| Accolade | praise |
|---|---|
| Allusion | indirect reference |
| Ambivalence | uncertainty; having 'mixed' feelings |
| Ambivalent | unable to decide |
| Analogy | comparison |
| Anecdote | short account of something interesting; story |
| Anomalous | odd; not fitting the pattern |
| Apparition | ghost; something that 'appears' |
| Aspersion | negative feeling; damaging remark |
| Belligerence | aggression |
| Bombastic | too elaborate; exaggerated |
| Candid | truthful |
| Capricious | changeable; fickle |
| Cherished | cared for; firmly-held |
| Cliche | over-used expression |
| Conception | 1. idea; view. 2. beginning of pregnancy |
| Convoluted | complicated or long-winded |
| Credence | belief |
| Cryptic | hidden |
| Currency | 1. widespread acceptance, 2. money |
| Decorous | good and correct (used of behavior) |
| Denunciation | act of speaking out against |
| Derailed | thrown off course |
| Derivative | unoriginal |
| Despotic | acting like a tyrant |
| Detritus | rubbish |
| Diaphanous | very thin and transparent |
| Dictum | often-used saying |
| Dilettante | person who dabbles in the arts |
| Disdained | showed contempt for |
| Dispassionate | unbiased; fair |
| Dowager | an elderly woman of elevate social status |
| Dubious | doubtful |
| Egalitarian | equal; believer in equality |
| Elicit | draw out (used mainly for information or feelings) |
| Elliptical | 1. shaped like an ellipse, 2. indirect |
| Epitomizes | acts as a typical example of |
| Equivocate | speak ambiguously/vaguely |
| Evasiveness | trying to avoid something |
| Explicitly | very clear; nothing hidden |
| Foraging | searching for food |
| Hypothetical | based on guesswork; not proven |
| Iconoclast | person who goes against accepted authority |
| Idiosyncratic | quirky; unique to an individual |
| Imponderable | cannot be understood |
| Indecorous | not well-behaved; lacking in dignity |
| Indigence | extreme poverty |
| Inept | clumsy |
| Inherent | inbuilt; genetic |
| Intricate | complicated |
| Irrefutable | cannot be proved wrong |
| Jingoism | using words to stir up exaggerated patriotism |
| Jubilant | joyful |
| Judicious | fair and equal |
| Lament | express regret over something |
| Loquacious | talkative; using too many words |
| Mendicancy | begging |
| Metaphorical | not literal; figurative |
| Milieu | environment; surroundings |
| Mitigated | made less severe |
| Nascent | just begun; in an early stage of development |
| Nostalgia | longing for the past |
| Obtrusive | easily seen |
| Orthographical | concerned with writing and spelling |
| Ossified | become fixed and rigid |
| Ostentatious | showy |
| Palpable | can be felt |
| Pastoral | 1. concerned with the countryside, 2. concerned with the care a pastor gives to someone |
| Pedestrian | 1. boring (adj), 2. person who walks (n) |
| Perfidy | treachery; betrayal |
| Profligacy | wasteful and immoral behavior |
| Prohibitive | very expensive |
| Prudence | wisdom; caution |
| Pugnacious | aggressive |
| Purveyor | one who sells something or causes something to spread |
| Resonance | echo |
| Respite | break (from work etc.) |
| Resurgence | revival |
| Sparse | thin; not thick |
| Stringent | strict |
| Succumbing | giving in to; falling under the influence of |
| Supercilious | arrogant |
| Tenacity | firmness of purpose |
| Transcend | go beyond a limit |
| Variegated | multi colored |
| Venerable | worthy of respect |
| Viable | workable; able to live or grow |
| Visceral | concerned with the 'guts'; physical rather than mental |
| The 100 Most Beautiful Words in English | |
| Ailurophile | A cat-lover. |
| Assemblage | A gathering. |
| Becoming | Attractive. |
| Beleaguer | To exhaust with attacks. |
| Brood | To think alone. |
