| berate |
to reproach or scold severely. |
| boorish |
rude; ill-mannered; crude. |
| boudoir |
a woman's private sitting room or bedroom. |
| descant |
a secondary, usually higher, melody that is played or sung at the same time as the chief melody. |
| heinous |
extremely wicked or despicable; atrocious. |
| homily |
any discourse offering moral advice or admonitions. |
| limn |
to paint or draw. |
| lugubrious |
sad or mournful, especially in an exaggerated way; gloomy. |
| periphrasis |
an indirect or roundabout way of phrasing something; circumlocution. |
| putrefaction |
the act or process of rotting or decomposing. |
| requite |
to retaliate for; strike back on account of. |
| savor |
to give an impression; hint (usually followed by "of"). |
| sylph |
a slender, graceful woman or girl. |
| 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. |
| vitiate |
to harm the quality of; mar; spoil. |