| bathos |
a sudden descent from an exalted style or esteemed state to the commonplace. |
| credulous |
disposed to believe, especially on scanty evidence; gullible. |
| deify |
to raise to the rank of a god; consider to be a god. |
| extrinsic |
not inherent or essential; extraneous. |
| foment |
to encourage the development of; instigate or foster. |
| gadfly |
a persistent critic, especially of established institutions and policies. |
| harbinger |
someone or something that signals or foreshadows a later arrival or occurrence; herald; forerunner. |
| hypocrisy |
the practice or an instance of stating or pretending to hold beliefs or principles that one does not actually live by; insincerity. |
| laconic |
using very few words; succinct; terse. |
| laudatory |
expressing praise. |
| oblivious |
not conscious or paying attention; unknowing or unaware (usually followed by "to" or "of"). |
| pretentious |
assuming or marked by an air of importance or superiority that is unwarranted. |
| purvey |
to supply or provide (especially food, drink, or other provisions). |
| reprisal |
injury inflicted in retaliation for injury received, as in war; revenge. |
| 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. |