| Cant: Pretence, lip-service |
| Politicians are holding forth with their usual hypocritical cant |
| Clamorous: Offensively loud |
| Naughty children in a classroom are generally clamorous in nature |
| Clique: An exclusive circle of people with a common purpose |
| The country is run by a small clique of wealthy families |
| Contort: Twist and press out of shape |
| His face was contorted with pain after being hit by the car |
| Delineation: A graphic or vivid verbal description |
| His razor sharp delineation of ordinary life is very apt |
| Extol: Praise, glorify, or honour |
| She keeps extolling his management skills |
| Fatuous: Devoid of intelligence |
| That is not a fatuous argument, it has to be taken seriously |
| Flay: Strip the skin off |
| The critics flayed him with accusations of racial hatred |
| Infraction: A crime less serious than a felony |
| Another infraction by him would mean a stint in the probation centre |
| Lassitude: A state of comatose torpor |
| She remained in a state of lassitude after her illness |
| Machiavellian: A follower of Machiavelli's principles |
| The Machiavellian and devious decisions made by him were not appreciated |
| Opprobrium: A state of extreme dishonour |
| He had to undergo the opprobrium of a public trial |
| Pall: Become less interesting or attractive |
| History classes palled on me |
| Pandemonium: A state of extreme confusion and disorder |
| There was pandemonium in the court as the verdict was delivered |
| Redress: Act of correcting an error or a fault or an evil |
| Victims are turning to litigation to redress wrongs done to them |
| Rhetoric: Using language effectively to please or persuade |
| Hitler was a champion in use of rhetoric and used it to rouse the masses |
| Succulent: Full of juice |
| We ate a succulent pie yesterday |
| Turpitude: A corrupt or depraved or degenerate act or practice |
| He was a beacon of morality in a sea of turpitude |
| Umbrage: A feeling of anger caused by being offended |
| He takes umbrage at anyone who criticizes him |
| Vapid: Lacking taste or flavour or tang |
| The cleric’s wife was young and vapid |
| Vilify: Spread negative information about |
| He was vilified and forced into exile |
| Vitiate: Make imperfect |
| His otherwise admirable character is vitiated by his pride |
| Vituperation: Abusive or venomous language used to express blame |
| He is one of the media’s most vituperative critics and anyone who appears on his show is subject to harsh criticism |
