| A | B |
|---|
| maudlin | adj. excessively or effusively sentimental |
| in medias res | adv. in or into the middle of a plot; into the middle of things |
| bruit | v. to spread news, reports, or unsubstantiated rumors |
| contumelious | adj. insolent or rude in speech or behavior; insultingly abusive; humiliating |
| prescience | n. knowledge of events or actions before they happen; foresight |
| touchstone | n. a means of testing worth or genuineness |
| internecine | adj. mutually destructive; characterized by great slaughter and bloodshed |
| quid pro quo | n. something given in exchange or return for something else |
| vitiate | v. to weaken, debase, or corrupt; to impair the quality or value of |
| waggish | adj. fond of making jokes; characteristic of a joker; playfully humorous or droll |
| portentous | adj. foreshadowing an event to come; causing wonder or awe; self-consciously weighty, pompous |
| dictum | n. a short saying; an authoritative statement |
| traumatic | adj. so shocking to the emotions as to cause lasting and substantial psychological damage |
| maladroit | adj. lacking skill or dexterity; lacking tact, perception, or judgment |
| ensconce | v. to settle comfortably and firmly in position; to put or hide in a safe place |
| modulate | v. to change or vary the intensity or pitch; to temper or soften; to regulate, adjust |
| saturnalian | adj. characterized by riotous or unrestrained revelry or licentiousness |
| salubrious | adj. conducive to health or well-being; wholesome |
| iconoclastic | adj. attacking or seeking to overthrow popular or traditional beliefs, ideas, or institutions |
| abortive | adj. failing to accomplish an intended aim or purpose; only partially or imperfectly developed |
