| abstruse |
difficult to comprehend or understand; esoteric; arcane. |
| berate |
to reproach or scold severely. |
| burgeon |
to start to grow; send forth shoots, leaves, buds, or the like (often followed by "out" or "forth"). |
| conversant |
familiar; acquainted; practiced (usually followed by "with" or "in"). |
| discomfit |
to upset or confuse. |
| encomium |
a formal expression of praise. |
| eruct |
to belch forth. |
| expostulate |
to argue earnestly with someone, usually against an intended action; remonstrate. |
| incumbent |
currently holding an office or position. |
| indurate |
to make hard in texture; harden. |
| lapidary |
an expert on or dealer in gemstones. |
| louche |
of questionable decency, morality, or taste; shady; disreputable. |
| maverick |
a person who thinks and behaves independently, especially one who refuses to adhere to the orthodoxy of the group to which he or she belongs. |
| parvenu |
a person who has suddenly acquired wealth or status, without acquiring the tastes, manners, customs, or the like of his or her new station. |
| splenetic |
ill-tempered or spiteful. |