atrocious

atrocious

adjective.  shockingly cruel, unpleasant, bad

"But, truly, I have wept too much! The dawns are heartbreaking. Every moon is atrocious and every sun bitter." - Arthur Rimbaud
"Seahawks come up three feet short to their second consecutive Super Bowl championship after the atrocious play call."
"Murder is an atrocious crime."
"an atrocious painting, atrocious manners."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/atrocious

staggering

staggering

adjective.  astonishing, astounding, overwhelming, shocking

"Staggering iPhone demand helps lift Apple's quarterly profit by 38%.  The company said it sold 38.5 million iPhones in this quarter.  The total equates to more than 34,000 phones an hour, around the clock."
"America's student loan debt level has reached a staggering total of $1.16 trillion. It is more than the combined GDP of Denmark, Greece, Chile and Israel."
"We see staggering corruption everywhere, with lots of talks and absolutely zero accountability for the perpetrators."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/staggering

procrastinate

procrastinate

verb.  delay, put off until a later time

"We tend to procrastinate on little things and big things; on things we should be doing at home, for work or for school.  Some of us procrastinate perhaps, because we are not excited or passionate about what needs to be done."
"How to combat the natural tendency to procrastinate?"
"People expecting a large refund typically file their tax returns earlier; those who will owe Uncle Sam on April 15 are more likely to procrastinate."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/procrastinate

painstaking

painstaking

adjective.  with great care and effort, meticulous

"The death penalty trial of accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev -- long delayed by painstaking jury selection, crippling snowstorms and last-ditch appeals to move the case to someplace else -- finally is scheduled to begin here next week."
"Rescue efforts are painstaking and slow, and only take place during daylight hours."
"The book describes the election process in painstaking detail."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/painstaking

quintessential

quintessential 

adjective. embodying, possessing or representing the essence of something; absolute necessary 

"It is the private automobile - the quintessential symbol of freedom and independence."

"Helen of Troy was supposedly the quintessential beauty of the ancient world."

"He was the quintessential tough guy - strong, silent and self-contained. "

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/quintessential

empathy

empathy 

noun. understand and enter into another's feeling 

"Empathy is about standing in someone else's shoes, feeling with his or her heart, seeing with his or her eyes. Not only empathy is hard to outsource, but it makes the world a better place."

"When Bill Clinton famously told people "I feel your pain" in his 1992 election campaign, some praised and others ridiculed him for showing empathy, the sharing or understanding feelings."

"I've always thought of acting as more of an exercise in empathy." - Actor Edward Norton (Birdman)

empathy vs. sympathy 

empathy is a strong word - you experience other people's feelings, pain or joy. 

Sympathy is easier - you just feel sorry or sad for someone's misfortune. 

"Send a sympathy card if someone's car died; feel empathy if your cat died, too."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/empathy

calamity

calamity 

noun. A great disaster or catastrophe 

"Australian mammals are facing extinction calamity."

"Australia warns of calamity as massive cyclone roars ashore."

"NASA study warns USA an unprecedented natural calamity due to climate change."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/calamity

gregarious

gregarious 

adjective. (of people) very social and enjoy being in the crowd; (of animals) living in flocks or herds 

"Westerners have come to prize gregarious and decisive leaders, while Asian cultures value quiet strength and considered decisions."

"He is a quite gregarious little guy, so he will be talking to all these kids here."

"Hornbills are large gregarious birds that mate for life."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/gregarious

auspicious

auspicious 

adjective. promising success, favorable, good luck 

"This year is a Sheep year in China. Sleeps are generally regarded as auspicious, said to bring the world a year of calmness and stability."

"The use of color red is considered auspicious in China."

"Rafael Nadal is off a auspicious start in Rio Open."

http://www.yourdictionary.com/auspicious

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/auspicious

pervert

pervert 

verb. change for the worse, deviate, distort 

"We are not at wars with Islam, we are at wars with them who have perverted Islam, President Barack Obama told Whit House summit."

"On Wednesday, a 30-year-old-man was arrested on suspicion of attempting to pervert the course of justice and theft."

"The rules that American football craves have perverted the sport. For example, Green Bay was not allowed an offensive play in overtime against Seattle."

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perversion

eerie

eerie

adjective. spooky, creepy 

"Dark old castles, misty graveyards and creaky sounds in the middle of the night are eerie."

"Every year, millions of Chinese residents leave Beijing to travel to their hometowns for Chinese New Year. This annual migration has left the one of the world's most populous cities eerily deserted during the holiday."

"The recent snowstorm has turned the abandoned malls into winter wonderland.  

Lake "Erie" is not "eerie". It has one less letter e. 

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/#word=eerie

strain

strain

verb. stretch; exert to full capacity

"Athletes strain their knees, which strains the emotions of their fans."

