| calumny |
a harmful statement, known by the maker to be false. |
| castellated |
constructed with turrets and battlements like a castle. |
| deign |
to consider some act to be appropriate or in keeping with one's dignity; condescend. |
| discountenance |
to embarrass or disconcert. |
| epigraph |
a pertinent quotation or motto, especially found at the beginning of a literary work or of a chapter. |
| espouse |
to take up, hold, or commit oneself to (a cause, idea, or belief); embrace. |
| extort |
to extract or obtain (money or the like) by force, threats, or abuse of authority. |
| fixation |
an obsession, especially one that interferes with normal functioning. |
| intransigence |
refusal to alter one's ideas or position in response to the wishes of others. |
| lambent |
glowing softly. |
| lapidary |
an expert on or dealer in gemstones. |
| obscurantism |
a deliberate lack of clarity or directness of expression, as in certain styles of art or literature. |
| pungent |
sharp and strong in taste or smell. |
| quotidian |
happening every day or once a day. |
| tort |
in law, any civil rather than criminal harm or injury that violates the implicit duty of each citizen not to harm others, and for which one may bring a civil suit and collect compensation. |