Vocabulary #4

Obsequious: obedient or attentive to an excessive or servile degree "they were served by obsequious waiters"

Beatitude: supreme blessedness 

Bête noire: a person or thing that one particularly dislikes "great uncle Edward was my fathers bête noire"

Bode: be an omen of a particular outcome "their argument did not bode well for the future"

Dank: disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold "the dank basement"

Ecumenical: representing a number of different Christian churches "the local churches are sponsoring an ecumenical service on the green"

Fervid: intensely enthusiastic or passionate, especially to an extensive degree "a letter of fervid thanks" 

Gargantuan: enormous "a gargantuan appetite"

Heyday: the period of a person's or thing's greatest success, popularity, or vigor "the paper has lost millions of readers since its heyday in 1964"

Incubus: a cause of distress or anxiety. "debt is a big incubus in developing countries"

Infrastructure: the basic physical and organization needed for the operation of a society or enterprise.

Inveigle: persuade to do something by means of deception or flattery. "we cannot inveigle him into putting pen to paper"

Kudos: praise and honor received for an achievement.

Lagniappe: something given as a bonus or extra gift.

Prolix: using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy. "he found the narrative too prolix and discursive"

Protege: a person who is guided and supported by an older and more experienced or influential person.

"he was an aide and protégé of the former Tennessee senator"

Prototype: a first, typical or preliminary model of something, especially a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied.

"the firm is testing a prototype of the weapon"

Sycophant: a person who acts obsequiously toward someone important in order to gain advantage.

Tautology: the saying of the same thing twice in different words, generally considered to be a fault of style "avoid such tautology as "let's all work together, everyone, as a team" by saying simply "let's work together"

Truckle: a small barrel-shaped cheese, especially cheddar.