| A | B |
|---|
| anathema | something or someone loathed or intensely disliked |
| ancillary | subsidiary, subordinate |
| anomie | instability caused by an erosion of values or lack of purpose |
| antipodal | situated on opposite sides of the earth, or being exactly opposite |
| apocryphal | false, spurious, of doubtful origin |
| apogee | the point at which an orbiting object is farthest from what is being orbited; apex of something |
| apoplexy | a stroke resulting from loss of blood to the brain, becoming so angry as to be on the verge of exploding |
| apostasy | abandonment of a loyalty or religion |
| arbiter | judge, one who decides |
| ascetic | hermitlike, self-denial, austure |
| assiduous | hardworking, diligent |
| bivouac | a temporary encampment |
| cortege | a procession, a group of attendants |
| perorate | to make a long, formal speech, to sum up a speech |
| perspicacious | shrewd, astute, showing strong powers of discernment |
| petulant | cranky, ill tempered |
| phantasm | an apparition or phantom |
| philistine | a smugly insensitive and irgnorant person who has no knowledge of intellectual or artistic subjects |
| piquant | pungent, charmingly |
| placebo | a fake medication |
| pluralism | a society in which distinct groups function together, but retain their own identities |
| quiescence | state of rest or inactivity |
| raffish | jaunty, sporty, disreputable, vulgar |
| rapprochement | a re-establishment of good relations |
| rarefied | esoteric, interesting to only a few |
| recalcitrant | stubbornly defiant and resistant of authority |
| debacle | a disaster or violent breakdown |
| inchoate | just beginning, not organized or orderly, incomplete |
| insouciant | nonchalant, lighthearted, unconcerned |
| intransigent | uncompromising, stubborn |
| interregnum | the period between two successive governements, a pause in a continuing series |
| matriculate | to enroll, most particularly in college |
| maudlin | overly sentimental |
| mellifluous | sweetly flowing |
| munificent | generous |
| nepotism | showing favoritism to friends or family, as in granting positions in jobs |
| perfidious | faithless, untrustworthy |
| perfunctory | careless, unenthusiastic, done merely as a duty |
| recidivism | the act of repeating an offense |
| recondite | hard to understand, abstruse, over one's head |
| redoubtable | formidable, fearsome, deserving of respect |
| remuneration | payment |
| repartee | a quick, witty reply, spirited conversation |
| ribald | vulgar or indecent language |
| rife | widespread, abounding, occurring frequently |
| simper | to smile foolishly |
| sinous | winding, having many curves |
| slatternly | squalid, a slovenly woman |
| somnolent | drowsy, sleepy |
| spate | a sudden outburst |
