| avow |
to assert or affirm. |
| colloquialism |
a word or phrase typically used in conversational, informal, or regional speech or writing, hence sometimes considered inappropriate in formal writing. |
| disaffection |
an absence or loss of good will, faith, or loyalty, especially toward a government, principle, or the like. |
| epistolary |
established or continued through letters. |
| flagitious |
viciously or shamefully wicked; infamous. |
| halcyon |
tranquil; peaceful; calm. |
| highbrow |
one who has or pretends to have highly sophisticated intellectual and cultural interests and tastes (often used disparagingly). |
| inflection |
change that occurs in the form of words to show a grammatical characteristic such as the tense of a verb, the number of a noun, or the degree of an adjective or adverb. |
| lorgnette |
eyeglasses, such as opera glasses, that have a short handle by which one holds them in position. |
| neophyte |
a beginner or novice at any activity. |
| obfuscate |
to make (something) seem or be difficult to understand; obscure or darken. |
| prolix |
wordy and boringly long. |
| raffish |
carelessly unconventional or disreputable, sometimes appealingly so. |
| rebarbative |
tending to irritate or repel; forbidding or unattractive. |
| schadenfreude |
(often capitalized) pleasure derived from the misfortune of others. |