| artifice |
a shrewd or clever trick. |
| auditory |
having to do with or referring to hearing or the sense of hearing. |
| bravado |
a false, exaggerated, or boastful display of courage. |
| crossbreed |
to cause (a hybrid organism) to be produced by mating two different varieties of the same species. |
| effigy |
a likeness of a person, usually sculpted, as on a tomb. |
| expendable |
considered able to be replaced, given up, or sacrificed. |
| gentry |
people who come from families of high social standing. |
| intonation |
the pattern of changes in pitch of the speaking or singing voice. |
| iridescent |
emitting or reflecting a lustrous play of colors covering the spectrum, like a rainbow. |
| latent |
present but not yet apparent, developed, or operative. |
| literal |
in accordance with the ordinary, exact, or primary meaning of a word or words; not figurative or metaphorical. |
| lummox |
(informal) someone who is especially clumsy, slow, and unintelligent. |
| resilience |
the ability to resume shape after being pressed or stretched. |
| rhetoric |
the art, ability, or study of using language effectively in speech or writing, especially to influence or persuade one's audience. |
| solicitous |
anxiously or tenderly concerned or attentive (usually followed by about, of, or for.) |