| caricature |
a depiction, in a drawing or verbal description, that deliberately exaggerates or distorts some features of the person or thing represented to produce a comic or grotesque appearance. |
| cavil |
to make petty criticisms or objections; carp (usually followed by "at" or "about"). |
| clemency |
the inclination to be merciful or forgiving; leniency. |
| grandiloquence |
speech that is pretentious, pompous, or excessively mannered. |
| importune |
to pester with insistent demands or requests. |
| insecurity |
the condition or quality of having insufficient protection or not being safe. |
| mainstay |
the main support of something. |
| proclivity |
a natural tendency or inclination; propensity or predisposition. |
| putative |
widely thought to be such; reputed; supposed. |
| scathing |
harshly condemning; brutal. |
| skeptic |
one who is inclined to question or doubt assertions that are made or accepted by others. |
| surmount |
to get over or past; overcome; conquer. |
| surreptitious |
made, performed, or achieved by stealth or in secret. |
| vapid |
lacking spirit, life, or flavor; dull; uninteresting. |
| vigil |
a watch or period of surveillance, especially one kept during normal sleeping hours. |