| acclivity |
a rising slope. |
| amity |
friendly and peaceful relations; good will. |
| amortize |
to deduct (expenditures) by fixed amounts over a period of time. |
| austere |
having only what is needed; very simple or plain. |
| collateral |
property or other security put forward to guarantee repayment of a loan. |
| compunction |
uneasiness about the propriety or suitability of an action; qualm. |
| desiccate |
to remove the moisture in (food) so as to preserve it. |
| halcyon |
tranquil; peaceful; calm. |
| lachrymose |
weeping, tending to weep readily, or being on the point of tears; tearful. |
| nostrum |
a favorite but unproven scheme or theory, offered as a remedy for social or political problems; panacea. |
| obscurantism |
a deliberate lack of clarity or directness of expression, as in certain styles of art or literature. |
| parlance |
manner of speaking or writing, especially word choice; vernacular. |
| parlous |
full of dangers or risks; perilous. |
| penury |
severe poverty; pennilessness. |
| peroration |
the concluding part of a speech in which there is a summing up of the principal points. |