Descriptionary

insurrection n. (in sur EK shun) rebellion against established authorities. The peasants banded together in a mass insurrection.

intangible adj. (in TAN juh bul) imperceptible; impalpable. The soul is intangible, yet philosophers have long pondered its existence.

integral adj. (IN ti grel) essential; basic. Math should be an integral component of anyone's curriculum.

integrity n. (in TEG ruh tee) moral and ethical char­acter. The boy who returned my lost wallet had great integrity.

intractable adj. (in TRAK tuh bul) unmanageable and stubborn. The impish lad had to be removed from class for his intractable behavior.

intransigent adj. (in TRANS uh junt) uncompro­mising. It is impossible to negotiate a difficult situa­tion with someone who is intransigent.

intrepid adj. (in TREP id) bold; fearless. Parasailing requires an exceptionally intrepid temperament.

intrinsic adj. (in TRIN sik) inherent; natural. It's unwise to challenge the intrinsic nature of bears to protect their young.

introspective adj. (in truh spek tiv) contemplative and observant of one's own thoughts, feelings, and inner world. He had an introspective bent that com­pelled him to examine and carefully edit all thoughts before he spoke them aloud.

inundate vb. (IN un dayt) to flood or engulf.

The day following every Thanksgiving, orders for Christmas cards would inundate the greeting card company.

irascible adj. (i RAS uh bul) easy to anger. Killer bees have earned a reputation of being frighteningly irascible.

ironic adj. (i RON ik) having an opposite meaning to what is said. She said that politicians should always aspire to the highest form of sleaze, but I suspect she was being ironic.

irrelevant adj. (i REL uh vunt) impertinent; unre­lated; beside the point. We're arguing about farm subsidies here, sir, and your comments about Beanie Babies are really quite irrelevant.

irreverent adj. (i REV ur unt) disrespectful. The

comedians of today love to gore sacred cows and are often lauded for being so irreverent.

irrevocable adj. (i REV uh kuh bul) irreversible; irretrievable. Once this new constitution is signed, there will be no turning back; its laws will be irre­vocable.

itinerary n. (i TIN ur air ee) travel plan, route, or schedule. A fall foliage tour of New Hampshire and Maine is on our itinerary next week.

jaded adj. (JAY ded) tired out or bored from overin­dulgence. Washington is nice, but after touring seven museums in one day, I've become jaded.