Vocabulary #6

obsequious: characterized by or showing servile complaisance or deference; fawning
beatitude: supreme blessedness; exalted happiness.
bete noire:  a person or thing that one particularly dislikes or dreads
bode: to be an omen of; portend
dank: unpleasantly moist or humid; damp and, often, chilly
ecumenical: general; universal.
fervid: heated or vehement in spirit, enthusiasm
fetid: having an offensive odor; stinking.
gargantuan: gigantic; enormous; colossal
heyday: the stage or period of greatest vigor, strength, success, etc.; prime
incubus: a nightmare.
infrastructure:
inveigle: the basic, underlying framework or features of a system or organization.
kudos: honor; glory; acclaim
lagniappe: an unexpected or indirect benefit.
prolix: extended to great, unnecessary, or tedious length; long and wordy.
protege: a person under the patronage, protection, or care of someone interested in his or her career or welfare.
prototype: the original or model on which something is based or formed.
sycophant: a self-seeking, servile flatterer; fawning parasite.
tautology: an instance of such repetition.
truckle: to submit or yield obsequiously or tamely 
 apostate: one who forsakes his/her religion, party, or cause.


bravado: a display of false or assumed courage.


consensus: a collective or general agreement of opinion, feeling, or thinking.

constrict: to make smaller or narrower, draw together, squeeze; to stop or cause to falter.


dichotomy: a division into two contradictory or mutually exclusive parts; a branching or forking in an ancestral line.


effusive: highly demonstrative; unrestrained.
euphoria: a feeling of great happiness or well-being, often with no objective basis.


gothic: characterized by or emphasizing a gloomy setting and grotesque or violent events; such a literary or artistic style; a type of medieval architecture.


impasse: a dead end; a position from which there is no escape; a problem to which there is no solution.

lugubrious: sad, mournful, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated or ludicrous degree.


metamorphosis: a complete transformation, as if by magic.


mystique: an aura or attitude of mystery or veneration surrounding something or someone.


non sequitur: an inference or conclusion that does not follow logically from the facts or premises.


parlous:  full of danger or risk, perilous.


punctilio: a minute detail of conduct or procedure; an instant of time.


quagmire: a difficult or entrapping situation; soft, soggy mud or slush.


quixotic: extravagantly or romantically idealistic; visionary without regard to practical considerations.


raconteur: a person who tells stories and anecdotes with great skill.


sine qua non: an essential or indispensable element or condition.


vendetta: a prolonged feud, often between two families, characterized by retaliatory acts of revenge; any act of motivated vengeance.