Ignoble
Of low birth or common origin: plebeian. 2: characterized
by baseness, lowness, or meanness. The word noble, in addition to
referring to someone born to aristocratic ranks, can also be used to describe
someone of outstanding character. That word first appeared in English in the
13th century, and its antonym, ignoble, came about two centuries later. Ignoble
derives via Middle English and Middle French from the Latin prefix in-
("not") and the Old Latin gnobilis ("noble"). Originally,
ignoble described someone born to common or plebeian origins, but by the late
16th century it had come to describe people of dishonorable character, or the
actions performed by such people.
Imago
An idealized image of someone,
formed in childhood and persisting in later life. From Latin imago (image).
Ultimately from the Indo-European root aim- (copy), which also gave us emulate,
imitate, image, imagine, and emulous.
Gimcrack
(Jim-crack)
A showy object of little use or
value
Gimcrack is one of many
peculiar-sounding words that have pervaded our language to refer to something
ornamental and of little value. Others include bauble, trinket, knickknack,
gewgaw, kickshaw and tchotchke. Bauble appears to be the oldest among the group,
with known evidence of usage dating back to the 14th century.