January 2021

Question 1

Kabuki theatre

Answer 1

Kabuki is a form of classical theater in Japan known for its elaborate costumes and dynamic acting.

The phrases Kabuki theater, kabuki dance, or kabuki play are sometimes used in political discourse to describe an event characterized more by showmanship than by content

Question 2

proselyte

Answer 2

A new convert to a doctrine or religion.

Question 3

promontory

Answer 3

a: a high point of land or rock projecting into a body of water
b: a prominent mass of land overlooking or projecting into a lowland

Question 4

malaise

Answer 4

a vague feeling of bodily discomfort, as at the beginning of an illness.

n. A general sense of depression or unease.
n. Uneasiness; discomfort; specifically, an indefinite feeling of uneasiness, often a preliminary symptom of a serious malady.

Question 5

affective

Answer 5

1: relating to, arising from, or influencing feelings or emotions : EMOTIONAL
cognitive and affective symptoms
the novel’s affective death scene
2: expressing emotion
affective language
behaviors that elicit affective reactions

Question 6

to lament

a lament

Answer 6

1: to express sorrow, mourning, or regret for often demonstratively
2: to regret strongly

Question 7

glaciology

Answer 7

study of glaciers

Question 8

slovenly

Answer 8

1a: habitually untidy especially in personal appearance
b: lazily slipshod

Question 9

slipshod

Answer 9

1a: wearing loose shoes or slippers
b: down at the heel: SHABBY
2: CARELESS, SLOVENLY

Question 10

steeple

Answer 10

: a tall structure usually having a small spire at the top and surmounting a church tower
broadly: a whole church tower

Question 11

colonnade

Answer 11

: a row of columns usually supporting a roof

Question 12

multifarious

Answer 12

manifold, various, myriad, diverse

Question 13

twinkling like puddles in the moonlight

Answer 13

just a cool sentence from The Midnight Library

Question 14

Icosagon

Answer 14

20-sided polygon

Question 15

fortissimo

Answer 15

: a very loud passage, sound, or tone

plural, fortissimi or fortissimos

Question 16

beschaulich

Answer 16

Ruhe und eine angenehme Atmosphäre ausstrahlend

Question 17

sophistry

Answer 17

n. Plausible but fallacious argumentation.
n. A plausible but misleading or fallacious argument.

The original Sophists were ancient Greek teachers of rhetoric and philosophy prominent in the 5th century B.C. In their heyday, these philosophers were considered adroit in their reasoning, but later philosophers (particularly Plato) described them as sham philosophers, out for money and willing to say anything to win an argument. Thus sophist (which comes from Greek sophistēs, meaning “wise man” or “expert”) earned a negative connotation as “a captious or fallacious reasoner.” Sophistry is reasoning that seems plausible on a superficial level but is actually unsound, or reasoning that is used to deceive.

Question 18

adroit

Answer 18

: having or showing skill, cleverness, or resourcefulness in handling situations

Question 19

preeminent

Answer 19

1 : exhibiting eminence especially in standing above others in some quality or position : prominent

2 : standing out so as to be readily perceived or noted : conspicuous

3 : jutting out : projecting

Question 20

redoubtable

Answer 20

eminent, formidable, illustrious

Question 21

captious

Answer 21

1: marked by an often ill-natured inclination to stress faults and raise objections
captious critics
a captious rivalry
2: calculated to confuse, entrap, or entangle in argument
a captious question
Other Words from

Question 22

ulotrichous

Answer 22

having woolly or curly hair