Wester vocab

Anonymous

(adj) having unknown or withheld authorship or agency; lacking individuality or distinction; unrecognizable

Cognomen

(n) a descriptive name acquired through usage; a family name; a surname

Denomination

(n) the name of a class or group; a name; designation

Homonym

(n) one of two or more words that have the same sound and often the same spelling but differ in meaning

Ignominy

(n) personal dishonor or humiliation; shameful or disgraceful action, conduct, or character

Metonymy

(n) an attribute or commonly associated feature is used to name or designate something

Misnomer

n) a name wrongly applied to a person, place, or thing

Nomenclature

(n) a system of names used in the arts and sciences

Nominal

(adj) existing in name only and not in actuality; insignificantly small

Renown

(n) the quality of being widely honored and acclaimed; fame

Convivial

(adj) sociable; fond of feasting and good company; festive

Ebullience

(n) expressing feelings or ideas in an enthusiastic manner; exuberance

Felicitous

(adj) well-chosen; apt; yielding great pleasure or delight

Irascible

(adj) prone to outbursts of temper; easily angered; characterized by anger

Placid

(adj) having an undisturbed surface or aspect; outwardly calm or composed

Querulous

(adj) given to complaining; peevish; expressing or showing a complaint

Sardonic

(adj) scornfully mocking and derisive

Surly

(adj) sullenly ill-humored; gruff

Truculent

(adj) savage and cruel; fierce; disposed to fight; pugnacious

Unctuous

(adj) affected, exaggerated, or insincere earnestness

Audacious

Fearlessly daring; bold; insolent

Contumacy

Contemptuous resistance to authority; stubborn rebelliousness; insubordination

Dour

Marked by stubborn sternness or harshness; forbidding; glum

Eclat

Brilliant performance or achievement; conspicuous success; acclamation

Indefatigable

Incapable of being fatigued; tireless

Irresolute

Undecided or uncertain as to action or procedure; vacillating

Obdurate

Not giving in to persuasion; inflexible; hardhearted; hardened in wrongdoing or wickedness

Obsequious

Excessively eager to serve, obey, or ingratiate oneself; fawning

Pertinacity

The quality of holding firmly to a purpose, belief, or opinion; stubborn persistence

Stoic

Seemingly indifferent to or unaffected by pleasure or pain; impassive

Benediction

An invocation of divine blessing; a blessing; expression of good wishes

Colloquium

An academic seminar on a broad field of study; an informal meeting for the exchange of views

Edict

A formal proclamation, command, or decree

Elocution

The art of public speaking, emphasizing gesture, vocal production, and delivery

Grandiloquence

Pompous or bombastic speech or expression

Indict

To accuse of an offence; charge; to attach or condemn

Interdict

To prohibit or forbid; place under a legal or ecclesiastical sanction

Interlocutor

Someone who takes part in a conversation

Loquacious

Very talkative, garrulous

Soliloquy

A literary form in which a character reveals their thoughts in the form of a monologue

deleterious

having a harmful effect; injurious

despoil

To deprive of possessions or property by force; plunder; rob

effectual

Producing or sufficient to produce a desired result; fully adequate

jettison

To discard as unwanted or burdensome

raze

to tear down or demolish; level to the ground.

obviate

to anticipate and prevent; to remove, dispose of

pinnacle

a high peak or point

stultify

To render useless or inadequate; cripple

surmount

to overcome and obstacle; conquer; to climb; to place something.

wrest

(v.) obtain by seizing forcibly or violently, also metaphorically

avarice

(n.) a greedy desire, particularly for wealth

insatiable

incapable of being satisfied

inundate

to overwhelm

myriad

(adj.) in very great numbers; (n.) a very great number

parsimony

unusual or excessive frugality; stinginess

prodigal

(adj.) wastefully extravagant; lavishly or generously abundant; (n.) one who is wasteful and self-indulgent

replete

plentifully supplied; abounding

surfeit

an excessive amount; overindulgence in food or drink

tumult

Noisy excitement; an uproar or disturbance.

voluminous

having great volume, fullness, size, or number

extenuation

attempting to lessen the seriousness with a partial justification or excuse; a partial justification or excuse

portent

an indication of something momentous or calamitous about to occur;
omen

pretentious

making an extravagant outward show; ostentatious

retentive

having the ability to remember or store

retinue

the attendants accompanying a high-ranking person

sustenance

something, especially food, that supports life, health, and good spirits

tenable

capable of being defended or sustained; logical; reasonable

tenacious

holding firmly; persistent; cohesive; adhesive

tenuous

having little substance; flimsy

tenure

the period of holding something, such as property or an office; occupation

adduce

To cite as an example or means of proof in an argument

confound

to cause a person to become confused; bewilder; to fail to distinguish

construe

to place a certain meaning on; interpret

conundrum

a difficult and complicated problem with no satisfactory solution

cryptic

having an ambiguous or hidden meaning; enigmatic; mystifying

equivocate

to use ambiguous and misleading language intentionally; hedge

paradox

a seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless be true

patent

obvious; plain

perspicacity

acuteness of perception, discernment, or understanding

rudimentary

elementary; fundamental; in the earliest stages of development; incipient

commodious

Spacious;roomy

finite

limited; having boundaries

gamut

the complete range or extent of something

incalculable

not capable of being conceived of or determined; beyond calculation

iota

an extremely small amount

lofty

of great height; towering; elevated in character; noble; affecting grandness; pompuous

magnitude

greatness in size or extent; greatness of rank or position; greatness in significance or influence

miniscule

very small; tiny

picayune

of little value or importance; petty; mean

vestige

a visible trace, evidence, or sign of something that has once existed but exists no more

bedlam

a place or situation of noisy uproar and confusion

chauvinism

a prejudiced belief in the superiority of one’s group

draconian

exceedingly harsh; rigorous; cruel, designating a code of extreme severity

herculean

of or requiring unusual size, power, or difficulty

martinet

a rigid military disciplinarian, demanding absolute adherence to rules

maudlin

weakly and excessively tearful; sentimental

mesmerize

to capture and charm; enthrall; to hypnotize.

silhouette

an outline of something that appears dark against a light background

stentorian

extremely loud

titanic

having great stature or enormous strength