Assiduous -showing careful, persistent effort

Assimilate -to absorb into the system

Circuitous -lengthy because very indirect
Circumlocution -the use of an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea
Destitution -the state of being in such extreme want as threatens life unless relieved
Eugenic -relating to or fitted to produce good offspring
Eulogy -a commendatory oration or writing especially in honor of one deceased
Gritty -having strong qualities of tough uncompromising realism; courageously persistent
Grovel -to abase oneself often with one’s face to the ground
Interim -an intervening time
-done, made, appointed, or occurring for an intervening time
Interlocutor -one who takes part in dialogue or conversation
Matinee -a performance or public event held in the daytime especially the afternoon
Matriarchy -a system of social organization in which descent and inheritance are traced through the
female line
Paragon -a model of excellence or perfection
-to compare with or put in rivalry
Paranoia -a tendency toward excessive or irrational suspiciousness and distrustfulness of others
Proliferate -to grow by rapid production
Prominent -readily noticeable or widely known
Scrupulous -having strict regard for what is right or proper
Scrutinize -to examine closely and minutely
Terse -using few words
Assuage -to lessen the intensity
Circumspect -careful to consider all circumstances and possible consequences
Clamor -a loud continuous noise
-to utter or proclaim insistently and noisily
Detrude -to force down or thrust away or out
Deviate -to stray from an established course or norm
Euphemism -the substitution of an inoffensive expression for one that may offend
Euphony -pleasing or sweet sound
Guffaw -a loud or boisterous burst of laughter
Guile -deceitful cunning
Interloper -one that intrudes in a place or sphere of activity
Intermittent -coming and going at intervals
Legerdemain -a display of skill or adroitness
Maudlin -weakly and effusively sentimental
Maverick -an independent individual who does not go along with the group
Parapet -a wall, rampart, or elevation of earth or stone; a low wall or railing
Propensity -an often intense natural inclination or preference
Proprietary -one that possesses, owns or holds exclusive rights to something; something that is used
or marketed under exclusive legal right of the inventor or maker
Scurrilous -using or given to coarse language; vulgar and evil
Scurvy -arousing disgust or scorn
Stickler -one who insists on exactness or completeness; something that baffles or puzzles
Asylum -a place of retreat and security
Atavism -recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity
Clandestine -marked by or conducted with secrecy
Clemency -a disposition to be merciful or to moderate the severity of punishment due
Devour -to eat up greedily or ravenously
Evacuate -to remove the contents of; to remove from a military zone or dangerous area
 Guise -a form or style of dress; external appearance
Gullibility -easily duped or cheated
Intractability -not easily governed, manipulated, relieved, or cured
Mawkish -having an insipid often unpleasant taste; sickly or puerilely sentimental
Meager -lacking desirable qualities; deficient in quality or quantity
Penurious -given to or marked by extreme stinting frugality
Prosaic -dull, unimaginative; everyday, ordinary
Protocol -an original draft or record of a document or transaction
-a code prescribing strict adherence to correct etiquette and precedence
Protuberant -thrusting out from a surrounding or adjacent surface often as a rounded mass
Scandal -loss of or damage to reputation caused by actual or apparent violation of morality or
propriety
-indignation, chagrin, or bewilderment brought about by a flagrant violation of morality,
propriety, or religious opinion
Scuttle -to deliberately sink or attempt to sink a ship or boat
Seance -a spiritualist meeting to receive spirit communications
Testiness -marked by impatience or ill humor
Theogony -an account of the origin and descent of the gods
Atrophy -a wasting away or progressive decline
Cliché -something that has become overly familiar or commonplace
Clientele -a body of clients
Dexterity -skill or quickness in mental or physical activity
Diacritical -capable of distinguishing
Effulge -to shine forth, to radiate
Gumption -enterprise, initiative
Habiliments -characteristic apparatus or dress of an occupation or occasion
Intransigent -characterized by refusal to compromise or abandon an extreme position or attitude
Intrepid -characterized by resolute fearlessness, fortitude, and endurance
Meander -a winding path or course
-to wander aimlessly or casually without urgent destination
Melodrama -characterized by extravagant action and emotion, overdramatic
Parochial -confined or restricted as if within the borders of a parish; limited in range or scope
Parody -a feeble or ridiculous imitation
Protuberate -to swell or bulge
Sedulity -activity accomplished with careful perseverance
Sedulous -diligent in application or pursuit
Vacillate -to waver in mind, will, or feeling
Vacuous -empty; marked by a lack of ideas or intelligence
Attenuate -reduced in thickness, density, or force
Auburn -a reddish-brown color
Audacious -recklessly bold
Cloistered -providing shelter from contact with the outside world
