| acclivity |
a rising slope. |
| advert |
to direct the attention by comment or remark. |
| agog |
highly excited and full of anticipation. |
| assail |
to attack with vigor or violence; assault. |
| berate |
to reproach or scold severely. |
| dearth |
a shortage or scarcity of something; lack. |
| demotic |
of or relating to the common people; popular. |
| dilatory |
used to cause a delay. |
| flout |
to show scorn or contempt for, especially by openly or deliberately disobeying. |
| glean |
to gather or discover (facts, information, or the like) a little at a time. |
| harbinger |
someone or something that signals or foreshadows a later arrival or occurrence; herald; forerunner. |
| ineptitude |
incompetence; lack of skill. |
| 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. |
| mésalliance |
marriage with someone of lower social standing than oneself. |
| schadenfreude |
(often capitalized) pleasure derived from the misfortune of others. |