a signal, especially of alarm, sounded on a bell or bells.

swiftness; speed.

of or relating to the mind.

of or relating to words or the vocabulary of a language as distinguished from its grammar and construction

 being or marked by utterance that is strange, unpleasant, or disagreeable

overly emotional and unable to speak.

Voracity; Voracious [vo·ra·cious] adj. Consuming or eager to consume great amounts of food; ravenous. 2. Having or marked by an insatiable appetite for an activity or pursuit; greedy: “A voracious reader.”

Venality [ve·nal·i·ty] n. 1. The condition of being susceptible to bribery or corruption. 2. The use of a position of trust for dishonest gain: “The venality of a corrupt judge.”

Egregious [e·gre·gious] adj. Conspicuously bad or offensive. “The judge’s conduct was egregious.”

Episodic [ep·i·sod·ic] adj. Happening at irregular intervals. “He has episodic migraines.”

Embellish [em·bel·lish] tr.v. 1. To make beautiful, as by ornamentation; decorate. 2. To add fictitious details to exaggerate the truth: “A dramatic account that embellished the true story.”

Analogous [a·nal·o·gous] adj. 1. Similar or alike in such a way as to permit the drawing of an analogy. “The brain and the Acme 1000 supercomputer are analogous to each other.”

Metaphor [met·a·phor] n. A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate something else. Example: “She was drowning in money.”

Progeny [prog·e·ny] n.pl. 1. Something that originates or results from something else; outcome; issue. 2. A result of creative effort; a product.

Causative [caus·a·tive] adj. 1. Indicative that the subject causes an act to be performed or a condition to come into being. “A causative factor of war.”

Ambivalence [am·biv·a·lence] n. 1. Uncertainty or indecisiveness as to which course to follow. 2. The coexistence of opposing attitudes or feelings, such as love and hate, toward a person, object, or idea.

Gratuitous [gra·tu·i·tous] adj. 1. Given or granted without return or recompense; unearned. 2. Unnecessary or unwarranted; unjustified: A gratuitous remark.

Aplomb [a·plomb] n.  Self-confident assurance, skill, and poise – especially in difficult or challenging circumstances.

Arduous [ar·du·ous] adj. 1. Demanding great effort or labor; difficult. “An arduous undertaking.” 2. Testing severely the powers of endurance; strenuous. “A long and arduous process.”

Secular [sec·u·lar] adj. 1. Worldly rather than spiritual. 2. Not specifically relating to religion or to a religious body. “A secular book.”

Oxymoron [ox·y·mo·ron] n.pl. A phrase in which two words of contradictory meaning are used together for special effect, for example, “wise fool” or “to make haste slowly.”

Pervicacious [per·vi·ca·cious] adj. Stubborn, extremely willful, obstinate. “He became quite pervicacious in his old age.”

Accoutrement [ac·cou·tre·ment] n. Additional items of dress or equipment, carried or worn by a person or used for a particular activity. The General dressed for battle in shining accoutrements.”

Paradigm [par·a·digm] n. A typical example or pattern of something; a model. “The economic paradigm was flawed.”

Vexatious [vex·a·tious] adj. 1. Full of annoyance or distress; harassed. 2. Causing or creating vexation; annoying. “Her ex-husband put her in a vexatious situation.”

Assiduous [as·sid·u·ous] adj. 1. Constant in application or attention; diligent: “An assiduous worker who strove for perfection.” 2. Unceasing; persistent: “Assiduous cancer research.”

Obtuse [ob·tuse] adj. 1. Lacking quickness of perception or intellect. 2. Characterized by a lack of intelligence or sensitivity. “An obtuse remark.” 3. Not distinctly felt. “An obtuse pain.”

Demure adj. 1. Modest and reserved in manner or behavior. “Despite her demure appearance, she is an accomplished mountain climber.”

Acrimonious [ac·ri·mo·ni·ous] adj. 1. Bitter and sharp in language or tone; rancorous: “An acrimonious debate between the two candidates.”

Prolific adj. Productive: Producing abundant works or results. “A prolific artist.” “A prolific writer.”

Innocuous adj. 1. Having no adverse effect; harmless. 2. Not likely to offend or provoke to strong emotion; insipid. “The innocuous looking e-mail actually contained a virus.”

Capricious adj.  Characterized by or subject to whim; impulsive and unpredictable. “He’s such a capricious boss I never know how he’ll react.”

Visceral adj. 1. Instinctual: proceeding from instinct rather than from reasoned thinking or intellect. “A visceral business decision.” 2. Emotional: characterized by or showing crude or elemental emotions.

Cognitive adj. 1. Relating to the process of acquiring knowledge by the use of reasoning, intuition, or perception. 2. Having a basis in or reducible to empirical factual knowledge. “A Cognitive model for success.”

Specious adj.  1. Having the ring of truth or plausibility but actually fallacious. “A specious argument.” 2. Deceptively attractive.

Nebulous adj. 1. Lacking definition or definite content. 2. Lacking definite form or limits; vague. “The test results were nebulous and determined to be unusable.”

Exacerbate transitive verb.  To make more violent, bitter, or severe; to irritate or make worse. “The continued delays were greatly exacerbated by the lack of workers on the project.”

Ostensible adj.  Stated or appearing to be true, but not necessarily so. Being such in appearance, plausible rather than demonstrably true or real. “The ostensible purpose of the trip was for business.”

Disingenuous adj. Not straightforward or candid; insincere or calculating.  “It was disingenuous of her to claim she had no financial interest in the company.”

Derisive (de·ri·sive) adj. Expressing contempt or ridicule; mocking or scornful. “A derisive laugh.”

Prodigious (pro·di·gious) adj. Remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree. “Her prodigious sales performance resulted in a promotion.”

Bucolic (bu·col·ic) adj. Of or relating to the pleasant aspects of country life. “He retired to a more bucolic life on his farm.”

Atypical adj.  Not conforming to type; unusual or irregular. Deviating from what is usual or common or to be expected; often somewhat odd or strange. “The strong sales were atypical of the normally weak market.”

Antiquated adj.  Very old; aged. Too old to be fashionable, suitable, or useful; outmoded, obsolete. “The committee thought the marketing strategy was too antiquated to approve.”

Fortuitous adj.  Happening by accident or chance. Happening by a fortunate accident or chance. Lucky or fortunate. “The check could not have arrived at a more fortuitous time.”