| backwater |
any place that is seen as primitive, unchanging, or stagnant. |
| brusque |
impolitely abrupt in speech or actions; curt. |
| celibate |
abstaining from sexual relations, especially because of having taken a vow. |
| chasm |
a deep crack in the earth's surface. |
| complaisant |
eager or willing to please; amenable; obliging. |
| epitaph |
on a gravestone or tomb, an inscription commemorating the dead person. |
| imperfection |
a flaw or fault. |
| myriad |
of or constituting a great but unspecified number; numberless. |
| noxious |
harmful, dangerous, or destructive, especially to health. |
| realist |
a person who tends to see or present things as they actually are. |
| skimp |
to be stingy or very sparing. |
| sporadic |
occurring irregularly or in a thinly scattered manner in time or space. |
| striate |
to mark with stripes or furrows. |
| tutelage |
the act or function of a teacher, especially one who gives lessons to individuals; instruction; teaching. |
| vantage |
a position or situation that offers a broad or especially good view, comprehension, or the like. |