| abstruse |
difficult to comprehend or understand; esoteric; arcane. |
| aplomb |
great self-confidence, composure, or poise. |
| austere |
having only what is needed; very simple or plain. |
| cession |
the act of formally giving up or signing over, as a territory; ceding. |
| debauch |
to lead or seduce into immorality or intemperance; corrupt. |
| gnomic |
short and pithy, as an aphorism. |
| hagiography |
an admiring and uncritical biography of anyone. |
| lien |
a legal claim on a piece of property when the current owner is in default on a debt or obligation. |
| linguistics |
(used with a singular verb) the scientific and historical study of the form and structure of human language. |
| macerate |
to soften (food or the like) by soaking, as in digestion. |
| mirabile dictu |
(Latin) wonderful to say or relate. |
| nonfeasance |
in law, failure to perform a required duty, as by a public official. |
| regicide |
the murderer of a king. |
| stridulate |
to produce a shrill grating, creaking, or chirping sound by rubbing certain parts of the body together, as some insects do. |
| triage |
a system of determining priority of medical treatment, on the basis of need, chances of survival, and the like, to victims on a battlefield or in a hospital emergency ward. |