| apparatus |
tools or equipment made for a particular task. |
| buoyant |
lighthearted or cheerful. |
| clammy |
unpleasantly moist, cool, and sticky. |
| confer |
to give or award. |
| decree |
an official order or decision by a ruler or government. |
| diversion |
an act or instance of turning aside. |
| drone2 |
to talk in a boring voice without changing one's tone. |
| excise1 |
a tax levied on the manufacture or sale of certain goods within a nation or state. |
| intervene |
to enter a situation so as to change what is happening. |
| lull |
to calm or cause to sleep. |
| minimize |
to make as small as possible. |
| preliminary |
coming before, so as to prepare for something else. |
| refinement |
an improvement, usually in the details of something. |
| rejoice |
to be full of joy or show great pleasure (sometimes followed by "in"). |
| theoretical |
relating to or consisting of an explanation based on abstract reasoning and speculation rather than facts and evidence; hypothetical. |