Zeus the supreme deity of the ancient Greeks, a son of Cronus and Rhea, the god of the heavens.

Demeter goddess of agriculture and the protector of marriage and the social order, identified by the Romans with Ceres. Hades n the god ruling the underworld; Pluto. Hera the queen of heaven, a daughter of Cronus and Rhea and the wife and sister of Zeus. Hestia n the ancient Greek goddess of the hearth. Poseidon the ancient Greek god of the sea; identified by the Romans with Neptune. Athena goddess of wisdom, fertility, the useful arts, and prudent warfare. Dionysus n the god of fertility, wine, and drama; Bacchus. Hermes n the ancient Greek herald and messenger of the gods and the god of roads, commerce, invention, cunning, and theft. Apollo Greek and Roman god of light, healing, music, poetry, prophecy, and manly beauty; the son of Leto and brother of Artemis. Artemis goddess associated with the moon, virginity, and hunting, she is the sister of Apollo. Ares god of war, a son of Zeus and Hera, identified by the Romans with Mars. Aphrodite deity of love and beauty, identified by the Romans with Venus. Hephaestus n the ancient Greek god of fire, metalworking, and handicrafts, identified by the Romans with Vulcan. Persephone n a daughter of Zeus and Demeter, abducted by Pluto to be queen of Hades, but allowed to return to the surface of the earth for part of the year. Pan the ancient Greek god of forests, pastures, and shepherds, represented with the head, chest, and arms of a man and the legs, horns and ears of a goat. Eros n the ancient Greek god of love, identified by the Romans with Cupid.

assuage v.t., to make milder or less severe; relieve; ease; mitigate: austere adj. grave; sober; solemn; serious: cacophony n., a discordant and meaningless mixture of sounds: colloquial adj. characteristic of or appropriate to ordinary or familiar conversation rather than formal speech or writing; informal. conundrum n. anything that puzzles. garrulous adj. excessively talkative in a rambling, roundabout manner, esp. about trivial matters. hyperbole n. obvious and intentional exaggeration. irascible adj. easily provoked to anger; very irritable: opaque adj. hard to understand; not clear or lucid; obscure: plethora n. overabundance; excess: quixotic adj. impulsive and often rashly unpredictable. taciturn adj. inclined to silence; reserved in speech; reluctant to join in conversation. dearth noun an inadequate supply; scarcity; lack as during famine cognizant adjective aware of and comprehending a situation dogmatic Asserting opinions in an arrogant manner; opinionated. feign verb to pretend callous adjective

insensitive caper noun a scheme or prank amiss adjective wrong lampoon noun broad, harsh satire aspersion noun derogatory remark