| ascertain |
to learn without question; determine. |
| augury |
the art or practice or an instance of predicting the future or obtaining hidden knowledge by interpreting omens. |
| cantankerous |
irritable, stubborn, and quarrelsome. |
| expound |
to discuss or explain in detail (usually followed by "on" or "upon"). |
| fealty |
faithfulness or loyalty. |
| figurehead |
a person whose title sounds important but who has no real power. |
| fixation |
an obsession, especially one that interferes with normal functioning. |
| indolence |
the tendency to avoid exertion or effort; laziness. |
| indomitable |
too strong to be subdued or discouraged; unconquerable. |
| ineptitude |
incompetence; lack of skill. |
| inflection |
change that occurs in the form of words to show a grammatical characteristic such as the tense of a verb, the number of a noun, or the degree of an adjective or adverb. |
| loll |
to hang down loosely; dangle. |
| sanctimony |
a pretense of righteousness or piety; feigned devotion or holiness. |
| scion |
an offspring or heir. |
| sepsis |
infection, especially by pus-forming bacteria in the blood or tissues. |