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297 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
- 3rd side (hint)
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abash
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to embarass
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ablution
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washing
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abnegation
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renunciation; self-sacrifice
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abscission
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cutting off; separation
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acrophobia
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fear of heights
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actuate
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to motivate
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addle
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muddle; drive crazy; become rotten
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adjuration
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solemn urging
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adjutant
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staff officer assisting the commander; assistant
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advert
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refer (to)
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agglomeration
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collection; heap
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agog
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highly excited; intensely curious
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alluvial
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pertaining to soil deposits left by running water
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animadversion
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critical remark
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anneal
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to reduce brittleness and improve toughness by heating and cooling
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apiary
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a place where bees are kept
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appellation
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name; title
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apposite
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appropriate; fitting
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appurtenances
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subordinate possessions
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apropos
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with reference to; regarding
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aquiline
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curved, hooked
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argot
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slang
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arrears
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being in debt
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arroyo
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gully
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astigmatism
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eye defect that prevents proper focus
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astringent
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binding; causing contraction; harsh or severe
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atavism
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resemblance to remote ancestors rather than to parents; reversion to an earlier type; throwback
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aureole
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sun's corona; halo
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auspicious
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favoring success (under the auspices. . .)
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autocratic
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having absolute, unchecked power
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avocation
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secondary or minor occupation
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awl
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pointed tool used for piercing
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badinage
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teasing conversation
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balk (v)
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to stop short, as if faced with an obstacle, and refuse to continue; to foil (cause others to balk, in a sense)
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bandy
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to discuss lightly or glibly; exchange (words) heatedly
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bard
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poet
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barrister
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attorney
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bate
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let down; restrain
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bauble
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trinket; trifle
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bedizen
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dress with vulgar finery
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bedraggle
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to wet thoroughly
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bevy
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large group
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bowdlerize
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expurgate (to remove)
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brindled
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tawny or grayish with streaks or spots
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brocade
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rich, figured fabric
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browbeat
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bully; intimidate
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bucolic
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rustic; pastoral
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bugaboo
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bugbear; object of baseless terror
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callow
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youthful; immature; inexperienced
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cant
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insincere expressions of piety; jargon of thieves
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canter
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slow gallop
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captious
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fault-finding
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carillon
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a set of bells capable of being played
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catechism
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book for religious instruction; instruction by question and answer
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chaff
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worthless products of an endeavoor
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chaffing
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bantering; joking
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chary
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cautious; sparing or restrained about giving
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chase
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to ornament a metal surface by indenting
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clapper
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striker of a bell
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clarion
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shrill, trumpet-like sound
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codicil
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supplement to the body of a will
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coeval
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living at the same time as; contemporary
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coiffure
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hairstyle
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collate
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to examine in order to verify authenticity
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collation
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a light meal
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comestible
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something fit to be eaten
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compunction
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remorse
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concomitant
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that which accompanies
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condign
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adequate; deservedly severe (a condign punishment)
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connubial
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pertaining to marriage or the matrimonial state
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consign
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to deliver officialy; entrust; set apart
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continence
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self-restraint; sexual chastity
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contravene
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to contradict; oppose; infringe on or transgress
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controvert
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to oppose with arguments; attempt to refute; contradict
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contumacious
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disobedient; resisting authority
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cordon
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extended line of men or fortifications to prevent access or egress
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cozen
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to cheat; hoodwink; swindle
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culvert
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artificial channel for water
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cynosure
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object of general attention
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dappled
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spotted, covered with spots
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deciduous
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falling off, as of leaves
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demotic
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pertaining to the people
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deplore
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to regret
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discursive
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digressing; rambling
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disport
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amuse
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distend
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expand; swell out
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distrait
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absent-minded
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doggerel
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poor verse
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dormer
