Political Discourse Vocabulary

noun a person who is honest and truthful

adjective frank, outspoken, open and sincere

• The candidate gave a candid response during the interview.
• I appreciate your candid feedback on my presentation.
• She's always so candid, it's refreshing to hear her thoughts.
• His candid emotions were written all over his face.

adjective open to discussion or argument; not settled or decided

• The issue of climate change is highly debatable among scientists.
• Whether pineapple belongs on pizza is a debatable topic among friends.
• His fashion choices are definitely debatable.
• The interpretation of the painting is debatable among art critics.

noun A person's opinion or perspective on something, often negative or critical

• The board members took a dim view of the company's financial performance.
• My parents take a dim view of me staying out late with my friends.
• The teacher took a dim view of us talking during class.
• She always takes a dim view of people who don't recycle.

verb to have or express a different opinion; to not be in agreement

• The two scholars strongly disagree on the interpretation of the ancient text.
• I just can't see eye to eye with her on this issue, we totally disagree.
• We're just not vibing on this, we totally disagree.
• Their opinions are like oil and water, they just can't agree on anything.

verb to have or express a different opinion; to not be in agreement

• The two parties were vehemently disagreeing on the terms of the contract.
• They were constantly disagreeing about which movie to watch.
• They were beefing hard, always disagreeing on everything.
• Their opinions were like oil and water, constantly disagreeing with each other.

verb to deny any responsibility or support for something; to reject or renounce

• The company's official statement was to disavow any involvement in the scandal.
• She quickly disavowed any knowledge of the situation when questioned by her friends.
• He straight up disavowed his ex-best friend after the betrayal.
• The artist chose to disavow traditional painting techniques in favor of a more experimental approach.

noun a newspaper or magazine article that expresses the opinion of the editor or publisher

adjective relating to the commissioning or preparing of material for publication

• The editorial board met to discuss the upcoming issue of the newspaper.
• I heard the editorial in the paper was really controversial.
• Did you see that editorial roasting the mayor?
• Her outfit was an editorial in bold fashion choices.

verb to become worse or more intense, especially through long-term neglect or indifference

• If left untreated, the wound could fester and become infected.
• I can't believe you let that issue fester for so long without addressing it.
• Don't let negative feelings fester inside you, talk to someone about it.
• The resentment between them continued to fester, causing tension in the workplace.

adjective causing or deserving strong dislike or hatred

• The politician's speech was filled with hateful rhetoric towards certain minority groups.
• I can't stand being around people who are so hateful all the time.
• Why are you being so hateful towards me? What did I do to deserve this?
• The storm clouds gathered in a hateful mass, ready to unleash their fury.

noun the common people; the masses

• The exclusive event was attended by high society individuals, far removed from the hoi polloi.
• The fancy restaurant is not really my scene, too many hoi polloi for my liking.
• I can't stand hanging out with the hoi polloi at that dive bar.
• The artist's work was not appreciated by the hoi polloi, but it was highly praised by art critics.

adjective not justifiable; inexcusable; unable to be defended

• The lawyer argued that the defendant's actions were indefensible in court.
• There is no way to defend what he did, it's just indefensible.
• That was totally indefensible, no excuses for that behavior.
• His decision to leave his family behind was seen as indefensible by his loved ones.

noun the action or process of instigating or inciting something

• The instigation of violence is never justified in any circumstance.
• His constant instigation caused a lot of tension among the group.
• Stop with the instigation, it's getting old.
• The instigation of change can lead to great progress in society.

adverb in spite of that; nevertheless

• The data shows a decrease in sales for the quarter, nonetheless, the company remains optimistic about future growth.
• I know it's been a tough week, but nonetheless, we should try to stay positive.
• I didn't get the job I wanted, but hey, nonetheless, life goes on.
• Like a diamond in the rough, she was flawed but nonetheless beautiful.

adjective excessively inflated or exaggerated; overly dramatic or sensationalized

• The media's coverage of the event was overblown and exaggerated.
• I think all the hype around that movie was totally overblown.
• The gossip about her new relationship is so overblown, it's ridiculous.
• His ego is so overblown, he thinks he's better than everyone else.

adjective showing an excessive concern with unimportant details or minor faults

• The petty cash fund should only be used for small, incidental expenses.
• I can't believe she's still upset over such a petty argument.
• Stop being so petty about it, it's not a big deal.
• His petty behavior was like a dark cloud hanging over the office.

noun bitterness or resentfulness, especially when long-standing

verb None

adjective None

adverb None

pronoun None

preposition None

conjunction None

interjection None

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• The political debate was filled with rancor as both sides refused to compromise.
• There's so much rancor between those two, it's hard to imagine them ever getting along.
• I can't stand the rancor between those two, it's so unnecessary.
• The rancor in the air was palpable, creating a tense atmosphere.

noun a denial of the truth or validity of something

• The company issued a formal repudiation of the allegations made against its CEO.
• She quickly made a strong repudiation of the false rumors spreading about her.
• I heard his repudiation of the party was epic!
• His actions were a clear repudiation of the values he once claimed to hold dear.

