| austerity |
a tightened or stringent economy, as when there are high taxes, frozen wages, and shortages of consumer goods. |
| Byzantine |
characterized by complexity and intrigue. |
| cognomen |
a last name; surname. |
| dawdle |
to waste time; be slow. |
| disheveled |
not neat; messy. |
| glean |
to gather or discover (facts, information, or the like) a little at a time. |
| harbinger |
someone or something that signals or foreshadows a later arrival or occurrence; herald; forerunner. |
| impugn |
to call into question; challenge or try to discredit. |
| jejune |
lacking interest or liveliness; dull. |
| parlance |
manner of speaking or writing, especially word choice; vernacular. |
| pungent |
sharp and strong in taste or smell. |
| pusillanimous |
shamefully timid; cowardly. |
| risible |
provoking laughter; laughable or funny. |
| solecism |
a gross violation of convention in grammar, etiquette, or the like; impropriety. |
| uxorious |
excessively or foolishly devoted to one's wife, and often thereby submissive to her. |