| cantankerous |
irritable, stubborn, and quarrelsome. |
| coir |
the fiber made from coconut husks, used for matting, rope, or the like. |
| dearth |
a shortage or scarcity of something; lack. |
| deposition |
a sworn statement, usually in writing, for use as testimony by an absent witness in a court of law. |
| determinism |
the belief or teaching that every effect, including human thoughts and actions, is completely and predictably brought about by preceding causes and that, therefore, free will does not exist. |
| erudite |
having or showing a high level of scholarly knowledge; learned. |
| forbear |
to keep or abstain from (an action or utterance). |
| gadfly |
a persistent critic, especially of established institutions and policies. |
| incessant |
never stopping; constant. |
| 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. |
| lapidary |
an expert on or dealer in gemstones. |
| obfuscate |
to make (something) seem or be difficult to understand; obscure or darken. |
| putrefaction |
the act or process of rotting or decomposing. |
| quadrant |
any of the four parts that result when an area is divided by two lines, real or imaginary, that intersect each other at right angles. |
| shyster |
a person, usually a lawyer, who uses underhanded, unethical methods. |