Rack
an instrument used for torture in which a person is strapped to a table and then that person's limbs are slowly stretched
Veritable
true and as close to reality as possible
Assiduous
persistent and a lack of willingness to give up
Execrable
extremely awful and unbearable
Polyglot
a person who speaks multiple languages
Spawn
in this context, an offspring
Blithering
speaking without any real purpose, babbling
Fluke
an event which most likely happened by chance and which is unlikely to happen again
Jolly
a person who has a naturally happy attitude and is always cheerful
To dally
to waste time by doing something unproductive