fiction vocab - english

masque

costume ball or masquerade theme

august

imposing and magnificent

candelabrum

a large branched candlestick

piquancy

a pleasantly sharp quality

arabesque

elaborately designed

disapprobation

disapproval

habiliments

clothing

phantasm

something apparently seen but having no physical reality

mummer

masked and costumed person who acts out pantomimes

warrens

crowded, maze-like passages

titanic

having great power

paranoia

a mental disorder characterized by delusions of persecution

cavorting

leaping or prancing about

spoors

droppings of wild animals

okapi

an african american animal related to the giraffe but with a much shorter neck

tremulous

trembling; quivering

psychopathic

with a mental disorder

zenith

the highest point

counterance

the expression of a person’s face

veracity

truthfulness; honesty

guileless

without slyness or cunning; frank

prodigious

enormous

sublimity

a noble or exalted state

poise

self assurance; ease of manner

avowal

declaration

constrained

compelled

infectious

tending to spread; catching

claque

a group paid to applaud at a performance

marzipan

a candy made from almonds, sugar, and egg whites

jostling

bumping; pushing

suave

smoothly polite; polished

libations

the liquids poured as offerings in a religious ritual

inert

unable to move or act

arrogantly

proud; haughtily

evocative

having the power to bring forth memories

abalone

a shellfish with a flat shell that has a pearly lining

nursery

a place where young trees and plants are grown

luster

soft, reflected light; brilliance

hues

colors; shades of a given color

akin

having a similar quality or character

delusion

a false belief held in spite of evidence to the contrary

imminent

likely to happen presently; threatening

mackintosh

a waterproof raincoat

pariah

despised; outcast