Coalescence -a union of diverse entities into one body, form, or group
Diaphanous -characterized by extreme delicacy of form
Evoke -to call forth or up
Hack -a writer who produces dull, unoriginal work
Halcyon -denoting a period of time in the past that was idyllically happy and peaceful
Intromit -to send or put in
Mendacious -characterized by deception
Mercurial -characterized by rapid and unpredictable changeableness of mood
Parry -to evade or turn aside something
Parsimonious -frugal but often to the point of stinginess
Provincial -limited in outlook; lacking the polish of urban society
Seemly -suited to the occasion, purpose, or person
Sequester -to set apart
Thwart -to oppose successfully
Vagary -an erratic or extravagant manifestation, action, or notion
Wistful -full of yearning or desire tinged with melancholy
Acolyte -one who attends or assists
Aura -a distinctive atmosphere surrounding a given source
Coda -something that serves to round out, conclude, or summarize and usually has its own
interest, often concludes a musical section or a literary or dramatic work
Commandeer -to take arbitrary or forcible possession of
Dike -an artificial watercourse; a raised causeway
Dilemma -a usually undesirable or unpleasant choice
Exact (v) -to call for forcibly or urgently and obtain
Existentialism -a form of thought that stresses existence or experience over essence or meaning
Hallow -to make holy or set apart for holy use
Hamper -to interfere with the operation of
Inundate -to cover with a flood; overwhelm
Inure -to accustom to accept something undesirable
Meretricious -tawdrily and falsely attractive; superficially significant
Parsimony -the quality of being careful with money or resources; stingy
Prune -to remove as superfluous
Psychosis -fundamental derangement of the mind often characterized by disconnection from
reality
Serendipity -finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for
Serration -a formation resembling the toothed edge of a saw
Vapid -lacking liveliness, briskness, or force
Vortex -something that resembles a whirlpool
Adulatory -excessive or slavish admiration or flattery
Bedlam -a place, scene, or state of uproar and confusion
Bolster -to support or give a boost to
Contusion -injury to tissue without laceration
Debonair -suave, urbane; lighthearted, nonchalant
Flagrant -conspicuously offensive
Garrulous -given to prosy, rambling, or tedious loquacity; pointlessly or annoyingly talkative
Innate -belonging to the essential nature of something
Pedagogy -the art, science, or profession of teaching
Speckled -to be marked with small spots or erratically
Stoic -one apparently or professedly indifferent to pleasure or pain
Taciturn -temperamentally disinclined to talk
Totter -to become unstable; to move unsteadily
Ultimatum -a final proposition, condition, or demand
Undergird -to form the basis or foundation of
Upshot -the final result; outcome
Venturing -to undertake the risks and dangers of; to offer at the risk of rebuff, rejection, or censure
Vilification -the act of uttering slanderous and abusive standards against
Numinous -appealing to higher emotions or containing a sense of a mystical divine presence
Volubility -characterized by ready or rapid speech
Autarchy -absolute sovereignty
Condescend -to descend to a less formal or dignified level; to assume an air of superiority
Detriment -a cause of injury or damage
Emporium -a place of trade
Extrude -to force, press, or push out
Glib -informal or lacking depth and substance
Gloze -gloss
Hortatory -exhortatory
Neologism -a new word, usage, or expression
Ontology -a branch of metaphysics concerned with the nature and relations of being
Skirmish -a minor dispute or contest
Suppliant -one who asks humbly and earnestly
Tangible -capable of being perceived especially by the sense of touch
Triad -a union or group of three
Unprecedented -having no earlier occurrence of something similar
Vendition -the act of selling goods for a living
Waffle -to vacillate or waver in mind, will, or feeling
Weltanschauung -a comprehensive conception of the world especially from a specific standpoint
Zealot -a fanatical person
Zenith -the highest point reached
Accentuate -accent, emphasize
Anarchy -absence or denial of any authority or established order
Blasé -apathetic to pleasure or excitement as a result of excessive indulgence
Boorish -resembling or befitting a boor (as in crude insensitivity)
Cede v -to yield or grant typically by treaty
Crustaceous -of, relating to, having, or forming a crust or shell
Doublet -a man’s close-fitting jacket worn especially during the Renaissance
Fiancé -a man or woman engaged to be married
Linchpin -one that serves to hold together parts that function as a unit
Livid -discolored by bruises; very angry
Mendicant -beggar
Parasite -something in dependence on something else for existence or support without making a
useful return
Rapacious -excessively grasping or covetous
Skiff -any of various small boats
Solicit -to try to obtain by usually urgent requests or pleas
Sortie -a sudden issuing of troops from a defensive position
Stanza -a division of a poem
Trepidation -a nervous feeling of uncertain agitation
Visceral -dealing with crude or elemental emotions
Wry -to pull out of proper shape
