| consternation |
surprise and alarm, leading to panic, deep disappointment, or total confusion. |
| conversant |
familiar; acquainted; practiced (usually followed by "with" or "in"). |
| corollary |
a readily drawn conclusion; deduction or inference. |
| extralegal |
not regulated or permitted by law; outside of legal authority. |
| gadfly |
a persistent critic, especially of established institutions and policies. |
| incursion |
a raid or sudden invasion. |
| ingenuous |
having or showing simplicity and lack of sophistication; artless. |
| laureate |
one honored for achievement in a particular field or by a particular award, especially in the arts or sciences. |
| linguistics |
(used with a singular verb) the scientific and historical study of the form and structure of human language. |
| oblique |
not direct or straightforward in intent, means, or achievement; indirect or devious. |
| quadrant |
any of the four parts that result when an area is divided by two lines, real or imaginary, that intersect each other at right angles. |
| rebarbative |
tending to irritate or repel; forbidding or unattractive. |
| revetment |
a facing of stone, masonry, or the like to support or protect a wall, embankment, or mound of earth. |
| unadulterated |
unmixed with or undiluted by additives or extraneous elements; pure; complete. |
| vouchsafe |
to grant or give with condescension or as a special favor. |