| alluvium |
sand, soil, gravel, or the like deposited by moving water, as along a river bed. |
| colloquialism |
a word or phrase typically used in conversational, informal, or regional speech or writing, hence sometimes considered inappropriate in formal writing. |
| desideratum |
something that is needed or wanted. |
| diatribe |
a bitter, abusive attack in speech or writing. |
| élan |
enthusiasm or vigor. |
| facsimile |
an exact copy or duplicate of something printed or of a picture. |
| ineptitude |
incompetence; lack of skill. |
| lachrymose |
weeping, tending to weep readily, or being on the point of tears; tearful. |
| ligature |
a band or tie. |
| linguistics |
(used with a singular verb) the scientific and historical study of the form and structure of human language. |
| naturalism |
in literature, a method of depicting life that reflects a philosophy of determinism. |
| peripatetic |
walking or traveling around; going from place to place; itinerant. |
| quondam |
having been in the past; former. |
| solipsism |
the self-centered habit of interpreting and judging all things exclusively according to one's own concepts of meaning and value. |
| somatic |
of or pertaining to the body itself; corporeal. |