Unit 3 Vocab

Ancillary

(n.) subordinate or supplementary

Bowdlerize

(v.) to remove material considered offensive (from a book, play, film, etc)

Condescend

(v.) to come down or stoop voluntarily to a lower level; to speak to reporters

Cozen

(v.) to trick; to cheat or swindle

Enclave

(n.) an enclosed district, region, or area inhabited by a particular group of people or having a special character

Forte

(n.) a person's strong point; what a person does best

Gratis

(adj.) free; (adv.) without charge

Icon

(n.) a representation or image of a sacred personage, often considered sacred itself; an image or picture; a symbol; a graphic symbol on a computer monitor display; an object of blind devotion

Interstice

(n.) a small, narrow space between things or parts of things

Macrocosm

(n.) the universe considered as a whole; the entire complex structure of something

Mountebank

(n.) a trickster or swindler; a charlatan

Paean

(n.) a song of praise, joy, or triumph

Persiflage

(n.) lighthearted joking, talking, or writing

Plethora

(n.) overfullness; superabundance; superfluity

Pragmatic

(adj.) concerned with practical considerations or value; dealing with actions and results rather than with abstract theory; stiff in one's opinions

Quizzical

(adj.) puzzled; mocking; odd; equivocal

Rapacity

(n.) inordinate greed; the disposition to obtain one's desires by force, extortion, or plunder

Schism

(n.) a formal split within a religious organization; any division or separation of a group or organization into hostile factions

Therapeutic

(adj.) having the power to heal or cure; beneficial

Virtuoso

(n.) a brilliant performer; a person with masterly skill or technique; (adj.) masterly or brilliant