Bibliophile -a lover of books
Germinal -being in the earliest stage of development
Impasse -a predicament affording no obvious escape
Implicate -to involve in something
Integrity -firm adherence to a code of moral or artistic values
Miasma -a vaporous exhalation formerly believed to cause disease
Sclerotic -being or relating to the outer coat on the eye
Smorgasbord -a luncheon or supper buffet offering a variety of foods
Stagnant -not flowing, advancing, or developing
Stentorian -extremely loud
Subliminal -existing below the threshold of consciousness
Suborn -to induce secretly to do an unlawful thing
Surreptitious -doing something secretly
Tenuous -having little substance or strength
Trestle -a braced frame serving as a support
Vagrant -one who has no established residence and wanders idly
Vicissitude -the quality of being changeable
Volition -the power of choosing or determining
Vulpine -foxy, crafty
Zeal -eagerness and ardent interest in pursuit of something
Deference -respect due a superior or elder
Discursive -moving from topic to topic without order
Dissipate -to break up and drive off; to spend or use wastefully
Draconian -laws that are especially harsh
Dragoon -European military personnel often heavily armed
Engender -to cause to exist or develop
Gossamer -something light, delicate, or insubstantial
Homogeneous -of the same or a similar kind
Importune -to press or urge with troublesome persistence
Laurel -may refer to a species of tree but typically refers to a token of achievement
Philology -the study of human speech
Quell -to thoroughly overwhelm and reduce to submission
Subtle -indirect, elusive, or skillful
Succinct -marked by compact expression
Sui generis -constituting a class alone
Tactile -perceptible by touch
Truculent -scathingly harsh; aggressively self-assertive
Ubiquity -presence in many places simultaneously
Wizened -dry, shrunken, and wrinkled often as a result of age or failing vitality
Abut -to border on
Bestial -relating to beasts; marked by base or inhuman instincts or desires
Canard -a groundless rumor or belief
Caprice -a disposition to do things impulsively
Locate -to determine the place or limits of
Marshal -to place in proper or effective position
Propagate -to cause to spread out and affect a greater number or greater area
Radix -the primary source
Sophomoric -conceited an overconfident of knowledge but poorly informed and immature
Sparse -of few and scattered elements
Stupefying -to make groggy or insensible
Supposition -an uncertain belief
Tamp -to drive in or down by a succession of light or medium blows
Tedium -the quality or state of being tiresome
Tirade -a protracted speech usually marked by intemperate, vituperative, or harshly censorious
language
Veracity -devotion to truth
Viands -an item of food
Vital -characteristic of living beings; of the utmost importance
Wispy -something frail, slight, or fleeting
Arbitrary -existing or coming about seemingly at random or by chance or as a capricious and
unreasonable act of will
Centrifuge -an apparatus that rotates at high speed and by centrifugal force separates substances
of different densities
Ethereal -lacking material substance; having unusual delicacy
Feral -not domesticated or cultivated
Furtive -done by stealth
Listless -characterized by lack of interest or energy
Pedestrian -commonplace; performed on foot
Pith -the essential part or core
Profligate -wildly extravagant
Raconteur -a person who excels in telling anecdotes
Refract -to alter by viewing or by going through a medium
Supine -lying on the back or with face upward
Surly -threatening in appearance; having an irritable or sullen mood
Temper -to dilute or qualify by adding something else
Touting -to make much of
Ubiquitous -existing everywhere at the same time
Understate -to state or present with restraint for effect
Utopian -impossibly ideal
Veracious -truthful, honest
Whimsical -subject to erratic behavior or unpredictable change
Preternatural -exceeding what is natural or regular; inexplicable by ordinary means
Cogitate -to ponder intently
Colleague -an associate in a profession
Feign -to give a false appearance of or assert as if true
Illicit -not permitted
Incoherence -something that lacks normal clarity or intelligibility
Inimical -adverse because of hostility or malevolence
Lutarious -of, pertaining to, or like mud; living in mud
Ordain -to establish or order by appointment, decree, or law
Plight -an unfortunate or difficult situation
Proximate -very near
Servile -having an excessive willingness to serve or please others
Shard -a fragment of a brittle substance; a small piece
Strident -characterized by harsh or insistent sound
Tractable -easily handled, managed, or controlled
Tranquil -free from disturbance or turmoil
Tumult -a turbulent uprising or violent agitation of mind or feelings
Variegate -to diversify in external appearance
Veneer -a thin sheet of material; a superficial or deceptively attractive appearance
Waive -to refrain from pressing or enforcing
Colloquial -using conversational style
Commingle -to blend thoroughly into a harmonious whole
Complacent -marked by self-satisfaction
Consummate -extremely skilled; complete in every detail
Duplicity -contradictory doubleness of thought, speech, or action
Extraneous -not forming an essential part
