Abstruse
adj. extremely difficult to understand
Affront
n. an open or intentional insult; a slight; v. to insult to one's face; to face in defiance, confront
Canard
n. a false rumor, fabricated story
Captious
adj. excessively ready to find fault; given to petty criticism; intended to trap, confuse, or show up
Cognizant
adj. aware, knowledgeable, informed; having jurisdiction
Contrite
adj. regretful for some misdeed or sin; plagued by a sense of guilt; thoroughly penitent
Cynosure
n. the center of attraction, attention, or interest; something that serves to guide or direct
Decorous
adj. well behaved, dignified, socially proper
Deign
v. to think it appropriate or suitable to one's dignity to do something; to condescend
Desiccated
adj. part. thoroughly dried out; divested of spirit or vitality; arid and uninteresting
Efficacy
n. the power to produce a desired result
Engender
v. to bring into existence, give rise to, produce; to come into existence, assume form
Ethereal
adj. light, airy, delicate; highly refined; suggesting what is heavenly (rather than earthbound)
Facade
n. the front or face of a building; a surface appearance (as opposed to what may lie behind)
Ghoulish
adj. revolting in an unnatural or morbid way; suggestive of someone who robs graves or otherwise preys on the dead
Incongruous
adj. not in keeping, unsuitable, incompatible
Machination
n. a crafty, scheming, or underhanded action designed to accomplish some (usually evil) end
Mesmerize
v. to hypnotize, entrance; to fascinate, enthrall, bewitch
Opprobrium
n. disgrace arising from shameful conduct; contempt, reproach
Putative
adj. generally regarded as such; reputed; hypothesized, inferred