Laura Glossary

Laura Glossary

film noir

A genre of film characterized by pervasive moral ambiguity, shadowy cinematography, crime, a temptress known as a femme fatale and a general philosophical view that the world is utterly irrational and chance and coincidence rule all fates.

ostensibly

Seemingly, but not necessarily; presumably; to all apparent appearances.

intolerable

Excruciatingly unendurable; insufferable; unbearable.

jurisdiction

The dominion under which legal authority falls and within which it is limited.

confiscate

To appropriate by legal authority and mandate; to remove something from someone else.

innate

A characteristic determined by birth; intrinsic and essential.

poise

Self-possessed gracefulness; a dignified sense of self-esteem and the way that one comports themselves as a result.

insinuation

A hinted implication of something, usually something negative

foreboding

A sense of something ominous, sinister or threatening.

duress

The anxious emotional state that comes with being under intense pressure.

trundle

To move someone or something along in a relatively forceful manner.

resurrection

Brought back from the dead.

infatuation

A romantic crush; a short and relatively shallow obsession.

eavesdrop

To secretly listen to someone else’s conversation.

incriminate

To make a charge against someone being engaged in criminal activities.

dame

Slang term for a woman; usually conveying a sense of admiration about the woman’s toughness.

gruesome

Grisly and horrifying; repulsive.

feeble

Weak or ineffectual; pathetic and incapacitated.

dubious

Doubtfully uncertain; holding a high degree of scornful suspicion.

nondescript

Ordinary and commonplace.

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