| academicism |
in the arts, rigid adherence to accepted and traditional forms. |
| cynosure |
a thing or person that is the center of attention and admiration. |
| insipid |
having a bland or uninteresting flavor; tasteless. |
| intersperse |
to place or scatter among other things. |
| malingerer |
one who pretends to be ill or injured, especially in order to avoid work or duty. |
| mésalliance |
marriage with someone of lower social standing than oneself. |
| nonpareil |
a person or thing whose excellence is unequaled; paragon. |
| parturient |
giving birth or about to give birth; in labor. |
| pedantic |
making or characterized by an excessive display of learnedness, or overly insistent on scholarly details and formalities. |
| precursory |
coming before and serving to indicate what will follow; premonitory. |
| recant |
to withdraw from commitment to (a former position or statement), especially publicly; retract. |
| recessional |
a piece of music that accompanies the exit of participants in a program or religious ceremony. |
| recidivism |
chronic return to bad habits, especially criminal relapse. |
| reconnoiter |
to go through or over (an area) so as to gain information about it, as for military or engineering purposes. |
| Sabbatarian |
one who observes the Sabbath on Saturday, as Jews and certain Christians. |