Vocabulary List #4

Apostate- a person who leaves behind his religious or political beliefs. (noun)
- My friend is an apostate, because he gave up Christianity.
Effusive- something or someone showing unrestrained emotion or thankfulness. (noun)
-I thanked the man effusively for saving my life.
Impasse-something from which there is no escape or solution. (noun)
-The maze was an impasse for the rat.
Euphoria-describes a feeling of well-being and great happiness. (noun)
-After he took the drugs, the man entered a state of euphoria.
Lugubrious- describes someone who looks very sad, depressed or long-in-the-face. (adjective)
- She looked lugubrious when she found out that her dog died.
Bravado- behavior by a scared person that shows courage. (noun)
-The little boy showed bravado when faced with the ugly witch.
Consensus- an agreement made by a group. (noun)
-My family came to the consensus that we were going to eat pizza tonight.
Dichotomy- a sharp division of things or ideas into two contradictory parts. (noun)
-There is usually a pretty even dichotomy when trying to choose the next president of the U.S.
Constrict- to become narrower at one place, or to make something narrower or more restrictive. (verb)
-The boa constrictor began to constrict my whole body, which made it impossible to breathe.
Gothic- related to medieval style or the horror and mystery depicted in fiction about the 18th and 19th centuries. (adjective)
-The gothic architecture looks so beautiful.
Punctilio-precise observance of petty formalities
-My grandmother is very punctilious when it comes to table manners.
Metamorphosis-change of form, shape, structure, or substance; transformation, as, in myths, by magic or sorcery
-The caterpillar  metamorphosized into a butterfly.
Raconteur-a person who tells stories or anecdotes in an amusing and clever way(noun)
-The children loved the man because he was a raconteur and could always make the stories fun.
Sine qua non-an essential condition, qualification, etc.; indispensable thing; absolute prerequisite
-Hard work is sine qua non for success in anything you do.
Quixotic- romantic behavior or following beliefs even though they are foolish or unreachable goals. (adjective)
-He is quixotic in his journey for love because he is so ugly no one will take him.
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)
-I have a vendetta against my evil twin.
Non sequitur- a statement, conclusion or reply that has nothing to do with the previous statement. (noun)
-The debater gave a non sequitur and tried to change the subject when he knew he was losing.
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 woman at the bar had a certain mystique about her.
Quagmire- soft, wet ground or a complex and difficult situation with no easy solution. (noun)
-The man was left in a quagmire and didn't know what to do.
Parlous-perilous; dangerous; risky
-People seeking adrenaline rushes usually do things that very parlous.