| accretion |
the process of gradual increase or growth, especially by additions from the outside. |
| animus |
a feeling or attitude of enmity. |
| atavism |
the recurrence or reappearance of a particular trait, style, attitude, or behavior that seemed to have disappeared, or that which has recurred or reappeared after such an absence. |
| cachet |
prestige. |
| cantankerous |
irritable, stubborn, and quarrelsome. |
| dilatory |
used to cause a delay. |
| exegesis |
a critical explanation or interpretive analysis, especially of religious texts. |
| fungible |
interchangeable. |
| lenitive |
mitigating pain, discomfort, or distress; soothing. |
| minatory |
presenting a threat; menacing. |
| misanthrope |
someone who hates or distrusts humanity. |
| recondite |
involving profound concepts and complexities; not easily understood. |
| savor |
to give an impression; hint (usually followed by "of"). |
| stately |
dignified. |
| uxorious |
excessively or foolishly devoted to one's wife, and often thereby submissive to her. |