Vocab #3

accolade - noun a tangible symbol signifying approval or distinction
The celebrity received an accolade from his home town.

acerbity - noun a sharp sour taste; a sharp bitterness; a rough and bitter manner
Her acerbity was shown through the sharpness of her eyes.

attrition - noun the act of rubbing together; wearing something down by friction; a wearing down to weaken or destroy; sorrow for sin arising from fear of damnation; the wearing down of rock particles by friction due to water or wind or ice; erosion by friction
Should one of these teeth be destroyed the opposed one loses its natural means of attrition and becomes a remarkable, curved tusk-like elongation.

bromide - noun any of the salts of hydrobromic acid; formerly used as a sedative but now generally replaced by safer drugs; a trite or obvious remark
Some people still believe and act on the old bromide that "misery loves company.

chauvinist - noun an extreme bellicose nationalist; a person with a prejudiced belief in the superiority of his or her own kind
My male coworkers are all chauvinists who feel that a woman should stay at home, have children, and certainly not manage a Fortune 500 company.

chronic - adj. being long-lasting and recurrent or characterized by long suffering
He was diagnosed with a chronic disease.

expound - verb add details, as to an account or idea; clarify the meaning of and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing; state
From that time he gave up all worldly learning and laboured solely to expound spiritual things.

factionalism - of a faction or factions.
I answered that both groups were suffering from serious defects and advised him to take measures to liquidate factionalism.

immaculate - adj. completely neat and clean; free from stain or blemish; without fault or error
What was the date of Mary's Immaculate Conception?

imprecation - noun the act of calling down a curse that invokes evil (and usually serves as an insult); a slanderous accusation
If you really don't like someone you can shout out an imprecation at them.

ineluctable - adj. impossible to avoid or evade:"inescapable conclusion"
Ineluctable downhill slide.

mercurial - adj. relating to or containing or caused by mercury; relating to or having characteristics (eloquence, shrewdness, swiftness, thievishness) attributed to the god Mercury; relating to or under the (astrological) influence of the planet Mercury; liable to sudden unpredictable change
They can be very mercurial, one minute docile the next skittish.

palliate - verb provide physical relief, as from pain; lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or extent of
But the political dangers to be apprehended from the disruption of the English Church were sufficiently serious to palliate the fraud.

protocol - noun code of correct conduct; forms of ceremony and etiquette observed by diplomats and heads of state; (computer science) rules determining the format and transmission of data
Thus far, Mr. Tim was not following typical protocol for emergencies.

resplendent - adj. having great beauty and splendor
Resplendent in scarlet liveries and silver badges.

stigmatize - verb mark with a stigma or stigmata; to accuse or condemn or openly or formally or brand as disgraceful
Stigmatized minority.

sub rosa - confidentially; secretly; privately.
Still, it would always have to be sub rosa.

vainglory - noun outspoken conceit
He did not hesitate to flaunt his great personal vainglory in public.

vestige - noun an indication that something has been present
Work finally lost the last vestiges of appeal that it had.

volition - noun the act of making a choice; the capability of conscious choice and decision and intention
Her arms slid around his neck of their own volition and she eagerly returned his kiss.