| bilge |
the rounded part of a ship's hull between the bottom and the sides. |
| coeval |
coinciding in time of origin or existence; contemporary. |
| discomfit |
to upset or confuse. |
| gambit |
a tactic or maneuver designed to gain an advantage, especially one that involves some sacrifice on one's part. |
| hypocrisy |
the practice or an instance of stating or pretending to hold beliefs or principles that one does not actually live by; insincerity. |
| idiosyncrasy |
a characteristic of temperament, habit, or physical structure particular to a given individual or group; peculiarity. |
| incumbent |
currently holding an office or position. |
| intelligentsia |
the elite class of highly learned people within a society, or those who consider themselves part of such a class. |
| jeremiad |
a long complaint about life or one's situation; lamentation. |
| macrocosm |
a large unit or entity that represents on a large scale one of its smaller components. |
| quotidian |
happening every day or once a day. |
| raffish |
carelessly unconventional or disreputable, sometimes appealingly so. |
| shibboleth |
a slogan, phrase, or belief that characterizes or is held devotedly by a group. |
| surcingle |
a girth or belt that wraps around the body of a horse to secure a saddle, pack, or the like to its back. |
| tort |
in law, any civil rather than criminal harm or injury that violates the implicit duty of each citizen not to harm others, and for which one may bring a civil suit and collect compensation. |