"The U.S. and China relationship is often strained at best, not only due to trade, but also thanks to cyber security issues."

"Ukraine ceasefire is under strain just within hours coming into effect."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/strain?family=Strain

dire

dire

adjective. extremely serious or urgent, causing great fear, nearly hopeless 

"Ukraine situation is dire and worsening, US official says."

"The decision will have a dire consequence to local people."

"This family is in dire need, they need immediate help."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/dire

essence

essence 

noun. intrinsic nature or indispensable quality of something 

"Conflict is the essence of drama."

"The essence of Las Vegas is poker chips and dreams."

"Can a computer change the essence of who we are?"

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/essence

stifle

stifle 

verb.  to prevent or stop; kill by choking 

"High taxes are stifling private enterprises."

"Patent law reform bill to stop trolls could also stifle innovation, critics say."

"My friend always tries to stifle his tears during  sappy parts of movies."

"stifles a giggle"

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/stifle

poignant

poignant

adjective. touch your feeling deeply

"Gangaa is a poignant story of a spirited girl."
"poignant memory, poignant movie, poignant moment, ..."
"to create a touching and poignant theatrical experience.

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/poignant

heyday

heyday

noun. a period of greatest success or popularity

"Cindy Crawford says the heyday of modeling is long gone."
"Bob Simon was a foreign correspondent in the heyday of CBS news."
"Remember RadioShack's heyday?"
"The early twentieth century was the heyday of the steam locomotive."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/heyday

inevitable

inevitable

adjective. certain to happen, unavoidable

"With just five northern white rhinos left on earth (in Kenya), the animal's extinction is inevitable."
"You can use all the skin products you want, but wrinkles are inevitable."
"Is a climate disaster inevitable?"

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/inevitable

peculiar

peculiar

adjective. odd, strange, unusual

"Love is a peculiar thing." - Georg Büchner
"An old and peculiar driving law in New Jersey:  all motorists must honk before passing another car, bicyclist, skater or even a skateboarder."
"Australian scientists observed peculiar cosmic radio burst in real time."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/peculiar

disgruntled

disgruntled

adjective. dissatisfied, angry

"Knicks owner James Dolan emailed to a disgruntled fan: Go root for the Nets."
"You could become a disgruntled employee if your boss swipes all your best ideas without giving you credit."
"The store manager tried to calm a disgruntled customer."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/disgruntled

staunch

staunch 

adjective.  strongly loyal, firm 

"Jordan, a staunch Western ally, is  a member of the coalition."

"staunch supporter"

"Proposed winter wood burning ban draws staunch opposition in Utah."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/staunch?family=Staunch

tout

tout 

verb.  To praise, boast or brag about 

"Obama touts his free community college plan at Indiana town hall."

"Sometimes parents will get into bragging wars about their children, each touting the accomplishments of his or her child."

"Some insurance companies are now touting their new services on local radio."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/tout

blunder

blunder

noun. a stupid or embarrassing mistake
verb. to make such mistake

"Seattle coach Pete Carroll committed a blunder for the ages."
"An example of blunder is someone referring to a man's wife as his daughter."
“Over the years Comcast has provided some of the greatest customer service blunders the Internet has ever seen.”

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/blunder

galvanize

galvanize

verb.  to stimulate or excite as if by an electric shock, to simulate someone into action

The word was coined to honor the 18th Century scientist Luigi Galvani, who found that a spark could make a frog's legs move.

"The extremists' brutal killing could backfire and galvanize other Sunni Muslims in the region against them."
"Such events promote health and fitness, stimulate the local economy, galvanize the community and benefit charitable organizations."
"His passion galvanized his voters."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/galvanize

cringe

cringe

verb. to shrink, bend or crouch in embarrassment or disgust

"Cheering. Cringing. Loving. Hating. But Watching. -- Super Bowl Magnified Love-Hate Relationship With N.F.L."
"Fans on Sunday got both — again. Cheer for it or cringe over it, it’s just business as usual in the N.F.L."
"Whether it's a song you hate or someone mentioning an embarrassing moment from the past, you cringe at things that are unpleasant."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/cringe

botch

botch

verb. perform poorly, ruin

"Pete Carroll botched the Super Bowl."
"Idina Menzel did not botch the national anthem at the Sunday's Super Bowl, finally."
"The book store botched my order—I received only half the books I paid for."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/botch

inexplicable

inexplicable

adjective.  unable to be explained, doesn't make sense

"And until a final, inexplicable play call at the goal line with seconds left, the Seahawks had played a brilliant, gutsy game."
"40 dogs have inexplicably vanished from a Taxes town."
"When you are late for absolutely no reason, this is an example of inexplicable tardiness."

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/inexplicable