noun a feeling or display of moral superiority or self-importance

• His self-righteousness often alienates those around him.
• She's always so full of self-righteousness, it's annoying.
• Stop being so self-righteous, nobody likes a know-it-all.
• His self-righteousness is like a shield, protecting him from criticism.

noun a halt or stop

verb to be in or rise to an upright position on the feet

• The CEO asked everyone to stand for the national anthem.
• Hey, can you stand up and grab me a drink?
• I can't believe he stood me up on our date!
• She always stands by her principles no matter what.

noun the outer layer of skin that provides protection and insulation for the body

adjective having a tough or resilient quality that is able to withstand criticism or harsh treatment

• In order to handle criticism in the workplace, it is important to develop thick skin.
• You need to grow some thick skin if you want to survive in this industry.
• Stop being so sensitive, you need to toughen up and get some thick skin.
• Having thick skin means being able to handle difficult situations without being easily affected.

adjective describes a noun or pronoun, in this case indicating that something happened before it was expected or appropriate

adverb modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb, indicating the time at which an action takes place or the degree to which something is done

• It would be inappropriate to discuss the details of the incident so soon after it occurred.
• I think it's too soon to make any decisions about our next vacation.
• Dude, it's way too soon to start talking about Christmas decorations.
• She just broke up with her boyfriend, so it's too soon to start setting her up with someone else.

noun a person who intrudes or encroaches upon someone else's knowledge or beliefs without permission or authority

• The philosopher accused his colleague of being an epistemic trespasser for making claims without proper evidence.
• She's always acting like an epistemic trespasser, acting like she knows everything.
• Don't be such an epistemic trespasser, dude. You don't know what you're talking about.
• His constant questioning of established theories makes him an epistemic trespasser in the world of academia.

verb to delve deeply into a subject or issue, often getting bogged down in details or complexities

• During the meeting, we need to avoid getting into the weeds and stick to the main points.
• Let's not get into the weeds with all the details, just give me the highlights.
• I don't want to get into the weeds of this project, it's too complicated.
• Sometimes it's easy to get into the weeds of a problem and lose sight of the bigger picture.

adverb modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb to indicate manner, time, place, or degree

• The results of the study were dismayingly low, indicating a need for further research.
• I was dismayingly late to the meeting because of traffic.
• The price of the concert tickets was dismayingly high, I couldn't afford them.
• Her ability to turn any situation into a positive one is dismayingly impressive.

verb to cause (an event or situation) to happen or exist

adjective affected by a trigger, typically in a negative way

• The loud noise triggered a panic attack in the crowd.
• I get triggered whenever someone mentions spiders.
• She's so triggered by that topic, it's hilarious.
• His words triggered a wave of emotions in her heart.

• Cancel culture is a phenomenon where individuals or groups are ostracized or boycotted for their actions or beliefs.
• People are quick to jump on the cancel culture bandwagon without considering the full context.
• Cancel culture is so toxic, it's like one wrong move and you're done for.
• In the age of cancel culture, it feels like everyone is walking on eggshells.

noun a word that represents a person, place, thing, or idea

preposition a word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence

article a word that is used to specify a noun as definite or indefinite

• After careful consideration, we have decided to take that option off the table.
• Let's just take that idea off the table for now and focus on something else.
• That plan is totally off the table, let's think of something new.
• Her proposal to go on a vacation together is completely off the table now.

noun a discussion or conversation, especially for resolving a dispute or disagreement

• The diplomats believed that jaw-jaw was a better option than war-war in resolving the conflict.
• Let's just jaw-jaw about it instead of getting into a fight.
• We should just jaw-jaw it out and figure things out.
• Sometimes it's better to jaw-jaw with someone rather than argue and create tension.

noun an environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, so that their existing views are reinforced and alternative perspectives are not considered

• The academic community warned about the dangers of falling into an echo chamber of like-minded individuals.
• I try to expose myself to different viewpoints so I don't get stuck in an echo chamber.
• Don't just listen to your friends, you'll end up in an echo chamber.
• Her thoughts bounced around in her mind like echoes in an echo chamber.

noun a person who is opposed to vaccination, typically due to beliefs in discredited theories about their safety

• The doctor explained the importance of vaccines to the anti-vaxxer parent.
• My friend's mom is a total anti-vaxxer and refuses to get any shots.
• I can't believe that anti-vaxxer is spreading such nonsense.
• The anti-vaxxer's arguments were like trying to convince a brick wall.

verb to make something worse or more severe, to aggravate

• The lack of communication between departments is acerbating the efficiency of the project.
• His constant complaining is only acerbating the situation.
• Stop being so negative, you're just acerbating things.
• The constant rain is acerbating my mood, I need some sunshine.

noun A difference of opinion

• The board members had a difference of opinion regarding the new company policy.
• We all have a different opinion about where to go for lunch - just a difference of opinion.
• Me and my friend had a beef over something trivial - just a difference of opinion.
• In the world of art, there is often a difference of opinion on what constitutes true beauty.