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window protruding from roof
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dowdy
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slovenly, untidy
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dulcet
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sweet sounding
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edify
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instruct; correct morally
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effete
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worn out; exhausted; barren
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emetic
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substance causing vomiting
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alcohol + jane
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emollient
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soothing or softening remedy
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emolument
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salary; compensation
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endue
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imbue; endow
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epaulet
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ornament worn on the shoulder
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equable
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tranquil; steady; uniform
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escapade
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prank; flighty conduct
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exchequer
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treasury
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excise
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to cut away
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exiguous
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small; minute
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expatiate
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talk at length
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expiate
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make amends for (a sin)
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expostulation
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protest; remonstrance
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expropriate
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take possession of; to appropriate
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extirpate
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to root up; eradicate
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factitious
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artificial; sham
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factotum
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handyman; person who does all kinds of work
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febrile
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feverish
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fell (adj)
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cruel; deadly
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filch
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steal
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flay
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strip off skin; plunder
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fluted
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having vertical parallel grooves
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fractious
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unruly
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genuflect
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bend the knee as in worship
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gerontocracy
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government ruled by old people
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grouse
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complain; fuss
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guy
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cable or chain attached to something that needs to be braced or steadied
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headlong
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hasty; rash
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herpetologist
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someone who studies reptiles
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hindmost
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furthest behind
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hortatory
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encouraging; exhortive
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hummock
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a small hill
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humus
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substance formed by decaying vegetable matter
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imbroglio
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complicated situation; painful or complex misunderstanding; entanglement; confused mass
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immolate
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offer as sacrifice
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impolitic
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not wise
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importunate
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urging; demanding
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impuissance
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powerlessness; feebleness
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impute
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ascribe
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incontinent
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lacking self-restraint; licentious
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indelible
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not able to be erased
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indite
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write; compose
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inexorable
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relentless; unyielding; implacable
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insensate
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without feeling
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insouciant
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indifferent; without concern or care
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internecine
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mutually destructive
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intransigence
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refusal of any compromise; stubbornness
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inveigh
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denounce; utter censure or invective
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junket
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trip, especially one taken for pleasure by an official at public expense
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kismet
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fate
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labile
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likely to change; unstable
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laity
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laypersons; persons not connected with the clergy
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lancet
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small surgical tool used for making incisions
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larder
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pantry; place where food is kept
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leonine
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like a lion
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libretto
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text of an opera
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limn
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draw; outline; describe
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lineaments
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features, especially of the face
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litotes
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understatement for emphasis
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lucre
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money
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macerate
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soften by soaking in liquid; waste away
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maculated
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spotted; stained
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madrigal
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pastoral song
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manumit
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emancipate
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masticate
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chew
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mawkish
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mushy and gushy; icky-sticky sentimental; maudlin
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mealymouthed
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indirect in speech; hypocritical; evasive
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meretricious
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flashy; tawdry
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miasma
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swamp gas; heavy, vaporous atmosphere, often emanating from decaying matter; pervasive corrupting influence
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minatory
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menacing; threatening (like a minotaur)
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modish
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fashionable
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monastic
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related to monks or monasteries; removed from worldly concerns
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mordant
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biting; sarcastic; stinging
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mottled
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blotched in coloring; spotted
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muddle
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confuse; mix up
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mulct
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defraud a person of something
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nostrum
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questionable medicine
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nubile
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marriageable
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obeisance
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bow
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obelisk
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a tall column tapering and ending in a pyramid
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obloquy
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slander; disgrace; infamy
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obsequy
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funeral ceremony
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obstreperous
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boisterous; noisy
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overweening
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presumptuous; arrogant
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pachyderm
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any thick-skinned animal
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palimpsest
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parchment used for second time after original writing has been erased.
