spartan

【考法1】adj. 簡樸的，節約的：marked by simplicity,frugality, or avoidance of luxury and comfort

【例】Accommodations on the windjammer are spartan but clean and comfortablenevertheless. 帆船上的裝飾十分樸素，但還是很干凈和舒適。

【近】austere,plain, simple, stark

【反】deluxe,luxurious, plush 奢華的

spat

【考法1】n. （小的）爭吵：a brief petty quarrel or angry outburst

【例】Like anycouple, they have their spats. 像其他夫妻一樣，他們也會有爭執。‖They were typical sisters, spatting one minute, playing together thenext. 她們是典型的姐妹：上一分鐘還在吵架，下一分鐘又玩在一起了。

【近】altercation, controversy, disagreement, dispute, imbroglio, quarrel, squabble,tiff, wrangle

【近】amity,concord, harmony, rapport, rapprochement 和睦，友好

spate

【考法1】n. 突發的洪水：sudden flood

【近】bath,deluge, flood, inundation, overflow, torrent

【反】drought 干旱

【考法2】n. 大量：a large number or amount

【例】a spate ofbooks about GRE 很多關于GRE 的書

【近】abundance,bundle, dozen, multiplicity, myriad, plentitude, profusion, scad,shipload, slew, volume, wealth

【反】ace, bit,driblet, glimmer, handful, hint, mite, mouthful, nip, ounce, pittance,sprinkle, trace 少量

specific

【考法1】adj. 特有的，獨特的：of a particular or exactsort

【例】We need aspecific type of pen to sign the diplomas. 我們需要一種特制的筆來簽署學位證書。

【近】concrete,distinct, especial, peculiar, precise, special, unique

【反】general,generic, universal 普遍的

【考法2】adj. 明確的：so clearly expressed as toleave no doubt about the meaning

【例】specificinstructions regarding the interrogation of prisoners 有關如何審問犯人的明確指示

【近】clear,definite, definitive, explicit, express, unambiguous, unequivocal, univocal

【反】ambiguous,equivocal, implicit, indefinite, inexplicit, unspecific, vague 模糊的

specious

【考法1】adj. 似是而非的，欺騙性的：having a false look oftruth or genuineness

【例】a speciousargument that really does not stand up under close examination 一段經不起仔細推敲的論證

【近】beguiling,deceitful, deceiving, deluding, delusive, delusory, fallacious, false,misleading

【反】aboveboard, forthright, straightforward 明確的

speck

【考法1】n. 小點，少量：a very small amount: bit

【例】She writeswithout even a speck of humor. 她字里行間一點幽默感也沒有。

【反】ace, bit,driblet, glimmer, handful, hint, mite, mouthful, nip, ounce, pittance,sprinkle, trace

【近】abundance,bundle, dozen, multiplicity, myriad, plentitude, profusion, scad,shipload, slew, volume, wealth 大量

spectator

【考法1】n. 觀眾，目擊者，旁觀者：one who looks on or watches

【例】join theorganization as temporary spectator 作為短期觀察員加入該組織‖The accident attracted a large crowd of spectators. 事故引來了大量的圍觀群眾。

【近】bystander,observer, onlooker, viewer, watcher

【反】actor,performer, player 表演者

spectrum

【考法1】n. 范圍，系列：a broad sequence or range of related qualities, ideas, oractivities

【例】the wholespectrum of 20th-century thought 20 世紀所有不同的思潮‖A political spectrum is a way of modeling different politicalpositions by placing them upon one or more geometric axes symbolizingindependent political dimensions. 所謂的政治光譜是一種將不同的政治立場可視化的模型，它通過一根或者多根幾何坐標軸來定位不同的政治態度。

【近】diapason,gamut, scale, spread, stretch

speculate

【考法1】vt. 推測，揣測：to take to be true on the basis of insufficient evidence

【例】Ispeculate that someone has been using this cabin as a trysting place. 我猜測有情侶把這個小屋當做他們幽會的地方。

【近】assume,conjecture, daresay, imagine, presume, speculate, suppose, surmise, suspect

【反】prove,substantiate, validate 證明

【考法2】vi. 投機倒賣：to buy or sell in expectation of profiting from market fluctuations

【例】speculating on the oil market 在石油市場上投機倒賣

spendthrift

【考法1】n. 揮霍者，敗家子：a person who spends improvidently or wastefully

【例】Thespendthrift managed to blow all of his inheritance in a single year. 這個敗家子只用了一年就把自己繼承的遺產揮霍一空。

【近】fritterer,profligate, spender, squanderer, waster, wastrel

【反】economizer,penny-pincher 節約的人；hoarder,miser, niggard 吝嗇鬼

【考法2】adj. 揮霍的，不節儉的：given to spending moneyfreely or foolishly

【例】Spendthrift consumers amassed a mountain of debt on their credit cards. 那些愛揮霍財富的消費者們在他們的信用卡上累積了一大筆債務。

【近】extravagant, improvident, squandering, thriftless, unthrifty, wasteful

【反】conserving, economical, frugal, penny-pinching, provident, scrimping, skimping,thrifty 節儉的