Vocabulary & Spelling 2.4

agape

adj. - wide open

angst

n. - a feeling of anxiety, apprehension, or insecurity

buoy

n. - a floating object moored to the bottom to mark a channel or something lying under the water

chauvinism

n. - an attitude of superiority toward members of the opposite sex

cliché

n. - a phrase or idea that is boring because people use it a lot and it is no longer original

deuce

n. - a tie in tennis after each side has scored 40 requiring two consecutive points by one side to win

iconic

adj. - a sign whose form suggests a particular idea

incognito

adv. - with one’s identity concealed

Machiavellian

adj. - suggesting the principles of conduct laid down; marked by cunning, duplicity, or bad faith

phantasmagoria

n. - a constantly shifting complex succession of things seen or imagined

pleonasm

n. - the use of more words than those necessary to denote mere sense, redundancy

Pyrrhic

adj. - achieved at excessive cost

rambunctious

adj. - marked by uncontrollable exuberance; unruly

rivulet

n. - a small stream

sarcophagus

n. - a stone coffin; broadly: coffin

shibboleth

n. - a word or saying used by adherents of a party, sect, or belief and usually regarded by others as empty of real meaning

soiree

n. - a party or reception held in the evening

verisimilitude

n. - having the appearance of truth: propable

vicissitude

n. - a favorable or unfavorable event or situation that occurs by chance: a fluctuation of state or condition

whimsical

adj. - lightly fanciful