Page 165 - SBV (English)

Guide to Obscure English Words 539

Panegyric—elaborate spoken or written praise
Paralogical—illogical, unreasonable
Parlance—manner of speaking, idiom
Parley—informal discussion between enemies
Parlous—risky

Patrimony—an estate inherited from one’s father
Pean—a joyful song of praise
Pedant—one who is proud of his bookish knowledge yet has little actual
understanding
Penchant—a liking
Peon—a menial messenger

Perdition—eternal suffering in hell
Peremptory—self-assured
Philanderer—a man who indulges sexually with a woman he does not intend to
marry, or who indulges in multiple sexual affairs
Plangent—expressing lamentation
Pluck—the spirit to tackle difficulties
Polity—a method of organization
Praxes—practices based on a branch of learning

Preponderant—having great (or greater) influence, power, or number
Prevenient—occurring before
Prig—one who is overly concerned with conformity and propriety and is smug
and arrogant
Pristine—original and pure
Procrastinator—one who tends to delay matters simply due to idleness
Proffer—to offer or present for consideration

Propitious—tending to favor
Prosaic—commonplace, unremarkable
Proscribed—(adj) prohibited, forbidden as harmful or unlawful
Proscription—a prohibition
Provender—food