venial

adjective: easily excused or forgiven; pardonable

His traffic violations ran the gamut from the venial to the egregious—on one occasion he simply did not come to a complete stop; another time he tried to escape across state lines at speeds in excess of 140 mph.

zeitgeist

noun: spirit of the times

Each decade has its own zeitgeist—the 1990’s was a prosperous time in which the promise of the American Dream never seemed more palpable.

exegesis

noun: critical explanation or analysis, especially of a text

The Bible is fertile ground for exegesis—over the past five centuries there have been as many interpretations as there are pages in the Old Testament.

factious

adjective: produced by, or characterized by internal dissension

The controversial bill proved factious, as dissension even within parties resulted

prosaic

adjective: dull and lacking imagination

Unlike the talented artists in his workshop, Paul had no such bent for the visual medium, so when it was time for him to make a stained glass painting, he ended up with a prosaic mosaic.

jingoist

noun: a person who thinks their country is always right and who is in favor of aggressive acts against other countries

In the days leading up to war, a nation typically breaks up into the two opposing camps: doves, who do their best to avoid war, and jingoists, who are only too eager to wave national flags from their vehicles and vehemently denounce those who do not do the same.

feckless

adjective: lazy and irresponsible

Two years after graduation, Charlie still lived with his parents and had no job, becoming more feckless with each passing day.

expansive

adjective: communicative, and prone to talking in a sociable manner

After a few sips of cognac, the octogenarian shed his irascible demeanor and became expansive, speaking fondly of the “good old days”.

This word has other definitions but this is the most important one to study

nadir

noun: the lowest point

For many pop music fans, the rap– and alternative-rock–dominated 90s were the nadir of musical expression.

vicissitude

noun: change in one’s circumstances, usually for the worse

Even great rulers have their vicissitudes—massive kingdoms have diminished overnight, and once beloved kings have faced the scorn of angry masses.