Portent n. A sign or warning that something significant is likely to happen. “an occurrence of crucial portent.”

Virulent adj. Extremely severe or harmful in its effects. Bitterly hostile or antagonistic; hateful. “Virulent criticism.”

Prescient; Prescience adj. Having or showing knowledge of events before they take place; foresight. “You should be prescient about choosing your employer.”

Affinity n. A spontaneous or natural liking or sympathy for someone or something. “He has an affinity for science fiction movies.”

Timorous adj. Showing or suffering from nervousness, fear, or a lack of confidence: “A timorous demeanor.”

Recondite adj. (of a subject or knowledge) Little known, obscure, abstruse. “Recondite information.”

Obsequious adj. Obedient or attentive to an excessive degree. “The obsequious service resulted in an excellent tip.”

Colloquial (ism) adj. (of language) Used in ordinary conversation; not formal or literary. “His lecture was quite engaging due to his colloquial speech.”

Ostracize v. Exclude (someone) from a society or group. “She felt ostracized by society.”

Irascible adj. Characterized by or arising from anger. (of a person) Easily made angry. “He was always irascible and quick to get into a fight.”

pertaining to or occurring in the morning; early in the day.

Recondite [rec·on·dite] adj. (of a subject or knowledge) Little known, obscure, abstruse. “Recondite information.”

Colloquial (ism) [col·lo·qui·al] adj. (of language) Used in ordinary conversation; not formal or literary. “His lecture was quite engaging due to his colloquial speech.”

Precocious adj. Manifesting or characterized by unusually early development or maturity, especially in mental aptitude. “A precocious child.”

Assertive adj. 1.Inclined to bold or confident assertion; aggressively self-assured. “She is an assertive businesswoman.”

Ethereal adj. Characterized by lightness and insubstantiality; intangible. “Her fragrance lingered in the room, an ethereal reminder of her presence.” 2. Highly refined; delicate. “Ethereal beauty.”

Licentious adj. Promiscuous and unprincipled. Lacking moral discipline. “The judge treated her in a most licentious manner.”

Contrite [con·trite] adj. 1. Arising from sense of guilt: done or said out of a sense of guilt or remorse. 2. Very sorry: genuinely and deeply sorry about something. “He was suitably contrite.”

Futile adj. Incapable of producing any useful result; pointless. “All of his attempts to rectify the situation proved futile.”

Ingratiate tr.v. Bring oneself into favor or good graces of another, especially by deliberate effort. “She soon ingratiated herself with her new boss.”

Histrionic adj. Overly theatrical or dramatic. n. Exaggerated dramatic behavior designed to attract attention. “His histrionic reaction disrupted the meeting.”

Sagacious adj. Shrewd; showing keen mental discernment and good judgment. “A sagacious remark.”

Apoplectic adj. Overcome with anger; extremely indignant. “He showed apoplectic rage.”

Serendipity; Serendipitous n. The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. “A fortunate stroke of serendipity.”

Ingratiate [in·gra·ti·ate] tr.v. Bring oneself into favor or good graces of another, especially by deliberate effort. “She soon ingratiated herself with her new boss.”

Titular [tit·u·lar] adj. Relating to or constituting a title. “The titular head of the business.”

Histrionic [his·tri·on·ic] adj. Overly theatrical or dramatic. n. Exaggerated dramatic behavior designed to attract attention. “His histrionic reaction disrupted the meeting.”

Serendipity; Serendipitous [ser·en·dip·i·ty] n. The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. “A fortunate stroke of serendipity.”

Egress n. The action of going out of or leaving a place. “The company’s egress procedures.”

Abrogate v. Repeal or do away with a law, right, or agreement. “To abrogate a law.”

Credulous; Credulity adj. A tendency to be too ready to believe that something is real or true. “A credulous rumor.”

Opprobrious adj. Disgraceful; shameful. “His actions were opprobrious.”

Sentient adj. Characterized by sensation and consciousness. Able to perceive or feel things: “Sentient life forms.”

Officious adj. Assertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way, esp. with regard to petty or trivial matters. Intrusively enthusiastic in offering help or advice; interfering. “The officious man is widely disliked.”

Propensity n. An inclination or natural tendency to behave in a particular way. “He has a propensity for clear thinking.”

Sycophant n. A person who acts attentively toward someone in order to gain advantage; a servile flatterer.

Perfidious adj. Deceitful and untrustworthy. “A perfidious relationship.”

Evocative; Evocate adj. Bringing strong memories, images, or feelings to mind.

Voracious adj. An eager approach to an activity; Wanting or devouring great quantities of something or somebody: “She has a voracious appetite for life.”

Insular adj. Ignorant of or uninterested in cultures, ideas, or people outside a person’s own experience. “An insular taste in music.” Lacking contact with other people. “She seemed too insular to leave her house.”

Taciturn adj. Reserved or uncommunicative in speech; saying little. “Today the normally taciturn man would not stop talking.”

Excoriate v. Censure or criticize severely; Severely berate: “He was excoriated for his mistakes.”

Contentious adj. Causing or likely to cause an argument; controversial. Involving a heated argument. “The terms of the agreement remain contentious between the parties.”

Corpulent adj. Physically bulky; fat. “The once corpulent woman is now trim and fit.”

Dubious adj. Hesitating or doubting. Not to be relied upon; suspect. “He seemed dubious about the idea.”

Slavish adj. Showing no originality; blindly imitative: “A slavish copy of the original work.”

Reciprocal; Reciprocate adj. Done or performed in return: “Reciprocal respect.”

Frugal; Frugality adj. Economical with regard to money or food. Simple and plain that costs very little: “A frugal meal.”

Docile adj. Submissive. Ready to accept control or instruction. “The dog was very docile around children.”

Gravitas n. Dignity, seriousness, or solemnity in manner. “He has the necessary gravitas to lead the company.”