| arrant |
complete; unmitigated; downright. |
| constrict |
to pull or squeeze in; make smaller or more narrow; tighten. |
| declivity |
a downward or descending slope. |
| derelict |
failing to fulfill one's responsibilities or obligations; remiss. |
| flak |
(informal) irritating opposition, criticism, or dissent. |
| goad |
something that spurs a person to action; stimulus. |
| harbinger |
someone or something that signals or foreshadows a later arrival or occurrence; herald; forerunner. |
| highbrow |
one who has or pretends to have highly sophisticated intellectual and cultural interests and tastes (often used disparagingly). |
| humanism |
a doctrine or mode of thought that gives highest importance to human dignity, values, potentials, and achievements. |
| hypocrisy |
the practice or an instance of stating or pretending to hold beliefs or principles that one does not actually live by; insincerity. |
| lacuna |
a gap or omitted part. |
| paroxysm |
a sudden strong outburst of feelings or actions. |
| pretentious |
assuming or marked by an air of importance or superiority that is unwarranted. |
| seminal |
of critical importance; essential. |
| tyro |
one who is beginning to learn a business, trade, sport, or the like; novice; neophyte. |