| asperity |
harshness or roughness, especially of tone or manner. |
| curmudgeon |
an irritable or ill-tempered person. |
| disabuse |
to free (a person) from misconception or deception; set straight. |
| diurnal |
occurring or active during, or belonging to, the daytime rather than nighttime. |
| ensconce |
to position (oneself) firmly or comfortably. |
| epistolary |
established or continued through letters. |
| extralegal |
not regulated or permitted by law; outside of legal authority. |
| inflection |
change that occurs in the form of words to show a grammatical characteristic such as the tense of a verb, the number of a noun, or the degree of an adjective or adverb. |
| lattice |
a flat framework made with strips of wood or other material. The strips cross each other and have open spaces in between. A lattice is often used as a screen on a porch or in a garden. |
| macrocosm |
a large unit or entity that represents on a large scale one of its smaller components. |
| modular |
designed with standardized units that may be arranged or connected in a variety of ways. |
| parlous |
full of dangers or risks; perilous. |
| revetment |
a facing of stone, masonry, or the like to support or protect a wall, embankment, or mound of earth. |
| sere1 |
dried up or withered. |
| woebegone |
displaying or full of distress. |