| canny |
difficult to fool or take advantage of; shrewd; wary; clever. |
| cognoscente |
someone who has exceptional knowledge in a given area, especially of fashion, literature, or the fine arts; connoisseur. |
| despoil |
to forcefully take belongings or goods from; plunder. |
| engender |
to create or give rise to. |
| foment |
to encourage the development of; instigate or foster. |
| indemnity |
insurance against damage, loss, or liability. |
| jeremiad |
a long complaint about life or one's situation; lamentation. |
| malingerer |
one who pretends to be ill or injured, especially in order to avoid work or duty. |
| oppugn |
to oppose, contradict, criticize, or call into question. |
| penury |
severe poverty; pennilessness. |
| picayune |
having little value or significance; small; paltry. |
| stridulate |
to produce a shrill grating, creaking, or chirping sound by rubbing certain parts of the body together, as some insects do. |
| tamp |
to compress and pack tightly by repeated light taps. |
| tyro |
one who is beginning to learn a business, trade, sport, or the like; novice; neophyte. |
| voluble |
characterized by a steady flow of words; fluent; talkative. |