| ascertain |
to learn without question; determine. |
| canny |
difficult to fool or take advantage of; shrewd; wary; clever. |
| cantankerous |
irritable, stubborn, and quarrelsome. |
| deracinate |
to pull up by or as if by the roots; uproot; isolate; exile. |
| dissimulate |
to hide one's true feelings, intentions, or the like by pretense or hypocrisy. |
| diurnal |
occurring or active during, or belonging to, the daytime rather than nighttime. |
| entreat |
to beg for something, or to do something. |
| extirpate |
to get rid of completely, as if by pulling up the roots; root out. |
| fracas |
a noisy disturbance or quarrel. |
| guttural |
articulated in the back of the mouth; velar. |
| ontogeny |
the process of biological growth and development of a particular living organism. |
| opiate |
something that induces relaxation, calm, or stupor. |
| perquisite |
a payment or benefit in addition to the wages or salary associated with a position. |
| prolix |
wordy and boringly long. |
| trabeated |
using horizontal beams or lintels as supports instead of arches. |