MY VOCABULARY #1

1) archetype (noun) - representing the purest, most ideal essence of something
Example: Aristotle's works are widely recognized as the archetype of modern philosophy.

2) ataraxia (noun) - a state of serene calmness and tranquility
Example: Lying in bed and listening to the rain allowed me to slip into a pleasant state of ataraxia.

3) causation (noun) - a relationship between two events that occurs when one event gives rise to the other
Example: The causation of conscious experience is a mystery that scientists and philosophers are unable to unravel.

4) cogent (adjective) - convincing or compelling (usually describes an argument or a case)
Example: The candidate's speech was cogent enough to get him elected, even though he was the underdog.

5) confection (noun) - something that is elaborately constructed
Example: The clock took 15 years to assemble--it is quite the confection.

6) efficacy (noun) - capacity to produce a desired effect
Example: He lacked the efficacy to complete the project before the deadline. 

7) evocative (adjective) - serving to bring to mind (especially in an emotional sense)
Example: The movie was so evocative that half of the audience was left teary-eyed.

8) fervor (noun) - intense and passionate feeling or emotion
Example: The fervor of the show slowly dissipated in the following hours.

9) flow (noun) - a mental state characterized by complete and total focus on the task at hand
Example: Once the guitarist reached a state of flow, he was able to shred extremely technical solos that he normally wouldn't have been able to touch.

10) fortuitous (adjective) - happening by chance rather than design; showing good luck
Example: His discovery of the buried treasure was completely fortuitous--he was merely trying to recover a lost possession from a gofer hole.

11) galvanic (adjective) - eliciting a strong emotional reaction
Example: The galvanic performance was met with a standing ovation.

12) ignominious (adjective) - marked with or deserving disgrace or shame
Example: It was difficult for the fighter to return home after suffering an ignominious defeat at the hands of his rival.

13) imbue (verb) - to permeate or saturate deeply (can be used literally or figuratively)
Example: My grandfather created a surf film which he wanted to call 'imbue' in virtue of surfers being saturated from spending so much time in the ocean, but he didn't care for the way the word is spelled so he took it upon himself to change it to 'inbue'.

14) intonation (noun) - accuracy of pitch in singing or playing an instrument
Example: The virtuoso carved out the notes with with perfect intonation and apparent ease.

15) noumenon (noun) - a thing qua itself (independent of perception)
Example: While a phenomenon would be the thing that we observe or perceive, a noumenon would be the thing itself.

16) ratiocinative (adjective) - characterized by logical reasoning
Example: It is important for a person to be ratiocinative inasmuch as he/she can think critically and draw his/her own conclusions based on the facts.

17) substratum (noun) - an underlying layer from which something derives its special qualities
Example: The best way to understand the concepts is to understand the substratum from which they are derived.

18) suprasegmental (adjective) - significant figures of speech that are separate from, but occur at the same time as standard consonantal and vocalic components
Example: Suprasegmental elements such as stress and tone are often arbitrarily supplemented into speech in order to help the speaker denote his/her intended meaning.  

19) privation (noun) - the lack of something that would normally be present
Example: The privation of sufficient water and sunlight caused the plants to die.

20) visceral (adjective) - dealing with unrefined emotion as opposed to logic and reason
Example: Being visceral to one extent or another is what sets sentient beings apart from machines.