| augury |
the art or practice or an instance of predicting the future or obtaining hidden knowledge by interpreting omens. |
| avow |
to assert or affirm. |
| cloture |
in U.S. parliamentary procedure, a method of ending debate and causing an immediate vote on the matter being discussed. |
| collateral |
property or other security put forward to guarantee repayment of a loan. |
| declivity |
a downward or descending slope. |
| effete |
marked by excessive refinement or delicateness of taste. |
| effluvium |
an outflow of usually invisible, foul-smelling vapor or gas. |
| froward |
unwilling to agree or obey; stubborn; perverse. |
| hagiography |
an admiring and uncritical biography of anyone. |
| lattice |
a flat framework made with strips of wood or other material. The strips cross each other and have open spaces in between. A lattice is often used as a screen on a porch or in a garden. |
| perquisite |
a payment or benefit in addition to the wages or salary associated with a position. |
| pneumatic |
of, using, or concerning air or other gases. |
| profligate |
totally given over to immoral and shameful pursuits; dissolute. |
| reprisal |
injury inflicted in retaliation for injury received, as in war; revenge. |
| sotto voce |
in a low voice or undertone, so as not to be overheard; softly (often used as a musical direction). |