| accretion |
the process of gradual increase or growth, especially by additions from the outside. |
| adulteration |
the act or process of making worse or impure by adding unnecessary or inferior ingredients. |
| appurtenance |
(plural) equipment or instruments used for a given purpose; gear. |
| avow |
to assert or affirm. |
| cantankerous |
irritable, stubborn, and quarrelsome. |
| desiccate |
to remove the moisture in (food) so as to preserve it. |
| desideratum |
something that is needed or wanted. |
| disencumber |
to remove burdens or hindrances from. |
| dissimulate |
to hide one's true feelings, intentions, or the like by pretense or hypocrisy. |
| epicene |
sharing the traits of both sexes. |
| exegesis |
a critical explanation or interpretive analysis, especially of religious texts. |
| ligature |
a band or tie. |
| linguistics |
(used with a singular verb) the scientific and historical study of the form and structure of human language. |
| maverick |
a person who thinks and behaves independently, especially one who refuses to adhere to the orthodoxy of the group to which he or she belongs. |
| panegyric |
a formal speech or piece of writing devoted to publicly praising a person or thing. |