Acumen
Keen; accurate judgement or insight
Adulterate
To reduce purity by combining with inferior ingredients
Amalgamate
To combine several elements into a whole
Archaic
Outdated; associated with an earlier, perhaps more primitive, time
Aver
To state as a fact; to declare or assert
Bolster
To provide support or reinforcement
Bombastic
Pompous; grandiloquent
Diatribe
A harsh denunciation
Dissemble
To disguise or conceal; to mislead
Eccentric
Departing from norms or conventions
Endemic
Characteristic of or often found in a particular locality, region, or people
Evanescent
Tending to disappear like vapor; vanishing
Exacerbate
To make worse or more severe
Fervent
Greatly emotional or zealous
Fortuitous
Happening by accident or chance
Germane
Relevant to the subject at hand; appropriate in subject matter
Grandiloquence
Pompous speech or expression
Hackneyed
Rendered trite or commonplace by frequent usage
Halcyon
Calm and peaceful
Hedonism
Devotion to pleasurable pursuits, esp. to the pleasures of the senses (a hedonist is someone who pursues pleasure)
Hegemony
The consistent dominance of one state or ideology over others
Iconoclast
One who attacks or undermines traditional conventions or institutions
Idolatrous
Given to intense or excessive devotion to something
Impassive
Revealing no emotion
Imperturbable
Marked by extreme calm, impassivity and steadiness
Implacable
Not capable of being appeased or significantly changed
Impunity
Immunity from punishment or penalty
Inchoate
In an initial stage; not fully formed
Infelicitous
Unfortunate; inappropriate
Insipid
Without taste or flavor; lacking in spirit; bland
Loquacious
Extremely talkative
Luminous
Characterized by brightness and the emission of light
Malevolent
Having or showing often vicious ill will, spite, or hatred
Malleable
Capable of being shaped or formed; tractable; pliable
Mendacity
The condition of being untruthful; dishonesty
Meticulous
Characterized by extreme care and precision; attentive to detail
Misanthrope
One who hates all other humans
Mitigate
To make or become less severe or intense; to moderate
Obdurate
Unyielding; hardhearted; intractable
Obsequious
Exhibiting a fawning attentiveness
Occlude
To obstruct or block
Opprobrium
Disgrace; contempt; scorn
Pedagogy
The profession or principles of teaching, or instructing
Pedantic
Overly concerned with the trivial details of learning or education; show-offish about one's knowledge
Penury
Poverty; destitution
Pervasive
Having the tendancy to permeate or spread throughout
Pine
To yearn intensely; to languish; to lose vigor
Pirate
To illegally use or reproduce
Pith
The essential or central part
Pithy
Precise and brief
Placate
To appease; to calm by making concessions
Platitude
A superficial remark, esp. one offered as meaningful
Plummet
To plunge or drop straight down
Polemical
Controversial; argumentative
Prodigal
Recklessly wasteful; extravagant; profuse; lavish
Profuse
Given or coming forth abundantly; extravagant
Proliferate
To grow or increase swiftly and abundantly
Queries
Questions; inquiries; doubts in the mind; reservations
Querulous
Prone to complaining or grumbling; peevish
Rancorous
Characterized by bitter, long-lasting resentment
Recalcitrant
Obstinately defiant of authority; difficult to manage
Repudiate
To refuse to have anything to do with; disown
Rescind
To invalidate; to repeal; to retract
Reverent
Marked by, feeling, or expressing a feeling of profound awe and respect
Rhetoric
The art or study of effective use of language for communication and persuasion
Salubrious
Promoting health or well-being
Solvent
Able to meet financial obligations; able to dissolve another substance
Specious
Seeming true, but actually being fallacious; misleadingly attractive; plausible but false
Spurious
Lacking authenticity or validity; false; counterfeit
Subpoena
A court order requiring appearance and/or testimony
Succinct
Brief; concise
Superfluous
Exceeding what is sufficient or necessary
Surfeit
An overabundant supply; excess; to feed or supply to excess
Tenacity
The quality of adherence or persistence to something valued; persistent determination
Tenuous
Having little substance or strength; flimsy; weak
Tirade
A long and extremely critical speech; a harsh denunciation
Transient
Fleeting; passing quickly; brief
Zealous
Fervent; ardent; impassioned, devoted to a cause (a zealot is a zealous person)