Vocab #4

apostate- a person who leaves behind his religious or political beliefs. (noun)

-Siddhartha was an apostate in that he left behind his Hindi belief in wealth and lived the life of a poor man with little means.

effusive- something or someone showing unrestrained emotion or thankfulness. (noun)

-After the emergency man cleaned her wounds she was effusive.

impasse-something from which there is no escape or solution. (noun)

-Some may think magic is impasse.

euphoria-describes a feeling of well-being and great happiness. (noun)

-After he saved the little girl from being hit he entered a state of euphoria.

lugubrious- describes someone who looks very sad, depressed or long-in-the-face. (adjective)

-We could tell they were upset by the lugubrious expression on her face.

bravado- behavior by a scared person that shows courage. (noun)

-The bravado that he showed did not impress the crowd.

consensus- an agreement made by a group. (noun)

-Before we decided where we would go on vacation we had to get a consensus from our entire family.

dichotomy- a sharp division of things or ideas into two contradictory parts. (noun)

-the dichotomy of votes in the class made it difficult to choose which project we were going to do.

constrict- to become narrower at one place, or to make something narrower or more restrictive. (verb)

-The boa constricted the animal so tight it suffocated.

gothic- related to medieval style or the horror and mystery depicted in fiction about the 18th and 19th centuries. (adjective)

-That women had a very gothic style with all her dark cloths and makeup.

punctilio-precise observance of petty formalities

-the receptionist was very punctilious in his attention to every detail.

metamorphosis-change of form, shape, structure, or substance; transformation, as, in myths, by magic or sorcery

-The caterpillar  metamorphosis into a butterfly was a beautiful sight.  

raconteur- a person who tells stories or anecdotes in an amusing and clever way. (noun)

-He was a raconteur in that he could turn the most banal stories into hilarious and interesting ones.

sine qua non-an essential condition, qualification, etc.; indispensable thing; absolute prerequisite

-Physics is a sine qua non for AP Physics.

quixotic- romantic behavior or following beliefs even though they are foolish or unreachable goals. (adjective)

-Some may call the gold miners who are looking to strike it rich are quixotic because it is not often that large amounts of gold are found.

vendetta- a lingering grudge or feeling of hatred for someone, such as a blood feud where the family of someone who had been killed seeks revenge on the family of the killer or his family. (noun)

-The Hatfields and the Mccoys had vendettas against each family.

non sequitur- a statement, conclusion or reply that has nothing to do with the previous statement. (noun)

-He provided a non sequitur statement in his argument suddenly changing the courts thoughts.

mystique- an aura of mystery or an air of secrecy surrounding something or someone that makes the person or thing seem very intriguing. (noun)

-The new kid at school had a certain mystique about him.

quagmire- soft, wet ground or a complex and difficult situation with no easy solution. (noun)

-while walking through the wood in the winter I stepped in a patch of quagmire.

parlous-perilous; dangerous; risky

-The hero went on a parlous journey to save the his people.