intricate.

Intricate things are complex and have many elements: they're not simple.

worldly.

characteristic of secularity rather than spirituality.

You can use the adjective worldly to describe people who have knowledge of many
topics or experience in many areas. You don't have to travel the globe to be
worldly; reading and talking about many things with knowledge and enthusiasm is
worldly too. While worldly often describes individuals who are sophisticated and
well-rounded in education, travel, and experiences, it's also used for people who
are rooted in the world or focused on physical and material things around them,
rather than on spiritual matters.

devoted.

dedicated exclusively to a purpose or use.

Theseus was devoted to him and always helped him out.

devote.

Devote means to give to. If you devote yourself to jump-roping, you might be found
in your driveway every free moment of the day practicing.

Nuns and priests are said to devote their lives to God.

Felix had devoted the past three days to basketball and not much else.

robust.

sturdy and strong in form, constitution, or construction.

The colonists saw a robust, erect-postured man.

squeaky.

your voice is squeaky, it's high and a little shrill, like a cartoon character. If
your shoes sound squeaky when you walk, you'll never be able to sneak up on
someone.

gruff.

deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or emotion.

I can hear the sheriff's gruff voice loud and clear.

husky.

deep and harsh sounding.

Her husky voice was irresistible, and I glimpsed starlight in her dark, mysterious
gaze.

phantom.

something existing in perception only.

The trouble is that these phantoms are hard to displace, once they take hold in our
minds.

specter.

a ghostly appearing figure.

Don’t forget, he warned his readers, about “the haunting specter of that last mile.

tangle.

twist together or entwine into a confusing mass.

The bedcovers were in a tangle, and there was a greasy spot in the middle of the
pillowcase.

chattering.

the high-pitched continuing noise made by animals.

That brief exposure sets my teeth chattering beyond control.

rodent.
relatively small placental mammals.
The rodent had been living in my laundry bag, probably since the football season
started.

pep.
liveliness and energy.
“Shouldn’t someone give a pep talk?
rally.
gather or bring together.
But he rallied them like a football coach.

prickle.
a small sharp-pointed tip on a stem or leaf.
What is going on? he thought, a prickle of unease creeping down his spine.

monarchy.
autocracy governed by a ruler who usually inherits authority.
It was the people of Iran who were fed up with the monarchy, and they had good
reason.

devout.
deeply religious.
“I had expected to become more devout as I grow older but somehow I haven’t,” he
said.

comply.
act in accordance with someone's rules, commands, or wishes.
With their recommendation, most of the redecorated locker room stays as we designed
it, tweaked only to comply with the fire code and the janitor's needs.

pursue.
follow in an effort to capture.
All I can think about is Edith Graham, leaving her home and her family to pursue a
career in acting.

avenge.
take action in return for a perceived wrong.
Above all, he wanted to be avenged, so he said again and again the name of the
person who had killed him.

spectacular.
having a quality that thrusts itself into attention.
Outside my window the view was spectacular—a glorious vision of sea and sky I will
never forget.

unfathomable.
impossible to come to understand.
It was such an unfathomable condition that Gaston failed in his efforts to become
intimate with him and had to seek other pastimes for his idle hours.

withstand.
resist or confront with resistance.
He could counterattack with tears or rage or promises, and I could withstand every
single one.

exertion.
use of physical or mental energy; hard work.
Still, I was not used to physical exertion, and the pace took its toll on me.

enterprise.
a purposeful or industrious undertaking.
But he knows how to put together this enterprise in the underground economy.

indolence.
inactivity resulting from a dislike of work.
“As long as the boy suffers for his indolence.”

indigenous.
originating where it is found.
Their interest helped a new generation of indigenous artists to explore new themes.

congenial.
suitable to your needs.
The lodge was very congenial in a basic and rustic sort of way, with a high ceiling
and plenty of room to move around.

fecund.
capable of producing offspring or vegetation.
The trolley even smelled damp, like the woods after rain, fecund and rich.

distress.
a state of adversity.
She looked distressed and gloomy; she was undoubtedly considering the difficult
months and years ahead, of life on her own, raising two small children, in an often
hard and forbidding city.

commendation.
an official award given as formal public statement.
Did you miss the commendation ceremony where I was rewarded for the disposal of
forty illegals?”

bicker.
argue over petty things.
While Dozer and Duke bickered, Big Tony reached in and clipped a leash to Duke’s
collar.

venture.
an undertaking with an uncertain outcome.
Then, without daring to venture another look into the shop window, I went upstairs
to my room and lay down on my bed.

embark.
go on board.
Before we could truly embark on this journey as small business owners, we needed
investment capital to help launch the business.

burglar.
a thief who enters a building with intent to steal.
"He was so dead tired, he didn't hear the burglars when they broke in. They stole
us blind. They even stole my shoes and my under—" The grandmother remembers it is
indelicate to say so.

brat.
a very troublesome child.
“Give it here, you little brat!” he hissed at her.

twig.
a small branch or division of a branch.
I blew gently on the fragile flames and saw one skinny twig start to burn, then
another.

pull over.
steer a vehicle to the side of the road.
“Yeah. Cops love to pull over sports cars,” Reggie had replied.

intimidate.
compel or deter by or as if by threats.
It was a deliberate attempt to intimidate him, Stalin believed.

anoint.
administer an oil or ointment to, often ceremonially.
I set aside my weapons and anoint her arm with the burn medicine.

prodigal.
recklessly wasteful.
We were prodigal in its usage, we were reckless with its implications.

liaison.
a means of communication between groups.
You already know what she was, and how my liaison with her terminated.

surf.
waves breaking on the shore.
They drank tea and sat by the fire and they slept in the sand and listened to the
roll of the surf in the bay.
hustle.
move or cause to move energetically or busily.
The hustle and bustle on the street made it seem like everyone had something
important to do.

harangue.
a loud bombastic declamation expressed with strong emotion.
He harangued the others in a braying voice and punctuated his statements by poking
them in the chest with a finger.

proprietary.
protected by trademark or patent or copyright.
That hack included the theft of proprietary information, such as programming.

defiance.
an act boldly resisting authority or an opposing force.
That had taken all the defiance they had in them.

dissent.
a difference of opinion.
“You have that right, as you know. The right to dissent is one of our most
important freedoms here. “But the meeting is in four days.

sublime.
of high moral or intellectual value.
The most elegant and sublime of these is a representation of the creation of the
universe at the beginning of each cosmic cycle, a motif known as the cosmic dance
of Shiva.