unit four vocabulary
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Unit Four Vocabulary
via fer port
VIA: L. via “road, way”
VIA
viaduct – n. A bridge that carries a road or railroad over a valley L. via + ductum, “leading” = road leading
VIA
impervious – adj. Unable to be affected L. in, “not,” + per, “through,” + via = no way through syn. : invulnerable
VIA
deviate – v. To depart, esp. from a path or plan L. de, “off, away from,” + via = off the path syn. : stray
VIA
obviate – v. To make unnecessary; to avoid L. ob, “in the way of,” + via syn. : prevent
FER: L. ferre “to carry, to bring”
FER
defer – v. To put aside until later L. de, “off, away,” + ferre = put off syn. : postpone
FER
deference – n. Act or practice of yielding to another’s authority L. de, “off, away from,” + ferre = to put off (as an opinion)
FER
confer – v. To discuss something with someone else; consult L. con, “together,” + ferre = to carry together syn. : negotiate
FER
inference – n. A conclusion not directly provided by evidence, but able to be drawn from the facts at hand L. in, “in,” + ferre = to bring in
FER
proffer – v. To present or offer L. pro, “forward,” + ferre = to bring forward
FER
proliferate – v. To increase greatly in number, multiply L. proles, “offspring,” + ferre = to bring forth offspring syn. : reproduce
PORT: L. portare, portatum “to carry, to bring”
PORT
comportment – n. Manner in which one acts or behaves L. com, “with,” + portare = carry (oneself) with syn. : demeanor
PORT
purported – adj. Claimed as true, but probably false L. pro, “forward,” + portare = brought forth syn. : alleged
Allusions
Kafkaesque
Pavlov’s Dog/Pavlovian
Kafkaesque
Franz Kafka was a Czech, German-speaking writer whose works often dealt with surreal, anxiety producing situations. For example, in The Metamorphosis, the main character awakens to find that he has been transformed into a giant cockroach.
So, “Kafkaesque” refers to . . .
. . . a situation or experience that is bizarre, surreal, or anxiety-producing.
At the amusement park, we walked across a stationary platform surrounded by circular, rotating walls that produced the Kafkaesque sensation that we were falling. It was easier to walk when my eyes were closed!
Pavlov’s Dog/Pavlovian
Ivan Pavlov was a Russian scientist best known for his research on conditioned response. In his experiments, Pavlov rang a bell when presenting food to dogs. Seeing the food when Pavlov rang the bell conditioned the dogs to automatically salivate when they heard the bell.
So, “Pavlov’s dog” refers to . . .
. . . someone who automatically or instinctively responds to or obeys a signal. The adjective “Pavlovian” refers to such an automatic, unthinking response.
The students, like Pavlov’s dogs, began gathering their things to leave the room when the bell rang by accident.
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