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160 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Adjunct
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something added to something else as helpful or useful but not essential
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Bellwether
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the male sheep that leads the flock to the slaughterhouse; a leader, as in a desperate or violent undertaking
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Caterwaul
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to howl or screech like a cat; to quarrel
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Chimerical
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absurd; wildly fantastic
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Effet
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lacking in wholesome vigor or energy
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Fait Accompli
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an accomplished and presumably irreversible deed, fact, or action
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Hidebound
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narrow-minded and rigid, especially in opinions or prejudices
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Hierarchy
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any system of things or people arranged or graded one above another in order of rank, wealth, class, etc.
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Liturgy
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a religious service or rite; the form of ritual or other act of pubic worship
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Mirage
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something illusory, without substance, or without a basis in reality; an illusion
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Morass
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a patch of low, soft, wet ground; a confusing situation in which one is entrapped
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Noisome
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offensive or disgusting; foul-smelling
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Oblivious
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forgetful; unaware
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Poltroon
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a base coward
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Proselyte
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a convert; a disciple
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Quasi
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resembling but not actually being; seemingly but not actually or completely
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Raillery
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good-humored ridicule; teasing
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Ribald
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irreverently mocking; coarse, vulgar, or indecent in language
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Supine
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lying flat on one's back; listless or lethargic; apathetic or passive
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Vignette
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a short description or sketch; a picture or illustration with edges that gradually shade off; a decorative design on the title page of a book or at the beginning or end of a chapter
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Aegis
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protection; patronage; sponsorship
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Apprise
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to inform of; to make aware of by giving oral or written notice
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Bibulous
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fond of or inclined to drink; absorbent
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Claque
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a group of people hired to applaud a performer or performance; enthusiastic or fawning admirers; an opera hat
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Deracinate
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to pull up by the roots; to root out, uproot, or dislocate; to eliminate all traces of
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Eleemosynary
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charitable; dependent upon or supported by charity; derived from or provided by charity
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Indigenous
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originating in the country or region where found, native; inborn; inherent
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Lachrymose
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given to tears or weeping; causing to shed tears; mournful, lugubrious
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Lexicon
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a dictionary of a language; the special vocabulary of a person, group, or subject; a compendium
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Melee
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a confused struggle; a violent free-for-all; a tumultuous mingling
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Microcosm;
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a miniature world or universe; a group or system viewed as the model of a larger group or system
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Minuscule
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very small, tiny; a lowercase letter
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Obfuscate
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to darken or obscure; to confuse or bewilder
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Paternalism
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the policy or practice of treating or governing people in the manner of a father dealing with his children
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Polarize
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to cause to concentrate around two conflicting or contrasting positions; to cause light to vibrate in a pattern
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Purview
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the range, extent, or scope of something; in law, the scope or limit of what is provided in a statute
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Sanguine
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having a ruddy complexion; of a naturally cheerful, confident, or optimistic outlook
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Solecism
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a substandard or ungrammatical usage; a breach of etiquette; any impropriety or mistake
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Vassal
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a person under the protection of a feudal lord to whom he or she owes allegiance; a subordinate or dependent; a servant; subservient
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Verisimilitude
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the quality of appearing to be true, real, likely, or probable
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Anicillary
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subordinate or supplementary
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Bowdlerize
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to remove material considered offensive (from a book, play, film, etc.)
