Category: Obscure/Rarely Used
* Ephemeral: (adj.) Lasting for a very short time. *Sentence:* The ephemeral beauty of the cherry blossoms only lasted a week before the petals fell to the ground.
* Laconic: (adj.) Using very few words. *Sentence:* His laconic reply, "Perhaps," hinted at deeper disapproval.
* Sesquipedalian: (adj.) Characterized by long words. *Sentence:* Her sesquipedalian pronouncements often left her audience bewildered.
* Pulchritudinous: (adj.) Beautiful. *Sentence:* The pulchritudinous model graced the cover of the magazine.
* Inchoate: (adj.) Just begun and so not fully formed or developed. *Sentence:* The government's response to the crisis was inchoate and ineffective.
Category: Difficult Due to Nuance/Multiple Meanings
* Ambiguous: (adj.) Open to more than one interpretation; having a double meaning. *Sentence:* The ambiguous wording of the contract led to a dispute between the parties.
* Paradoxical: (adj.) Seemingly absurd or self-contradictory. *Sentence:* It's paradoxical that the fastest way to get somewhere is sometimes to slow down.
* Contentious: (adj.) Causing or likely to cause an argument; controversial. *Sentence:* The contentious issue of immigration continues to divide the nation.
* Nuance: (n.) A subtle difference in or shade of meaning, expression, or sound. *Sentence:* He missed the nuance in her tone, taking her polite suggestion as an order.
* Equivocal: (adj.) Open to more than one interpretation; having a double meaning (similar to ambiguous, but often implies deception). *Sentence:* His equivocal answer left me wondering what he truly meant.
Category: Scientific/Technical
* Quiescent: (adj.) In a state or period of inactivity or dormancy. *Sentence:* The volcano, though quiescent for decades, showed signs of renewed activity.
* Paradigm: (n.) A typical example or pattern of something; a model. *Sentence:* The company's success became a paradigm for other startups to follow.
* Heuristic: (adj.) Enabling a person to discover or learn something for themselves. *Sentence:* The teacher used a heuristic approach, encouraging students to solve problems through experimentation.
* Syzygy: (n.) A straight-line configuration of three celestial bodies (such as the sun, the earth, and the moon). *Sentence:* A solar eclipse occurs during a syzygy.
* Algorithm: (n.) A process or set of rules to be followed in calculations or other problem-solving operations, especially by a computer. *Sentence:* The search engine uses a complex algorithm to rank websites.
Remember to look up any unfamiliar words in a dictionary to fully grasp their meaning and usage. The more context you encounter these words in, the easier they will become to understand and use.