourgeoisie

From, Made Better in Japan, by Tom Downey, 1/27/12, The Wall Street Journal:

“During the robust economy of the 80’s, Japan’s exports ruled, and the country would import the best that money could buy from the rest of the globe, including Italian chefs and French sommeliers. Which made Japan an haute bourgeoisie heaven where luxury manufacturers from the West expected skyrocketing sales forever.”

Haute: elegant or high class

Bourgeoisie: the middle class in society [typically referring to its perceived materialistic values]

145. Dispel

From, “Buoyant Romney Speaks of Victory in Florida,” by Jim Rutenberg and Jeff Zeleny, 1/20/12, The New York Times:

Even if Mr. Romney wins here and dispels the immediate doubts about his ability to withstand the challenge from Mr. Gingrich, he will still face a critical question: Is this the beginning of the end of the Republican presidential nominating season — or just the beginning?

Dispel: To rid one's mind of

144. Cacophony

From, A Night of Jazz by Jahan Sharif, 2/1/12:

I closed my eyes for a moment. The atmosphere calmed my mind, and soon the music had me in a trance. The snare drum— distinct yet restrained— peppered the jazz like the mmms and ohhs from the reacting crowd. As my mind got lost in the cacophony, goose bumps overcame my body— clearly I was delirious. Then, in a moment of clarity, I began to think.

Cacophony: A harsh, discordant mixture of sounds

143. Nefarious

From, “Saving Freshman Ryan,” by Joe Nocera, 1/30/12, The New York Times:

I’ve also heard that the N.C.A.A. is deeply suspicious of mentors to disadvantaged athletes. Its working assumption is that men who get close to high school athletes must have nefarious motives. Well, some surely do, but some don’t.

Nefarious: Infamous by way of being extremely wicked