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Condescend
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to come down or stoop voluntarily to a lower level; to deal with people in a patronizing manner
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Cozen
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to trick; to cheat or swindle
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Enclave
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an enclosed district, region, or area inhabited by a particular group of people or having a special character
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Forte
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a person's strong point; what a person does best
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Gratis
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free; without charge
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Icon
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a representation or image of a sacred personage, often considered sacred itself; an image or picture; a symbol; a graphic symbol on a computer monitor display; an object of devotion
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Interstice
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a small, narrow space between things or parts of things
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Macrocosm
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the universe considered as a whole; the entire complex structure of something
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Mountebank
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a trickster or swindler; a charlatan
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Paean
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a song of praise, joy, or triumph
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Persiflage
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lighthearted joking, talk, or writing
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Plethora
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overfullness; superabundance; superfluity
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Pragmatic
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concerned with practical considerations or values; dealing with actions and results rather than with abstract theory; stiff in one's opinion
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Quizzical
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puzzled; mocking; odd; equivocal
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Rapacity
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inordinate greed; the disposition to obtain one's desires by force, extortion, or plunder
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Schism
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a formal split within a religious organization; any division or separation of a group or organization into hostile factions
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Therapeutic
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having the power to heal or cure; beneficial
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Virtuoso
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a brilliant performer; a person with masterly skill or technique; masterly or brilliant
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Affinity
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a natural attraction to a person, a thing, or activity; a relationship, connection
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Bilious
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peevish or irritable; sickeningly unpleasant
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Cognate
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closely related in origin, essential nature, or function; such a person or thing
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Corollary
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a proposition that follows from one already proven; a natural consequence or result; resultant or consequent
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Cul-de-Sac
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a blind alley or dead-end street; any situation in which further progress is impossible; an impasse
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Derring-do
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valor or heroism; daring deeds or exploits (often used to poke fun a t false heroics)
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Divination
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the art or act of predicting the future or discovering hidden knowledge
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Elixir
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a potion once thought capable of curing all ills and maintaining life indefinitely; a panacea; a sweet liquid used as a vehicle in medicines
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Folderol
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foolish talk, ideas, or procedures; nonsense; a trifle
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Gamut
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an entire range or series
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Hoi Polloi
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the common people, the masses
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Ineffable
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not expressible in words; too great or too sacred to be uttered
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Lucubration
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Laborious study or thought, especially at night; the result of such work
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Mnemonic
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relating to or designed to assist the memory; a device to aid the memory
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Obloquy
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public abuse indicating strong disapproval or censure; the disgrace resulting from such treatment
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Parameter
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a determining or characteristic element; a factor that shapes the total outcome; a limit, boundary
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Pundit
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a learned person; one who gives authoritative opinions
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Risible
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pertaining to laughter; able or inclined to laugh; laughable
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Symptomatic
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typical or characteristic; being or concerned with a symptom of a disease
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Volte-face
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an about-face; a complete reversal
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Aficionado
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an enthusiastic and usually expert follower or fan
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Browbeat
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to intimidate by a stern or overbearing manner; to bully
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Commensurate
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equal in size, extent, duration, or importance; proportionate; measurable by the same standards
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Diaphanous
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very sheer and light; almost completely transparent
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Emolument
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profit derived from an office or position or from employment; a fee or salary
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Foray
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a quick raid, especially for plunder; a venture into some field of endeavor; to make such a raid
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Genre
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a type, class, or variety, especially a distinctive category of literary composition; a style of painting in which everyday scenes are realistically depicted
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Homily
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a sermon stressing moral principles; a tedious moralizing lecture or discourse
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Immure
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to enclose or confine within walls; to imprison; to seclude or isolate
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Insouciant
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Blithely indifferent or unconcerned; carefree; happy-go-lucky
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Matrix
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a mold; the surrounding situation or environment
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Obsequies
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funeral rites or ceremonies
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Panache
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a confident and stylish manner, dash; a strikingly elaborate or colorful display
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Persona
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a character in a novel or play; the outward character or role that a person assumes
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Philippic
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a bitter verbal attack
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Prurient
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having lustful desires or interests; tending to arouse sexual desires
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Sacrosanct
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very sacred or holy; inviolable, set apart or immune from questioning or attack
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Systemic
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of or pertaining to the entire body; relating to a system or systems
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Tendentious
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intended to promote a particular point of view, doctrine, or cause; biased or partisan
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Vicissitude
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a change, variation, or alteration; successive or changing phases or conditions
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Abortive
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failing to accomplish an intended aim or purpose; only partially or imperfectly developed
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Bruit
