This Week in Words: July 16-21, 2017

No time to scour the headlines or watch the news? No problem! We’ve rounded up the top ten words heard, read, debated, and discussed this week. This was a week of firsts: Roger Federer set a tennis record, and the BBC announced that for the first time, Dr. Who will regenerate in female form. People who often disagree with commentator Ann Coulter may have found themselves agreeing with her for the first time as she excoriated an airline on Twitter. The first female Fields Medalist died this week, too. As for other losses, many brides lost their shot at a stress-free wedding as the closing of a bridal boutique chain led to a panicked frenzy. A solo Hulk movie looks like a lost cause, and Donald Trump, Jr. lost credibility in the eyes of many. Take a look back at the week that was, vocabulary style.
10 words 931 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. summit
    the top or extreme point of something
    The ...excellence of the creative scientist and humble person ...was a turning point in introducing Iranian women and youth on their way to conquer the summits of pride and various international stages.
    - The New York Times (July 16, 2017)
    Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman and the first person of Iranian descent to win the Fields Medal, died this week of breast cancer at the age of 40. The Fields Medal is a mathematics prize given to young scholars, and is considered the equivalent of the Nobel prize. Mirzakhani was certainly at the top, or summit of her field. Mirzakhani's research was about dynamics and motion, modeling phenomena like the movement of billiard balls on a table.
  2. peripatetic
    traveling especially on foot
    Federer fared better in his quest. It has been that kind of season, one for him and his peripatetic family to savor. -The New York Times ( July 16, 2017)
    Roger Federer won a record eighth Wimbledon men's singles title this week. Federer, like all elite international athletes, leads a peripateticexistence, always traveling around the world to different tournaments and living out of hotel rooms. As luxurious as the accommodations may be, non-stop jet-setting sounds pretty exhausting. That Roger Federer can do that much traveling and still be as cool as he is is an achievement in itself.
  3. frenzy
    state of violent mental agitation
    As news sites reported the closings, brides-to-be were sent into a frenzy to track down dresses they paid for.
    -foxnews.com ( July 16, 2017)
    Alfred Angelo, the bridal salon chain, suddenly closed their stores this week and has begun proceedings to declare bankruptcy. The problem is that there are many brides who have already purchased their gowns and cannot get them altered or delivered in time for their weddings. Talk about causing a frenzy! This situation would turn just about any level-headed bride into a "bridezilla."
  4. tenuous
    lacking substance or significance
    He’s expressed frustration with the studio’s inability to strike a deal with Marvel for years, and his latest comments aren’t likely to improve the tenuous situation, to say the least. - vulture.com ( July 15, 2016)
    Mark Ruffalo revealed to moviegoers in an interview this week that a stand-alone Hulk movie starring Ruffalo was not in the cards. The reason has to do with ownership of the character and the relationship between movie studios, but who really cares why? HULK SMASH! HULK WANT SOLO MOVIE!
  5. regeneration
    the act of forming again; renewing and reconstituting
    The actor told Radio Times that his regeneration as the Time Lord would be “more complicated than recent ones”. The Guardian (Jul 16, 2017)
    Sci-fi fans received a historic surprise this week when it was revealed that the thirteenth person to play the classic British character Dr. Who would be a woman. Actress Jodie Whittaker has been chosen to portray The Doctor in a move that has been largely applauded in the sci-fi community. Whenever a new actor takes over the role, The Doctor regenerates and assumes a different outer form. This time, the outer form will be very different, indeed.
  6. scorn
    lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
    Hillary Clinton can illegally get the questions to the Debate & delete 33,000 emails but my son Don is being scorned by the Fake News media?” he tweeted shortly before 7 a.m.
    - The New York Times ( July 16, 2017)
    This quote is from a tweet by President Trump. He is defending his son against allegations that he (Donald Jr.) met with Russian operatives to influence the presidential election. The use of scorn implies hatred and rejection. Here, the President is evoking the "vilified" aspect of scorn.
  7. excoriate
    express strong disapproval of
    Ms. Coulter excoriated the airline in social media posts after she was removed from a seat that she said she had specifically booked. -The New York Times ( July 17, 2017)
    Pundit Ann Coulter paid for a specific seat on a flight and claims she was moved from that seat. She took to social media to vehementyl complain about the airline. The latest outraged-passenger issue aside, excoriate is a terrific word to characterize anger. There is no apologizing after you really excoriate someone—you reveal all the secret hatred you have for them in a bile-filled rant, salting the earth of your friendship so nothing will ever grow there again.
  8. flout
    treat with contemptuous disregard
    Walter M. Shaub Jr., who is resigning as the federal government’s top ethics watchdog...said the Trump administration had flouted...long-accepted norms in a way that threatened...the United States’ ethical standards...
    - The New York Times ( July 17, 2017)
    The Director of the Office of Government Ethics resigned this week, and he did not go quietly. He, and many of President Trump's political opponents, are worried that the behavior of this administration will do irreparable harm to the reputation of the United States and the way our government functions. Of course, it is impossible to look into the future and see whether this will occur, and defenders of the President say that this behavior is merely a reflection of his own unique personality.
  9. eradicate
    destroy completely, as if down to the roots
    Conservatives wanted the Affordable Care Act eradicated, but moderates worried intensely about the effects that would have on their most vulnerable citizens.
    The New York Times ( July 17, 2017)
    There has been a further delay in the bill that was intended to "repeal and replace " Obamacare. Two more Republican senators have come out against the bill, leaving the senators unable to even vote to open debate on the issue. The rumored strategy now is said to be a bill that will just repeal Obamacare, with no replacement to follow in the near future, but interested parties on all sides of the political aisle will have to wait and see if that comes to pass.
  10. pathology
    any deviation from a healthy or normal condition
    "Subsequent tissue pathology revealed that a primary brain tumor known as a glioblastoma was associated with the blood clot," the hospital said in a statement.
    thehill.com ( July 19, 2017)
    Senator John McCain was diagnosed with brain cancer this week. McCain, a war hero and former Republican Presidential Nominee, is highly ranked and highly respected, so much so that the legislative body has been known to reschedule discussions and votes to accommodate McCain's health. It remains to be seen what the impact of this sad news will be on the Senate's upcoming agenda.
Created on Sun Jul 16 16:47:31 EDT 2017 (updated Thu Jul 20 22:56:39 EDT 2017)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.