A Prayer for Owen Meany Glossary

A Prayer for Owen Meany Glossary

Predicate

state, affirm, or assert (something)

Divinity

the state or quality of being divine, usually referring to God

Singed

burning something slightly

prostration

To bend down and stretch in prayer

wittingly

To knowingly do or say something

virtues

behaviour showing high moral standards.

Wisp

a small and thin amount of something.

palaver

Trivial prattle that goes on without end; empty and vacuous conservation.

obdurate

Adamant on a position to the point of becoming inflexibly pigheaded.

lugubriously

In a morose, dismal manner that indicates a deeper sense of melancholy.

astute

Shrewd and perceptive; keenly aware.

heterodox

Not conforming with othodox beliefs or doctrine.

prurient

Excessively interested in the scandalous, sensationalized or sexual aspects of any subject.

seraphim

Biblical angels at the top of the celestial hierarchy.

curmudgeon

An older, very cranky person with seemingly nothing positive to say about anything.

slovenly

Sloppily attired; disheveled; unkempt.

shrill

Loud, piercing and unpleasant to the ear almost to the point of the sound physically hurting to listen to.

coy

Modest but flirtatious in a coquettish way.

unflappable

Unusually calm and reserved even during moments of high anxiety.

frazzled

Uttery worn out and exhausted.

desecration

Irreverent demonstrations of defilement, vandalism and sacrilege.

benighted

Intellectually or morally ignorant; not so much stupid as naive.

harangue

To excessively criticize someone in an overbearing manner that usually takes place in public.

propitious

A feeling or sense of good fortune about to smile on one.

nebulous

Vague and indistinct; unclear and ambiguous.

progeny

Literally: the offspring parents. Figurativey: any individual creative work.

precognitive

Endowed with the ability to predict the future.

watershed

A moment retrospectively seen as a major turning point in history.

provincialism

Characterizing a narrow-minded perspective shaped by the conservatism of growing up in an insular community of like-minded people.

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