Gibbering -to speak rapidly, inarticulately, and often foolishly
Impious -lacking reverence or proper respect
Ingrate -an ungrateful person
Maraud -to roam about and raid in search of plunder
Relegate -to assign to an appropriate place
Scabbard -a sheath for a sword, dagger, or bayonet
Sensuous -characterized by sense expressions or imagery aimed at the senses
Syllogism -a subtle, specious, or crafty argument
Throwback -a reversion to an earlier type or phase
Trammel -to prevent or impede the free play of
Transcendent -extending beyond the limits of normal experience; beyond comprehension
Unprepossessing -not attractive or appealing to the eye
Venerable -calling forth respect through age, character, and attainments
Waif -something found without an owner and by chance; a stray person or animal
Antic -an attention-drawing playful or funny action
Bulwark -a strong support or protection
Chronicler -one who puts things in order
Cosmogony -a theory of the origin of the universe
Dissident -disagreeing especially with an established religious or political system or belief
Hospice -a facility or program designed to provide a caring environment for meeting the
physical and emotional needs of the terminally ill
Laud -praise, acclaim
Noisome -highly obnoxious or objectionable
Pastiche -a musical, literary, or artistic composition made up of selections from different
works
Picayune -something trivial or of little value
Supplicant -one who prays or pleads for something
Systemic -of, relating to, or common to a system; affecting the core of that which is basic to
the system
Tenacious -persistent in maintaining, seeking, or adhering to something valued or desired
Therapeutic -providing or assisting in a cure
Tome -a volume forming part of a larger work
Travesty -a debased, distorted, or grossly inferior imitation
Unify -to make into a unit or coherent whole
Verity -something true or real
Wag (n) -wit, joker
Wane -to decrease in size, extent, or degree; to fall gradually from power, prosperity, or
influence
Decode -to discover the underlying meaning of
Demure -modest, reserved, or serious
Entrails -the inner workings of something
Epistemic -of or relating to knowledge or knowing
Faun -a figure in Roman mythology similar to but gentler than the satyr
Hedonism -the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the sole or chief good in life
Laudatory -of, relating to, or expressing praise
Matriculate -to enroll as a member of a body and especially of a college or university
Nettle -to arouse to sharp but transitory annoyance or anger
Plaudit -enthusiastic approval
Purloin -to appropriate wrongfully and often by a breach of trust
Sentinel -guard; especially a soldier standing guard at a passageway
Talon -to claw of an animal; a human finger or hand; an object shaped like a heel or claw
Tarnish -to detract from the good quality of
Timorous -timid or fearful
Trite -hackneyed or boring from much use
Urchin -a mischievous and often poor and raggedly clothed youngster
Viscidity -something having an adhesive quality or covered with a sticky layer
Wax -to assume a specified characteristic, quality, or state
-to move toward full development
Wily -crafty
Arable -fit for or used for the growing of crops
Doting -to exhibit mental decline; to be excessive in one’s attention or affection
Excrescence -a disfiguring, extraneous, or unwanted mark or part
Lavatory -a room with conveniences for washing and usually with one or more toilets
Lecher -a person given to gluttony or sensuality
Mimesis -imitation, mimicry
Plaintiff -a person who brings a legal action
Rarefy -to make rare, thin, porous, or less dense; to expand without adding matter
Remuneration -something that pays an equivalent for
Scale -to climb up or to reach
Scapegoat -one who is the object of blame or hostility
Somatic -of, relating to, or affecting the body
Soporific -marked by sleepiness or lethargy
Syncopation -a temporary displacement of the regular metrical accent in music
Truant -one who shirks duty
Underscore -to make evident; underline
Verbiage -wordiness with usually little or obscure content
Wanton -unduly lavish; extravagant
Acumen -keenness and depth of perception, discernment, or discrimination
Capricious -governed or characterized by sudden and seemingly unmotivated action
Celerity -rapidity of motion or action
Foppish -obsolete: foolish, silly
-behaving or dressing in a vain manner
Ilk -sort, kind
Leaven -something that modifies or lightens
Manifesto -a written statement declaring publicly, one’s intentions, motives, or views
Perfidy -an act or instance of disloyalty
Prone -having a tendency; lying flat or prostrate
Rigor -harsh inflexibility; severe or strict; a condition that makes life difficult
Solecism -something deviating from the normal order
Sybarite --luxury and gratification of sensual appetites
Tender -to present for acceptance; offer
Tortuous -marked by repeated twists, bends, or turns
Translucence -the quality of permitting the passage of light
Trenchant -vigorously effective; sharply perceptive
Tumultuous -marked by violent or overwhelming turbulence or upheaval
Urbane -notably polite or polished or manner
Vale -valley, dale; world
Veritable -real; being the thing named and not imaginary or false
inveigle -to acquire by ingenuity or flattery