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to spread news, reports, or unsubstantiated rumors
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Contumelious
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insolent or rude in speech or behavior; insultingly abusive; humiliating
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Dictum
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a short saying; an authoritative statement
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Ensconce
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to settle comfortably and firmly in position; to put or hid in a safe place
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Iconoclastic
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attacking or seeking to overthrow popular or traditional beliefs, ideas, or institutions
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In Medias Res
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in or into the middle of a plot; into the middle of things
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Internecine
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mutually destructive; characterized by great slaughter and bloodshed
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Maladroit
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lacking skill or dexterity; lacking tact, perception, or judgement
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Maudlin
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excessively or effusively sentimental
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Modulate
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to change or vary the intensity or pitch; to temper or soften; to regulate, adjust
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Portentous
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foreshadowing an event to come; causing wonder or awe; self-consciously weighty, pompous
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Prescience
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knowledge of events or actions before they happen; foresight
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Quid Pro Quo
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something given in exchange or return for something else
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Salubrious
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conducive to health or well-being
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Saturnalian
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characterized by riotous or unrestrained revelry or licentiousness
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Touchstone
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a means of testing worth or genuineness
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Traumatic
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so shocking to the emotions as to cause lasting and substantial psychological damage
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Vitiate
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to weaken, debase, or corrupt; to impair the quality or value of
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Waggish
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fond of making jokes; characteristic of a joker; playfully humorous or droll
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Abeyance
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a state of being temporarily inactive, suspended, or set aside
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Ambivalent
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having opposite and conflicting feelings about someone or something
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Beleaguer
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to set upon from all sides; to surround with an army; to trouble, harass
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Carte Blanche
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full freedom or authority to act at one's own discretion
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Cataclysm
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a sudden, violent, or devastating upheaval; a surging flood, deluge
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Debauch
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to corrupt morally, seduce; to indulge in dissipation; an act or occasion of dissipation or vice
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Éclat
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dazzling or conspicuous success or acclaim; great brilliance (of performance or achievement)
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Fastidious
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overly demanding or hard to please; excessively careful in regard to details; easily disgusted
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Gambol
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to jump or skip about playfully
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Imbue
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to soak or stain thoroughly; to fill the mind
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Inchoate
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just beginning; not fully shaped or formed
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Lampoon
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a malicious satire; to satirize, ridicule
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Malleable
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capable of being formed into different shapes; capable of being altered, adapted, or influenced
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Nemesis
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an agent or force inflicting vengeance or punishment; retribution itself; an unbeatable rival
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Opt
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to make a choice or decision
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Philistine
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lacking in, hostile to, or smugly indifferent to cultural and artistic values or refinements; such a person
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Picaresque
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involving or characteristic of clever rogues or adventurers
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Queasy
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nauseated or uneasy; causing nausea or uneasiness; troubled
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Refractory
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stubborn; hard or difficult to manage; not responsive to treatment or cure
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Savoir-faire
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the ability to say and do the right thing in any situation; social competence
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Aberration
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a departure from what is proper, right, expected, or normal; a lapse from a sound mental state
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Ad Hoc
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for this specific purpose; improvised; with respect to this
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Bane
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the source or cause of fatal injury, death, destruction, or ruin; death or ruin itself; poison
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Bathos
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the intrusion of commonplace or trite material into context whose tone is lofty or elevated; grossly insincere or exaggerated sentimentality; the lowest phase, nadir; an anticlimax, comedown
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Cantankerous
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ill-tempered, quarrelsome; difficult to get along or deal with
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Casuistry
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the determination of right and wrong in questions of conduct or conscience by the application of general ethical principles; specious argument
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De Facto
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actually existing or in effect, although not legally required or sanctioned; in reality, actually
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Depredation
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the act of preying upon or plundering
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Empathy
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a sympathetic understanding of or identification with the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of someone or something else
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Harbinger
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a forerunner, herald; to herald the approach of
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Hedonism
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the belief that the attainment of pleasure is life's chief aim; devotion t or pursuit of pleasure
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Lackluster
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lacking brilliance or vitality; dull
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Malcontent
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discontented with or in open defiance of prevailing conditions; such a person
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Mellifluous
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flowing sweetly or smoothly; honeyed
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Nepotism
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undue favoritism to or excessive patronage of one's relatives
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Pander
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to cater to or provide satisfaction for the low tastes or vices of others; a person who does this
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Peccadillo
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a minor sin or offense; a trifling fault or shortcoming
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Piéce de Résistance
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the principal dish of a meal; the principal event, incident, or item; an outstanding accomplishment
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Remand
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to send or order back; in law, to send back to jail or to a lower court
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Syndrome
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a group of symptoms or signs that collectively characterize or indicate a disease, disorder, abnormality, etc.
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