| antediluvian |
hopelessly old-fashioned; primitive; outdated. |
| appellative |
a descriptive name or title, as "Terrible" in "Ivan the Terrible". |
| avow |
to assert or affirm. |
| cognomen |
a last name; surname. |
| espouse |
to take up, hold, or commit oneself to (a cause, idea, or belief); embrace. |
| hagiography |
an admiring and uncritical biography of anyone. |
| incessant |
never stopping; constant. |
| ingenuous |
having or showing simplicity and lack of sophistication; artless. |
| intelligentsia |
the elite class of highly learned people within a society, or those who consider themselves part of such a class. |
| mésalliance |
marriage with someone of lower social standing than oneself. |
| obscurantism |
a deliberate lack of clarity or directness of expression, as in certain styles of art or literature. |
| redoubtable |
inspiring fear; formidable. |
| relict |
a plant, animal, or geological feature that has survived in a considerably changed environment. |
| sententious |
using or marked by pompous, high-flown moralizing. |
| sotto voce |
in a low voice or undertone, so as not to be overheard; softly (often used as a musical direction). |