| aggregate |
a sum, combination, or composite of separable elements. |
| aleatory |
pertaining to or depending on luck, chance, or contingency. |
| antebellum |
in or of the period prior to a war, especially the American Civil War. |
| appellative |
a descriptive name or title, as "Terrible" in "Ivan the Terrible". |
| blithe |
indifferent or casual; unconcerned. |
| cachet |
prestige. |
| deign |
to consider some act to be appropriate or in keeping with one's dignity; condescend. |
| epigraph |
a pertinent quotation or motto, especially found at the beginning of a literary work or of a chapter. |
| fixation |
an obsession, especially one that interferes with normal functioning. |
| 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). |
| oppugn |
to oppose, contradict, criticize, or call into question. |
| parvenu |
a person who has suddenly acquired wealth or status, without acquiring the tastes, manners, customs, or the like of his or her new station. |
| pungent |
sharp and strong in taste or smell. |
| reprise |
repetition of a musical phrase or theme in an identical or slightly altered way. |