protagonist, antagonist

protagonist [proh-Tag-uh-nist]

noun. the leading character, hero

antagonist [an-Tag-uh-nist]

noun. the adversary of the hero or protagonist

"Standing by refusal to endorse Trump during his convention speech, Cruz is cementing his stature as a chief Trump antagonist."

"And contradiction demands a 'for' and an 'against', a protagonist and an antagonist."

"Who will replace him as the protagonist in one of our most-watched dramas?"

red herring

red herring

phase.  something that misleads and distracts from the main subject

"Racism was not a factor in the case – that was a red herring thrown in by the defense lawyers."

"The detectives were following a red herring, but they're on the right track now."

"The mystery novel has a couple of red herrings that keep readers off guard."

origin:  A red herring is a type of strong-smelling smoked fish that was once drawn across the trail of a scent to mislead hunting dogs and put them off the scent.

white elephant

white elephant

phase. a useless or unwanted item, expensive to keep up

"The cottage at the lake had become a real white elephant-too run down to sell, yet costly to keep up."

Origin:  from the story that the kings of Siam gave such animals as a gift to courtiers considered obnoxious, in order to ruin the recipient by the great expense incurred in maintaining the animal.

condiment

condiment    [Kon-duh-muh nt]

noun.  a substance such as salt or ketchup that is used to add flavor to food

leg up

leg up

phase. aid; a boost

"He'll do OK, but he needs a financial leg up to get started."

"It must give you a leg up if you want to be an actor and your parents are both in the profession."

"College prep gives Giants rookies a leg-up."

debunk

debunk    [dih-Buhngk]

verb.  to show something (a claim, myth, etc.) to be false, prove it wrong

"Debunking myths: No, Orson Welles never ate 18 Pink’s hot dogs in one sitting."

"Those images themselves should debunk the myths that Islam and Muslims are extreme."

"Trump has made this claim several times, and it has been repeatedly debunked."

schmooze

schmooze    [shmooz]

verb. talk intimately and cozily; gossip

"David Beckham should stay in Los Angeles to schmooze with A-grade celebrities like Jack Nicholson."

"Being able to schmooze casually and confidently is a good quality in a politician."

"They came over by the drink table, now schmoozing some other girl — one who was a lot more their type."

dichotomy

dichotomy    [dahy-Kot-uh-mee]

noun.  a classification into two opposed parts or subclasses

"The dichotomy between eastern and western culture."

"All cars are either small and efficient or large and polluting creates a false dichotomy because there are some cars that don't fit into either category."

"The role of mother or not-mother is such a deep dichotomy for women in our culture."

acrimony

acrimony    [Ak-ruh-moh-nee]

noun. bitterness or ill feeling

"There has been extreme acrimony building between the Miami Heat and Wade over the last week. Dwyane Wade will now sign with the Bulls."

"Instead of acrimony, Obama and Trudeau both resolved that there was a real opportunity for our countries to increase our partnership on climate change.”

"The case accelerated acrimony and distrust between the US government and Silicon Valley, particularly over digital security."

cantankerous

cantankerous [kan-Tang-ker-uh s]

adjective. disagreeable to deal with, contentious

"The 2015 Phillies had the worst record in baseball. The Eagles just fired head coach Chip Kelly. The Flyers missed the playoffs. It was enough to drive Philly’s famously cantankerous sports fans to new levels of despair."

"There is a cult of personality around Bernie Sanders, who is a straight-talking, cantankerous, unrepentant liberal."

“"a cantankerous and venomous-tongued old lady"- Dorothy Sayers

curmudgeon

curmudgeon [ker-Muhj-uh n]

noun. a bad-tempered, difficult and cranky person

"In Pixar's Finding Dory, Hank is a cranky seven-limbed octopus who helps Dory for selfish reasons. Like all Pixar's best grouchy old curmudgeons, he's full of one-liners and hidden empathy."

"One of our neighbors is an old cranky woman who would scream at playing kids 'get off my lawn!' whenever they are near. She is a classic curmudgeon."

"Coffee drinkers can be thought of as curmudgeons, but research has actually linked regular java consumption to positivity."

smokescreen

smokescreen 

noun.  something intended to disguise, conceal, or deceive

"The Brexit leave-campaign's promises were just a smoke screen."

"Dwyane Wade’s meeting with New York Knicks appears to be smokescreen. Knicks will not sign the free agent Dwyane."

"She tried to create a smokescreen by quibbling about the statistics"

close-knit

close-knit

addictive.  (of a group of people) united or bound together by strong relationships and common interests.

"a close-knit community", "a close-knit family", "a close-knit circle"

“I’ll tell you one thing about this club is we have a close-knit bunch of guys, and guys care about each other, and we’re pulling for each other,” Headley on New York Yankees

vouch

vouch    [vouch] 

verb.  assert or confirm as a result of one's own experience that something is true 

"I understand the hardest thing to do is not writing the check. The hardest thing is vouching. When you vouch for them you say 'I'm putting my reputation on the line, I believe this person is a good person, has character," -- U.S. Vice President Biden

"They say New York is the city that never sleeps, and I can certainly vouch for that". 

"His record in office vouches for his integrity."