| bellicose |
easily incited to quarrel or fight; belligerent. |
| Byzantine |
characterized by complexity and intrigue. |
| convoluted |
complex; intricate. |
| cravat |
a scarf or band of cloth tied loosely about the neck. |
| derision |
mockery or ridicule. |
| exponent |
one that expounds or interprets. |
| gadfly |
a persistent critic, especially of established institutions and policies. |
| garrulous |
given to talking excessively. |
| guttural |
articulated in the back of the mouth; velar. |
| impugn |
to call into question; challenge or try to discredit. |
| indemnity |
insurance against damage, loss, or liability. |
| lugubrious |
sad or mournful, especially in an exaggerated way; gloomy. |
| obscurantism |
a deliberate lack of clarity or directness of expression, as in certain styles of art or literature. |
| Saturnalia |
an occasion of unrestrained revelry. |
| scabrous |
characterized by a rough or scaly surface, as the leaf of a plant. |