2013.09.18 word (week2-3)

1. emancipate(v.)
+ obj] formal : to free (someone) from someone else's control or power 

 ▪ He felt the only way to emancipate himself from his parents was to move away.

* emancipated (a.)
▪ She considers herself an emancipated woman. [=a woman who is free from old social limitations and customs]

* emancipation (n.)
▪ the emancipation of the slaves

*emancipator (n.)

[count] chiefly US

▪ an emancipator of slaves ▪ Abraham Lincoln is sometimes called the Great Emancipator.

2. predominance (n.)
1) [noncount] : the state of being more powerful or important than other people or things
▪ a group of young reformers who have gained/won predominance within the government

2) [singular] : a situation in which there is a greater number or amount of a particular type of person or thing than of other people or things

 — often + of ▪ There is a predominance of older people in the neighborhood. [=most of the people in the neighborhood are older]

3.discern(v.)

[+ obj] 1 ) : to see, hear, or notice (something) with difficulty or effort
▪ We could just discern [=distinguish, make out] the ship through the fog.

2) : to come to know, recognize, or understand (something)
▪ The reasons behind this sudden change are difficult to discern.

*discernible (a.) [more discernible; most discernible]
▪ There is no discernible difference between the original and the copy.

*discernibly  (adv.) [more discernibly; most discernibly]
▪ The original and copy aren't discernibly different.

4. gradation (n.)     

[count] : a small difference between two points or parts that can be seen in something that changes gradually — often + of ▪ subtle gradations of color/meaning

 

5.repudiate(v.)

[+ obj] formal 1) : to refuse to accept or support (something) : to reject (something or someone) 
▪ He has publicly repudiated the government's policies.

2) : to say or show that (something) is not true
▪ He published an article that repudiates the study's claims.

*repudiation [count, noncount]
▪ His statements are a repudiation of the government's policies.