Mercurial (adjective) Subject to sudden, unpredictable changes in mood.
Example: Her mercurial temper meant coworkers never knew if she'd greet them warmly or coldly.
Mnemonic: Named after the swift, shifting messenger god Mercury — a mercurial person's mood changes just as fast as the god could move.
Misanthrope (noun) A person who dislikes or distrusts people in general.
Example: The old misanthrope moved to a cabin in the woods specifically to avoid his neighbors.
Mnemonic: Greek 'misos' (hatred) plus 'anthropos' (human) — a misanthrope more or less hates humanity as a whole.
Mitigate (verb) To make a harmful or serious situation less severe.
Example: Wearing a helmet won't prevent every injury, but it can mitigate the damage in a crash.
Mnemonic: Rooted in Latin 'mitis,' meaning mild — to mitigate something is to make it milder.
Mollify (verb) To calm someone's anger or soothe hurt feelings, often with a concession.
Example: The airline offered a free upgrade to mollify the passengers stuck on the delayed flight.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'mollis,' soft — to mollify someone is to soften their anger.
Morose (adjective) Gloomy, sullen, and unwilling to be cheerful.
Example: He'd been morose ever since the team lost the championship game.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'morosus,' meaning sullen or peevish — a morose person wears that sullen mood right on their face.
Nadir (noun) The lowest possible point of something, especially a situation or a person's fortunes.
Example: Losing the family's savings in one bad investment marked the nadir of his financial life.
Mnemonic: An old astronomical term for the point in the sky directly opposite the zenith (the highest point) — the nadir is the exact bottom, opposite the top.
Nascent (adjective) Just beginning to develop or exist; in an early, emerging stage.
Example: The company invested heavily in its nascent artificial intelligence division.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'nasci,' to be born (as in 'nativity') — something nascent has only just been born.
Nebulous (adjective) Vague, unclear, or lacking any definite shape or form.
Example: Her plans for the future remained nebulous, with no clear career path in sight.
Mnemonic: From 'nebula,' a cloud of gas in space with no fixed edges — nebulous ideas are just as fuzzy and undefined.
Nefarious (adjective) Extremely wicked or villainous.
Example: The cartoon villain hatched a nefarious plan to steal the town's water supply.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'nefas,' a crime against divine law — nefarious deeds are wicked at the deepest possible level.
Nonchalant (adjective) Coolly unconcerned or casual, as if nothing could bother you.
Example: She gave a nonchalant shrug when told her flight had been cancelled.
Mnemonic: French roots: 'non' (not) plus 'chaloir' (to be concerned) — nonchalant literally means 'not concerned.'
Novice (noun) A person who is new to and inexperienced in a particular activity or field.
Example: As a novice cook, he burned the rice twice before finally getting it right.
Mnemonic: Shares a root with 'novel' and Latin 'novus' (new) — a novice is simply someone new to the game.
Nuance (noun) A small, subtle distinction in meaning, tone, or expression.
Example: The translator worked hard to preserve every nuance of the original poem.
Mnemonic: From French 'nuer,' to shade colors — a nuance is a subtle shading of meaning, like one color blending into the next.
Nullify (verb) To make something legally or officially without effect; to cancel it out.
Example: The court moved to nullify the contract after discovering it had been signed under duress.
Mnemonic: Contains 'null,' meaning zero or nothing — to nullify is to reduce something down to nothing.
Obdurate (adjective) Stubbornly refusing to change one's mind or soften one's position.
Example: Despite hours of pleading, the landlord remained obdurate about the rent increase.
Mnemonic: Latin 'durus' means hard (as in 'durable') — an obdurate person has a will as hard and unyielding as stone.
Oblique (adjective) Indirect or slanting, especially describing speech that avoids being straightforward.
Example: Rather than accusing him directly, she made an oblique reference to the missing funds.
Mnemonic: Think of an 'oblique angle' in geometry, which slants instead of running straight — oblique remarks approach a topic from an angle instead of head-on.
Obliterate (verb) To destroy something so completely that no trace of it remains.
Example: The wildfire obliterated the small mountain town within hours.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'littera,' letter — to obliterate originally meant to blot out letters on a page until nothing was left legible.
Obstinate (adjective) Stubbornly sticking to an opinion or course of action despite pressure to change.
Example: The obstinate toddler refused to wear anything but his dinosaur costume for a week.
Mnemonic: Shares the Latin root 'stare' (to stand) with 'obstacle' — an obstinate person plants their feet and stands firm, an obstacle no one can budge.
Obtuse (adjective) Slow to understand or notice something obvious; mentally dull.
Example: He seemed strangely obtuse about why his constant jokes were upsetting his coworkers.
Mnemonic: In geometry, an 'obtuse angle' is wide and blunt rather than sharp — an obtuse mind is similarly blunt, missing the sharp point of things.
Officious (adjective) Offering unwanted help or advice in an overly pushy, meddling way, often to feel important.
Example: The officious hall monitor wrote up students for infractions that weren't even his to enforce.
Mnemonic: Looks like 'official,' but an officious person merely acts like an unelected official, meddling in duties that aren't theirs.
Onerous (adjective) Burdensome; requiring great effort and difficult to bear.
Example: The onerous paperwork required for the visa application took weeks to complete.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'onus,' meaning burden or load — onerous tasks carry a heavy weight.
Opaque (adjective) Not able to be seen through; by extension, difficult to understand or interpret.
Example: The company's opaque pricing policy left customers unsure what they were actually being charged for.
Mnemonic: Picture a solid oak door: light can't pass through it, just as understanding can't pass through something opaque.
Opulent (adjective) Displaying great and often showy wealth; luxurious.
Example: The hotel lobby was opulent, with marble floors and gold-trimmed chandeliers.
Mnemonic: Related to Latin 'ops,' meaning wealth or resources (also seen in 'copious') — opulent places overflow with riches.
Ostentatious (adjective) Showing off wealth or achievement in a way meant to impress or draw attention.
Example: He drove the most ostentatious car in the parking lot, just to make sure everyone noticed.
Mnemonic: Contains 'ostent-,' related to Latin 'ostendere,' to show — ostentatious behavior is all about showing off.
Painstaking (adjective) Done with great care and thoroughness, sparing no effort.
Example: Restoring the old painting required painstaking work under a magnifying glass.
Mnemonic: Literally 'taking pains' — painstaking effort means being willing to endure the pains, the hard work, needed to get something right.
Palliate (verb) To ease the symptoms of a problem without curing its underlying cause.
Example: The medication palliates the pain, but it doesn't address the disease causing it.
Mnemonic: From Latin 'pallium,' a cloak — to palliate is to cloak the suffering rather than remove its source.