Thursday, June 2, 2011

Sentence #21

Charlie Weasley and Hagrid both had an obstinate panache about them: they loved dragons. Not only did they not believe that dragons' molting was the most noisome smell in the world (as do most individuals), but they also thought it a euphony when dragons cried in a surly crescendo. Living with such convoluted creatures developed a sense of obdurate confidence and plebeian manners in these gentlemen, who mitigated the fears of novice dragon tenders by convincing them that dragons were not the typical misanthropes that people thought them to be. While most people consider dragons' mere presence to be an opprobrium, Charlie and Hagrid's unconditional love for these creatures gradually rarefied most peoples' intolerance. At least in Romania where Charlie lives, whenever a dragon is insulted in public, it has now become an exigent feature of society to respond with the neologism: "Dragons are hawt, and you're not...burrrrn".



obstinate: stubborn; unyielding
panache: flamboyance or dash in style and action; verve
molt: to shed hair, skin, or an outer layer periodically
noisome: stinking; putrid
surly: rude and bad-tempered
crescendo: steadily increasing in volume or force
euphony: pleasant, harmonious sound
convoluted: intricate and complicated
obdurate: hardened in feeling; resistant to persuasion
plebeian: crude or coarse; characteristic of commoners
mitigate: to soften; to lessen
neophyte: novice; beginner
misanthrope: a person who dislikes others
opprobrium: public disgrace
rarefy: to make thinner or sparser
exigent: urgent; requiring immediate action
neologism: new word or expression

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