Verb

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Good / Friendly

verb

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placate - To pacify or appease someone who is upset or agitated.

He tried to placate his upset friend by apologizing and buying a book that he gave as a present.

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Bad / Unfriendly

verb

leer - Look or gaze in an unpleasant, malicious, or lascivious way

Francesca felt very uncomfortable as the strange man leered at her for what seemed like an eternity.

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Bad / Small

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winnow - To remove or eliminate less important or undesirable parts.

The committee had to winnow down the list of candidates to just two finalists.

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Good / Calm

verb

tinker - Attempt to repair or improve something in a casual or desultory way, often to no useful effect

Mitch tried to tinker with his computer before realizing that it was more broken that he had thought, and that he had to bring it to the computer store to have a professional repair it.

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Bad / Confused

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bumble - To act or speak in a confused manner.

Joe wasn't really ready for the test, but somehow by guessing here and there he bumbled his way into getting a passing mark.

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Other / Move

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shred - Tear or cut into shreds

With the FBI catching up to him, the crooked CEO shred as many incriminating documents as he could find.

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Other / Body

verb

slurp - Eat or drink (something) with a loud sloppy sucking noise

Emery slurped each piece of spaghetti, ruining what was otherwise a quiet dinner.

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Bad / Attack

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victimize - To treat someone unfairly or punish them without cause

Scammers often victimize elderly people by pretending to be from trusted organizations

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Other / Sound

verb

blare - Make or cause to make a loud, harsh sound

The car horn blared along with all of the other car horns as the traffic jam caused drivers to be upset.

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Bad / Unfriendly

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ogle - To stare at something or someone in a desirous way

Fran felt uncomfortable the way some of the passengers on the subway ogled her diamond necklace.

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Bad / Attack

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conk - To hit someone on the head, usually with a heavy object.

The victim showed the police where the robber conked him on the side of the head before he took his wallet.

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Good / Friendly

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laud - Praise (a person or their achievements) highly, especially in a public context

After Cindy exceeded her sales quota for the month, Renita lauded her in front of the other employees.