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swarm. NOUN a group of many things in the air or on the ground A swarm is a good word for a large group of bees going on the attack — not good news. Like bees, any group of people or animals can be considered a swarm if they act together and quickly — even fiercely.	inept. ADJ generally incompetent and ineffectual A clumsy, incompetent person — or an ineffective action — is inept. When you're inept, you don't know what you're doing or just can't get it done.	conduct. NOUN/ADVERB (behavioral attributes) the way a person behaves toward other people / behave in a certain manner Conduct is about how you behave—“conduct unbecoming”—and also about carrying something through—“the survey was conducted in May and June.”

contrived. ADJ showing effects of planning or manipulation If you see something that seems fake since it was too perfectly planned out, call it contrived. If you can easily predict the final minutes of a made-for-TV movie, then call it contrived.	penmanship. NOUN beautiful handwriting Penmanship is the technique of writing with the hand using a writing instrument. The various generic and formal historical styles of writing are called hands, whilst an individual personal style of penmanship is referred to as handwriting.	entrust. VERB put into the care or protection of someone To entrust is to give someone a responsibility you assume s/he will fulfil. If you entrust someone with the task of getting you to school on time, make sure s/he’s punctual.

overzealous. ADJ marked by excessive enthusiasm for and intense devotion to a cause or idea Overzealous describes someone who gets too excited about something, like your mom, the overzealous collector of cute kitten figurines that now fill every table and shelf in the house.	obsolete. ADJ no longer in use Use the adjective obsolete for something that is out of date. As the Rolling Stones song “Out of Time” goes, “You’re obsolete, my baby, my poor old-fashioned baby.”	gallant. ADJ having or displaying great dignity or nobility / unflinching in battle or action If you volunteered to deal with removing a huge, hairy spider from your bathroom ceiling, your whole family would be grateful for your gallant actions. The adjective gallant means “heroic or brave.”

arbitrarily. ADVERB in a random manner Something said or done arbitrarily, is done randomly or without much thought, like when you arbitrarily eat whatever happens to be on the buffet table at your cousin's wedding.	lax. ADJ lacking in rigor or strictness That dad who buys beer for his teenage kids? His parenting style might be described as lax. A paperclip chain used as a bike lock? That would be an example of lax security.	prostrate. ADJ stretched out and lying at full length along the ground The verb prostrate means “to make helpless or defenseless.” Illness, injury, food poisoning, grief — any of these things can prostrate people, or cause them to lie down in a helpless position.

farce. NOUN a comedy characterized by broad satire and improbable situations A farce is a broad satire or comedy, though now it's used to describe something that is supposed to be serious but has turned ridiculous. If a defendant is not treated fairly, his lawyer might say that the trial is a farce.	utilize. VERB put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose To utilize is to use what you have or what’s available, and it’s a three-syllable word meaning the same thing as the one-syllable “use.”	coerce. VERB to cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral or intellectual means You can bring a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. You can coerce — or pressure — someone to attend your office holiday party, but you can't make them have fun.

lamentable. ADJ bad; unfortunate Something that's lamentable is unfortunate. If your basketball team gets killed in the final game, you could call it a lamentable way for the season to end.	watertight. ADJ not allowing water to pass in or out The adjective ‘watertight’ means that something is made or planned so tightly that even water cannot enter or escape through it. If something has no flaws or loopholes and is impossible to fault, they will say that it is watertight.	exponentially. ADVERB in an exponential manner Use exponentially when you want to say that something's increasing quickly by large amounts. Your friends and colleagues will be pleased to hear that your vocabulary is growing exponentially.

plebeian. NOUN one of the common people In Roman times, the lower class of people was the plebeian class. Today, if something is plebeian, it is of the common people.	dispense. VERB grant a dispensation; grant an exemption To dispense means to give out or distribute something. A school nurse can dispense students' medication and we all can dispense advice.	uphold. VERB stand up for; stick up for; of causes, principles, or ideals When you uphold something, you stick up for or support it. Police officers are paid to uphold the law, and crazy Elvis fans uphold their belief that he's still alive out there somewhere.

moribund. ADJ being on the point of death; breathing your last Something that is moribund is almost dead, like the moribund plant you didn't water for months, or so without change or growth that it seems dead, like a moribund town that seems trapped in the 1950s.	penance. NOUN voluntary self-punishment in order to atone for some wrongdoing Penance is the act of doing a good deed to make up for past wrongs. Shovelling your neighbour's sidewalk all winter could be your penance for not helping rake the leaves that dropped from your tree into his yard during the fall.	melee. NOUN a noisy riotous fight A melee is a noisy free-for-all or rowdy fight — a no holds barred, battle royal, if you will. It's what pro wrestlers engage in every night, and shoppers endure at the toy store every holiday season.

intransigence. NOUN the trait of being intransigent; stubbornly refusing to compromise If you refuse to compromise with your sister about whose turn it is to do the dishes, your mother might accuse you both of intransigence. Intransigence is a stubborn refusal to change your views.	disposition. NOUN your usual mood Someone's disposition is their mood or general attitude about life. If your friend woke up on the wrong side of the bed, tell her that she might need a disposition makeover.	allocate. VERB distribute according to a plan or set apart for a special purpose To allocate is to set aside a certain amount of money for an expense. You usually hear about the government allocating funds for education or the military, but you may personally allocate some of your allowance to buying comic books.

diligent. ADJ characterized by care and perseverance in carrying out tasks Someone who is diligent works hard and carefully. If you want to write the epic history of your family, you'll have to be very diligent in tracking down and interviewing all of your relatives.	defer. VERB hold back to a later time / yield to another's wish or opinion Defer means to put off or delay. You can try to defer the inevitable by pushing “snooze” and falling back asleep, but eventually you're going to have to get up.	awry. ADVERB away from the correct or expected course When something goes wrong with a decent plan, you say it has gone awry. You accidentally forget your backpack in the airport? That's a mistake. When the airline loses your suitcase? That's when something has gone awry.

periodical. ADJ happening or recurring at regular intervals If your weekend ritual includes reading the Sunday paper from front to back and then comparing stories in the latest celebrity gossip magazines, you appreciate periodicals, publications that come out on a regular basis.	distrait. ADJ having the attention diverted especially because of anxiety Distrait means “preoccupied with worry.” If you can't concentrate on the hot gossip your friend is sharing with you because you can't stop thinking about what your mom is going to say about the window you accidentally broke, you’re distrait.	traipse. VERB walk or tramp about To traipse is to walk around with a sloppy or aimless attitude. A bored high school student might traipse through a museum on a class trip, for example.