| bilious |
ill-tempered; irritable. |
| comparative |
measured or estimated by comparison; relative. |
| finicky |
exceptionally fussy or hard to satisfy. |
| labyrinthine |
complex and intricate to the point of being puzzling. |
| perverse |
stubbornly opposed to what is expected or requested of one, or marked by or inclined toward such an attitude. |
| Philistine |
(sometimes lower case) one who is ignorant of, smugly indifferent to, or hostile to aesthetic and cultural values. |
| profundity |
that which involves great insight or intellectual depth. |
| protégé |
a person under the care or sponsorship of an influential patron. |
| quandary |
a situation of uncertainty, puzzlement, or hesitation; dilemma. |
| query |
a question. |
| resonance |
ability to make a strong or lasting effect, especially because of an emotional association. |
| subsume |
to classify, consider, or include (an idea, proposition, or the like) in a more comprehensive or general category or principle. |
| sully |
to make dirty or tarnished. |
| verve |
energetic enthusiasm; liveliness. |
| vie |
to compete with another for victory, superiority, or the like (usually followed by "for"). |