1. peripeteia — sudden turn of events, reversal of fortune, crisis
However, the thoughtful peripeteia of the classic Greek drama (as, for example, the drastic return of Neoptolemus to his normal open disposition) has been replaced by a poor pallid counterfeit, and every moviegoer knows that the dramatic scenes of failed plans and stratagems of The Avengers, e.g., are only a preface to the ultimate, inevitable, and—to be frank—quite boring triumph of the supposed heroes.
2. diuturnity — state of lasting for a very long time
What hand, through long mornings and nights of diuturnity, carved with mild feathered strokes these monuments of rock and packed earth through which we now floated on our rafts in awestruck wonder?
3. hieratic — of or related to priests, esp. those of Ancient Egypt; of or related to a cursive form of Egyptian hieroglyphic writing; severely formal, overly styled
As we went deeper into the cave, the hieratic illustrations suffered a decline, as if the deep and secret meanings of the bizarre images had been forgotten, so that only the shells and forms remained, debased figures lacking the strength of the earlier icons, as the underlying mysteries became more and more distant to this devolving culture.
4. putto — representation of a cherub (sometimes winged) in Renaissance and Baroque art
The chalice featured an embossed representation of Venus, flanked on either side by tiny putti holding a ribbon about her head.
5. putrid — rotting, decomposing, esp. with a bad smell; vile, morally loathsome
“If you must descend further into study of these putrid philosophies, I will thank you to leave my house!”
6. conjury — conjuration, magic, witchcraft; an act of the same
So simply did he assuage the bank manager’s concerns that the entire visit seemed sheer conjury, especially as the manager had had his hand almost on his phone to call the authorities when first we arrived.
7. cachalot — sperm whale
Only the rich reward of the ambergris and spermaceti would induce the fishing of the mighty cachalot, so fierce and huge are these mighty whales.
8. league — unit of distance of varying measure in different places or times, usu. calculated as roughly 3 miles
Exhausted though we were, Ronnie allowed us only a brief respite, though we’d already traveled twenty leagues since daybreak.
9. inchmeal — extremely slowly, by inches, little by little
I drew the curtain aside inchmeal, not daring to awaken the sleeper before I was ready to pounce.
10. melioration — [archaic] amelioration, something which makes a thing better
The estate benefited from his hard work and the many meliorations he had set on course during the lord’s long absence.
Bonus Vocabulary
(British informal)
go spare — to become angry
“I dunno just how it happened, only that he’d go spare when I told him he was being made redundant, so I thought, y’know, if maybe he had a few pints first the news would go down easier.”