| apocryphal |
of dubious authorship or authority. |
| appose |
to place next to or side by side; juxtapose. |
| barrage |
a great number of things coming one after another very quickly. |
| derelict |
failing to fulfill one's responsibilities or obligations; remiss. |
| ensconce |
to position (oneself) firmly or comfortably. |
| epistolary |
established or continued through letters. |
| figurehead |
a person whose title sounds important but who has no real power. |
| glut |
a greater supply or amount than is needed. |
| hypocrisy |
the practice or an instance of stating or pretending to hold beliefs or principles that one does not actually live by; insincerity. |
| insinuate |
to suggest (something derogatory) subtly and indirectly. |
| liminal |
of or at the threshold of a physiological or psychological response or change of state. |
| maverick |
a person who thinks and behaves independently, especially one who refuses to adhere to the orthodoxy of the group to which he or she belongs. |
| ostentation |
a showy display to impress others. |
| phlegmatic |
not given to shows of emotion or interest; slow to excite. |
| stridulate |
to produce a shrill grating, creaking, or chirping sound by rubbing certain parts of the body together, as some insects do. |