Word - 32

CURSORY \KER-suh-ree\ adjective

: rapidly and often superficially performed or produced : hasty

Example sentence:
A cursory reading of the syllabus made it clear that Professor Leary's sociology class was not going to be as easy as we had anticipated.

Did you know?

"Cursory" and its synonyms "superficial" and "shallow" all mean "lacking in depth or solidity" -- but these words are not used in exactly the same way in all cases. "Cursory," which comes from the Latin verb "currere" ("to run"), implies speed and stresses a lack of attention to detail. While "cursory" suggests a lack of thoroughness, "superficial" implies a concern only with surface aspects or obvious features. An analysis of a problem might be labeled "superficial" if it considers only the obvious and fails to dig deeper into the issue. "Shallow" is more generally derogatory in implying lack of depth in knowledge, reasoning, emotions, or character, as in "insensitive and shallow comments."

Word - 31

PROGENY \PRAH-juh-nee\ noun

1 *a : descendants, children b : offspring of animals or plants
2 : outcome, product
3 : a body of followers, disciples, or successors

Example sentence:
The champion thoroughbred passed on his speed, endurance, and calm temperament to his progeny, many of whom became successful racehorses themselves.

Did you know?

"Progeny" is the progeny of the Latin verb "progignere," meaning "to beget." That Latin word is itself an offspring of the prefix "pro-," meaning "forth," and "gignere," which can mean "to beget" or "to bring forth." "Gignere" has produced a large family of English descendants, including "benign" (meaning "mild" or "harmless"), "congenital" (meaning "inherent"), "engine," "genius," "germ," "indigenous," "ingenuous," and "malign." "Gignere" even paired up with "pro-" again to produce a close relative of "progeny": the noun "progenitor," which can mean "an ancestor in the direct line," "a biologically ancestral form," or "a precursor or originator."