| A | B |
|---|
| avid | desirous of something to the point of greed; intensely eager |
| halcyon | calm, peaceful, happy, golden; prosperous, affluent |
| devious | straying or wandering from a straight or direct course, roundabout |
| accost | to approach and speak to first |
| incendiary | one who deliberately starts fires; one who causes strife |
| animadversion | a comment indicating strong criticism or disapproval |
| gambit | in chess, an opening move that involves the risk or sacrifice of a minor piece in order to gain a later advantage |
| brackish | having a salty taste and unpleasant to drink |
| histrionic | theatrical, artificial, melodramatic |
| celerity | swiftness, rapidity of motion or action |
| suppliant | asking humbly and earnestly |
| propriety | the state of being proper, appropriateness |
| overt | open, not hidden, expressed or revealed in a way that is easily recognized |
| undulate | to move in waves or with wavelike motion; to have a wavelike appearance or form |
| sacrilege | improper or disrespectful treatment of something held sacred |
| talisman | an object that serves as a charm or is believed to confer magical powers |
| myopic | nearsighted; lacking a broad, realistic view of a situation; lacking foresight or discernment |
| summarily | without delay or formality; briefly, concisely |
| pejorative | tending to make worse; expressing disapproval or disparagement |
| maelstrom | a whirlpool of great size and violence; a situation resembling a whirlpool in a violence and destruction |
