| augury |
the art or practice or an instance of predicting the future or obtaining hidden knowledge by interpreting omens. |
| austerity |
a tightened or stringent economy, as when there are high taxes, frozen wages, and shortages of consumer goods. |
| contumely |
contemptuous insolence; rudeness. |
| delectation |
enjoyment; delight; pleasure. |
| desiccate |
to remove the moisture in (food) so as to preserve it. |
| diatribe |
a bitter, abusive attack in speech or writing. |
| divergence |
the act of separating and moving or leading in different directions. |
| exponent |
one that expounds or interprets. |
| extirpate |
to get rid of completely, as if by pulling up the roots; root out. |
| jeremiad |
a long complaint about life or one's situation; lamentation. |
| lanugo |
fine, soft hair, especially that with which a human fetus or newborn is covered. |
| maunder |
to speak in an aimless or foolish way; babble. |
| nostrum |
a favorite but unproven scheme or theory, offered as a remedy for social or political problems; panacea. |
| profligate |
totally given over to immoral and shameful pursuits; dissolute. |
| prolix |
wordy and boringly long. |