Essay words

• Antecedent

  • A precursor, or proceeding event for something
• Bastian

  An institution/place/person that strongly maintains particular principles, attitudes or activities
• Bellwether

  Something that indicates a trend
• Catalyst 


  An agent that provokes or triggers a change
• Defunct


  No longer existing or functioning
• Entrenched


  Characterised by something that is firmly established
• Foster


  To encourage the development of something
• Impetus 


  Something that makes a process or activity happen faster
• Galvanize


  To shock or excite someone into taking action
• Lucrative


  Having a large reward
• Myriad


  Countless or extremely large in number
• Precipitate


  To cause something to happen suddenly or unexpectedly
• Proponent

  A person who advocates for something
• Revitalise


  To give something new life and vitality
• Ubiquitous

  Characterised by being everywhere; widespread
• Automaton


  A mindless follower
• Belie


  To fail to give a true impression of something
• Dracorian


  Characterised by strict laws, rules and punishment
• Duplicitous 


  Deliberately deceitful in speech/behaviour
• Egregious


  Consciously bad; extremely evil
• Insidious


  Proceeding in a subtle way but with harmful effects
• Myopic

  Short-sighted
• Pernicious 


  Dangerous and harmful
• Renegade


  Person who betrays an organisation as worthy of disgrace or disaproval
• Stigmatise


  To describe or regard as worthy of disgrace or disappointment
• Superfluous


  Unnecessary
• Venal


  Corrupt
• Virulent


  Extremely sever or harmful in its affects
• Zealot


  A person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their religious, political or other ideas
• Autonomy


  Independent; the right to make decisions for oneself
• Dichotomy


  A division between two things that are presented as opposites or entirely different
• Disparity


  A great difference between things
• Divisive 


  Causing disagreement or hostility between people
• Egalitarian


  Favouring social equality and equal rights
• Ascetic


  Sever; self discipline; one who avoids self indulgence
• Culpable


  Deserving of the blame
• Denigrate 


  To criticise unfairly
• Reverence 


  Massive respect for someone or something
• Omnipresent


  Being everywhere at the same time
• Welter


  Moving in a turbulent or non orderly manner