| Bucolic | In a lovely rural setting. |
| Bungalow | A small, cozy cottage. |
| Chatoyant | Like a cat's eye. |
| Comely | Attractive. |
| Conflate | To blend together. |
| Cynosure | A focal point of admiration. |
| Dalliance | A brief love affair. |
| Demesne | Dominion, territory. |
| Demure | Shy and reserved. |
| Denouement | The resolution of a mystery. |
| Desuetude | Disuse. |
| Desultory | Slow, sluggish. |
| Diaphanous | Filmy. |
| Dissemble | Deceive. |
| Dulcet | Sweet, sugary. |
| Ebullience | Bubbling enthusiasm. |
| Effervescent | Bubbly. |
| Efflorescence | Flowering, blooming. |
| Elision | Dropping a sound or syllable in a word. |
| Elixir | A good potion. |
| Eloquence | Beauty and persuasion in speech. |
| Embrocation | Rubbing on a lotion. |
| Emollient | A softener. |
| Ephemeral | Short-lived. |
| Epiphany | A sudden revelation. |
| Erstwhile | At one time, for a time. |
| Ethereal | Gaseous, invisible but detectable. |
| Evanescent | Vanishing quickly, lasting a very short time. |
| Evocative | Suggestive. |
| Fetching | Pretty. |
| Felicity | Pleasantness. |
| Forbearance | Withholding response to provocation. |
| Fugacious | Fleeting. |
| Furtive | Shifty, sneaky. |
| Gambol | To skip or leap about joyfully. |
| Glamour | Beauty. |
| Gossamer | The finest piece of thread, a spider's silk |
| Halcyon | Happy, sunny, care-free. |
| Harbinger | Messenger with news of the future. |
| Imbrication | Overlapping and forming a regular pattern. |
| Imbroglio | An altercation or complicated situation. |
| Imbue | To infuse, instill. |
| Incipient | Beginning, in an early stage. |
| Ineffable | Unutterable, inexpressible. |
| Ingénue | A naïve young woman. |
| Inglenook | A cozy nook by the hearth. |
| Insouciance | Blithe nonchalance. |
| Inure | To become jaded. |
| Labyrinthine | Twisting and turning. |
| Lagniappe | A special kind of gift. |
| Lagoon | A small gulf or inlet. |
| Languor | Listlessness, inactivity. |
| Lassitude | Weariness, listlessness. |
| Leisure | Free time. |
| Lilt | To move musically or lively. |
| Lissome | Slender and graceful. |
| Lithe | Slender and flexible. |
| Love | Deep affection. |
| Mellifluous | Sweet sounding. |
| Moiety | One of two equal parts. |
| Mondegreen | A slip of the ear. |
| Murmurous | Murmuring. |
| Nemesis | An unconquerable archenemy. |
| Offing | The sea between the horizon and the offshore. |
| Onomatopoeia | A word that sounds like its meaning. |
| Opulent | Lush, luxuriant. |
| Palimpsest | A manuscript written over earlier ones. |
| Panacea | A solution for all problems |
| Panoply | A complete set. |
| Pastiche | An art work combining materials from various sources. |
| Penumbra | A half-shadow. |
| Petrichor | The smell of earth after rain. |
| Plethora | A large quantity. |
| Propinquity | An inclination. |
| Pyrrhic | Successful with heavy losses. |
| Quintessential | Most essential. |
| Ratatouille | A spicy French stew. |
| Ravel | To knit or unknit. |
| Redolent | Fragrant. |
| Riparian | By the bank of a stream. |
| Ripple | A very small wave. |
| Scintilla | A spark or very small thing. |
| Sempiternal | Eternal. |
| Seraglio | Rich, luxurious oriental palace or harem. |
| Serendipity | Finding something nice while looking for something else. |
| Summery | Light, delicate or warm and sunny. |
| Sumptuous | Lush, luxurious. |
| Surreptitious | Secretive, sneaky. |
| Susquehanna | A river in Pennsylvania. |
| Susurrous | Whispering, hissing. |
| Talisman | A good luck charm. |
| Tintinnabulation | Tinkling. |
| Umbrella | Protection from sun or rain. |
| Untoward | Unseemly, inappropriate. |
| Vestigial | In trace amounts. |
| Wafture | Waving. |
| Wherewithal | The means. |
| Woebegone | Sorrowful, downcast. |