Vocabulary #3

apostate
— noun 

1. a person who forsakes his religion,cause, party, etc. 

— adjective 

1. of or characterized by apostasy. 

• The young man became an apostate when he joined the opposing group on campus.

effusive
— adjective 

1. unduly demonstrative; lacking reserve 
2. pouring out; overflowing 

• The effusive man just kept pouring out his thoughts even though it was his turn to talk was over 20 minutes ago.

impasse
- noun

1. a position or situation from which there is no escape; deadlock. 
2. a road or way that has no outlet; cul-de-sac. 

• The road came to an impasse when the landslide occurred and affected both ways of the road.

euphoria
-noun

1. a state of intense happiness and self-confidence
2. Psychology . a feeling of happiness, confidence, or well-being sometimes exaggerated in pathological states as mania. 

• The young kids had euphoria when they visited the Disneyland Resort for the first time.

lugubrious
-adjective

1. mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner: lugubrious songs of lost love.

• The lugubrious man was very sad when his girlfriend of three years broke up with him.

bravado
-noun

1. a pretentious, swaggering display of courage.

• The young man showed bravado when it became his turn to jump out of the plane to skydive.

consensus
-noun

1. majority of opinion: The consensus of the group was that they should meet twice a month. 
2. general agreement or concord; harmony. 

• The collaborative group made a consensus that they will work on the project without opposing views on how to do it.

dichotomy
-noun 

1. division into two parts, kinds, etc.;subdivision into halves or pairs. 
2. division into two mutually exclusive,opposed, or contradictory groups: a dichotomy between thought and action
3. Botany . a mode of branching byconstant forking, as in some stems, inveins of leaves, etc. 
4. Astronomy . the phase of the moon or of an inferior planet when half of its disk is visible. 

• The 40-person group was divided into a dichotomy of two equal-numbered groups.

constrict
-verb (used with object)

1. to draw or press in; cause to contract or shrink; compress. 
2. to slow or stop the natural course or development of 

• The 20-page essay was constricted into a 2-page essay because of the irrelevant content it had.

gothic
-adjective

1. ( usually initial capital letter ) noting or pertaining to a style of architecture, originating in France in the middle of the 12th century and existing in the western half of Europe through the middle of the 16th century, characterized by the use of the pointed arch and the ribbed vault, by the use of fine woodwork and stonework, by a progressive lightening of structure, and by the use of such features as flying buttresses, ornamental gables, crockets, and foils. 
2. ( usually initial capital letter ) pertaining to or designating the style of painting, sculpture, etc., produced between the 13th and 15th centuries, especially in northern Europe, characterized by a tendency toward realism and interest in detail. 
3. ( initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to Goths or their language. 
4. ( usually initial capital letter ) of or pertaining to the music, especially of northern Europe, of the period roughly from 1200 to 1450, including that of the Ars Antiqua, Ars Nova, and the Burgundian school. 
5. ( usually initial capital letter ) pertaining to the Middle Ages; medieval. 

• The gothic building in France attracted many people for tours.

punctilio
-noun

1. a fine point, particular, or detail, as of conduct, ceremony, or procedure. 
2. strictness or exactness in the observance of formalities or amenities. 

• The punctilio of the ceremony was that everyone must follow the agenda to experience a smooth and fun celebration.

metamorphosis-noun

1. Biology . a profound change in form from one stage to the next in the life history of an organism, as from the caterpillar to the pupa and from the pupa to the adult butterfly. Compare complete metamorphosis. 
2. a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation by magic or witchcraft. 
3. any complete change in appearance, character, circumstances, etc. 
4. a form resulting from any such change. 
5. a type of alteration or degeneration in which tissues are changed: fatty metamorphosis of the liver. 
6. the resultant form. 

• The caterpillar underwent metamorphosis to become a beautiful butterfly.

raconteur
-noun

1. a person who is skilled in relating stories and anecdotes interestingly.

• The old man is a raconteur due to always having a story for every experience.

sine qua non
-noun

1. an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential

• The sine qua non for the party is the food.

quixotic
-adjective

1. ( sometimes initial capital letter ) resembling or befitting Don Quixote. 
2. extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable. 
3. impulsive and often rashly unpredictable. 

• The quixotic accident occurred because of the traffic light turning green for both ways.

vendetta
-noun

1. a private feud in which the members of the family of a murdered person seek to avenge the murder by killing the slayer or one of the slayer's relatives, especially such vengeance as once practiced in Corsica and parts of Italy. 
2. any prolonged and bitter feud, rivalry, contention, or the like 

• The Smith family has been in a vendetta with the Johnson family because the Johnson's won the game with the Smith's by just one point.

non sequitur
-noun

1. Logic. an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises. 
2. a statement containing an illogical conclusion. 

• The non sequitur is to think that the food was warmed up by the microwave even though there is no microwave to be found.

mystique
-noun

1. a framework of doctrines, ideas, beliefs, or the like, constructed around a person or object, endowing the person or object with enhanced value or profound meaning: the mystique of Poe. 
2. an aura of mystery or mystical power surrounding a particular occupation or pursuit 

• The mystique of Sherlock Holmes' findings have always made the reader eager to read more.

quagmire
-noun

1. an area of miry or boggy ground whose surface yields under the tread; a bog.
2. a situation from which extrication is very difficult: a quagmire of financial indebtedness.
3. anything soft or flabby.

• After becoming a doctor a dentist, one finds out that they are now in a financial quagmire.

parlous
-adjective

1. perilous; dangerous.
2. Obsolete . clever; shrewd.

-adverb

1. to a large extent; greatly

• Jumping off a parlous cliff can end up in a variety of ways that should not even be mentioned.

Definitions from dictionary.com Thank you dictionary.com!