P Set4

platonic	adj. Platonic of or concerning the Greek philosopher Plato or his teachings
plaudit	n. (fml ) applause, praise or some other sign of approval
plausible	adj. seeming to be right or reasonable; believable
plebeian	adj. of the lower social classes
plebiscite	n. (decision made by a) direct vote by all qualified citizens on an important political matter
plenary	adj. attended by all who have the right to attend
plenitude	a full supply
plethora	n. quantity greater than what is needed; over-abundance
pliable	adj. easily bent, shaped or twisted; flexible
pliant	adj. bending easily; supple
plight	n. serious and difficult situation or condition
ploy	n. words or actions, eg in a game, intended to win an advantage over one's opponent
pluck	v. ~ sth gather or remove sth by pulling; pick sth
plumage	n. feathers covering a bird's body
plumb	n. piece of lead that is tied to a cord and used to find the depth of water or test whether a wall, etc is vertical ,
plumber	n. person whose job is to fit and repair water-pipes, water-tanks, cisterns, etc in buildings
plume	n. feather, esp a large one used as a decoration
plummet	n. plumb-line
plump	adj. (esp of an animal, a person, parts of the body) having a full rounded shape; fleshy
plutocracy	n. government by a rich and powerful class
podiatrist	n. = chiropodist
podium	n. small platform for the conductor of an orchestra, a lecturer, etc to stand on
poignancy	n. state or quality of being poignant
poise	v. be or keep balanced or suspended
polar	adj. of or near the North or South Pole
polarity	n. possession or location of negative and positive poles
polarize	to break up into opposing factions or groupings
polemic	n. ~ (against/in favour of sth/sb) speech, piece of writing, etc containing very forceful arguments (against or for sth/sb)
polemical	adj. of polemics
politic	adj. (of actions) well judged; prudent
polity	n. form or process of government
polygamist	man who practices this
polyglot	adj. knowing, using or written in many languages
pomposity	n. being pompous
ponderous	adj. slow and awkward because of great weight
pontifical	adj. of the Pope
pore	n. any of the tiny openings in the surface of the skin or of a leaf, through which moisture can pass
porous	adj. allowing liquid or air to pass through, esp slowly
porridge	n. soft food made by boiling a cereal in water or milk
portend	v. be a sign or warning of (sth in the future); foreshadow
portent	n. ~ (fml ) sign or warning of a future (often unpleasant) event; omen
portly	adj. (esp of an older person) having a stout body; fat
pose	v. ~ (for sb) sit or stand in a particular position in order to be painted, drawn or photographed
poseur	n. (derog) person who behaves in an unnatural affected way in order to impress others
posterity	n. following or future generations
posthumous	adj. happening or given after death
postmortem	occurring after death
postulate	v. put (sth) forward as a fact or accept (sth) as true, esp as a basis for reasoning or argument
posture	n. attitude or position of the body
potable	adj. fit for drinking; drinkable ;
potent	adj. (of drugs, etc) having a strong effect
potentate	n. ruler with direct power over his people; autocratic monarch
potential	adj. that can or may come into existence; possible
potion	n. drink of medicine, poison or a liquid used in magic
potpourri	heterogeneous mixture;
poultice	n. soft heated mass spread on a cloth and put on a sore place on the body to soothe pain, reduce swelling, etc
practicable	adj. that can be put into practice; workable
practical	adj. concerned with practiceand action rather than theory
pragmatic	adj. treating things in a sensible and realistic way; concerned with practical results
pragmatist	n. person who acts in a practical way
prance	v. move jerkily by raising the forelegs and springing forward from the hind legs
prank	n. playful or mischievous trick
prate	v. ~ (on about sth) talk or chatter too much (about sth)
prattle	v. ~ (away) (of a child) talk in a simple way; babble
preamble	n. ~ opening statement explaining the purpose of the book, document, lecture, etc that follows
precarious	adj. depending on chance; uncertain
precedent	n. earlier decision, case, event, etc that is regarded as an example or rule for what comes later
precept	n. rule or guide, esp for behaviour
precinct	n. area enclosed by definite boundaries, esp the walls of a cathedral, church or college
precipice	n. very steep or vertical face of a cliff, mountain or rock
precipitant	Moving onward quickly and heedlessly.
precipitate	v. cause (sth) to happen suddenly or soon(er); hasten
precipitous	adj. dangerously high or steep
precise	adj. stated clearly andaccurately
preclude	v. ~ sb from doing sth prevent (sth, or sb doing sth); make (sth) impossible
precocious	adj. (of a child) having developed certain abilities at an earlier age than usual
precursor	n. ~(of sth) person or thing that comes before sth; forerunner
predator	n. animal that kills and eats other animals
predatory	adj. (living by) killing other animals for food
predecessor	n. person who held an office or position before sb else
predetermine	v. decide or fix (sth) in advance; prearrange
predicament	n. difficult or unpleasant situation, esp one in which sb is uncertain what to do
predilection	n. ~ (for sth) special liking (for sth); preference
predispose	v. ~ sb to/towards sth influence sb (in a specified way) in advance
preeminent	having paramount rank, dignity, or importance:OUTSTANDING
preempt	to replace with something considered to be of greater value or priority:take precedence over
preen	v. clean or smooth (its feathers or itself) with its beak
prefatory	adj. acting as a preface; introductory
prefigure	v. represent beforehand (sth that will happen in the future); foreshadow
prehensile	adj. able to grasp and hold things
prelate	n. high-ranking clergyman, eg a bishop or an archbishop
prelude	n. ~ action or event that happens before another larger or more important one and forms an introduction to it
premeditate	v. plan in advance
premise	n. statement or idea on which reasoning is based; hypothesis
premonition	n. ~ feeling that sth unpleasant is going to happen
premonitory	adj. giving a warning
preponderance	superiority of power, quantity
prepossessing	adj. makinga good impression; attractive
preposterous	adj. completely contrary to reason or common sense; absurd or outrageous
prerogative	n. right or privilege, esp one belonging to a particular person or group
presage	n. sign that sth (esp sth unpleasant) will happen; omen ;
prescience	foreknowledge of events:a:divine omniscience b:human anticipation of the course of events:FORESIGHT
presentiment	n. vague feeling that sth (esp sth unpleasant) will happen; foreboding
prestige	n. respect based on good reputation, past achievements, etc
presume	v. suppose to be true; take (sth) for granted
presumptuous	adj. (of a person or his behaviour) too bold or self-confident
pretend	v. make oneself appear to be sth in order to deceive others or in play
pretension	n. ~ (making of a) claim