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palliate
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ease pain
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parsimony
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stinginess
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patina
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green crust on old bronze works; tone slowly taken by varnished painting
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patois
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local or provincial dialect
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pejorative
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negative in connotation
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pellucid
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transparent; limpid; easy to understand
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penury
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extreme poverty
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perigee
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point of moon's orbit when it is nearest the earth
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peroration
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the conclusion of an oration
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perspicuous
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plainly expressed
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pertinacious
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stubborn; persistent
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pharisaical
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paying scrupulous attention to tradition; self-righteous; hypocritical
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philatelist
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stamp-collector
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piebald
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of different colors; mottled; spotted
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pied
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variegated; multicolored
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pinion
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restraint
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piquant
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pleasantly tart-tasting; stimulating
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potentate
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monarch; sovereign (someone who is potent)
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prefatory
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introductory
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prelate
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church dignitary
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primogeniture
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seniority by birth
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prolixity
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tedious wordiness; verbosity
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propound
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put forth for analysis
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prosaic
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dull and unimaginative; matter-of-fact; factual
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prosody
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the art of verse
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protuberance
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protrusion; bulge
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provender
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dry food; fodder
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prurient
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having or causing lustful thoughts and desires
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puerile
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childish
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pugilist
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boxer
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puissant
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powerful; strong; potent
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pulchritude
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beauty; comeliness
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putative
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supposed; reputed
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pylon
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marking post to guide aviators; steel tower supporting cables or telephone lines
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quail
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to cower; lose heart
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quisling
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traitor who aids invaders (like a turncoat during the revolutionary war)
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quorum
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number of members necessary to conduct a meeting
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raconteur
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story teller
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raiment
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clothing
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ramify
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divide into branches or subdivisions
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rarefied
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made less dense [of a gas]
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recidivism
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habitual return to crime
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recondite
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abstruse; profound; secret
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rectitude
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uprightness; moral virtue; correctness of judgment
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recumbent
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reclining; lying down completely or in part
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redolent
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fragrant; odorous; suggestive of an odor
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redoubtable
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formidable; causing fear (or doubts)
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refractory
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stubborn; unmanageable
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refulgent
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brightly shining; gleaming
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remunerative
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compensation; rewarding
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rend/rent
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split; tear apart
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repast
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meal; feast; banquet
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repine
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fret; complain
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reprove
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censure; rebuke
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retrench
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cut down; economize
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ribald
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wanton; profane
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rider
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amendment or clause added to a legislative bill
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roseate
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rosy; optimistic
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rostrum
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platform for speech-making; pulpit
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rusticate
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banish to the country; dwell in the country
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salutary
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tending to improve; beneficial; wholesome
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scad
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a great quantity
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scurrilous
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obscene; indecent
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scuttle
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sink
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sedulous
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diligent
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seine
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net for catching fish
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sere
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parched, dry
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shyster
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lawyer using questionable methods
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sibylline
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prophetic; oracular
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sidereal
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relating to the stars
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skinflint
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stingy person
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skulduggery
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dishonest behavior
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slapdash
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haphazard; careless; sloppy
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solecism
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poor grammar
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solicitous
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worried; concerned
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spate
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sudden flood
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stipple
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paint or draw with dots
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stodgy
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stuffy; boringly conservative
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stygian
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gloomy; hellish; deathly
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suborn
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persuade to act unlawfully (especially to commit perjury)
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swarthy
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dark; dusky
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sybarite
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lover of luxury
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teetotalism
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practice of abstaining totally from alcoholic drinks
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thrall
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slave; bondage
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timorous
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fearful; demonstrating fear
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tipple
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to drink (alcoholic beverages) frequently
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titter
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nervous laugh
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tonsure
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shaving of the head, especially by person entering religious orders
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traduce
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expose to slander
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troth
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pledge of good faith especially in betrothal
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tumid
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swollen; pompous; bombastic
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turbid
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muddy; having the sediment disturbed
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tureen
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deep dish used for serving soup
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tutelary
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protective; pertaining to a guardianship
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unguent
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ointment
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untoward
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unfortunate or unlucky; adverse; unexpected
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unwonted
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unaccustomed
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venial
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forgivable; trivial
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ventral
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abdominal
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verisimilar
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probable of likely; having the appearance of truth
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viand
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food
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viscid
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adhesive, gluey
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vitiate
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spoil the effect of; make inoperable
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vitreous
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pertaining to or resembling glass
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vouchsafe
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grant condescendingly; guarantee
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vulpine
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like a fox; crafty
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waggish
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mischievous; humorous; tricky
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waif
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homeless child or animal
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wanderlust
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strong longing to travel
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wangle
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wiggle out; fake
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warren
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tunnels in which rabbits live; crowded conditions in which people live
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wastrel
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profligate
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wax
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increase; grow
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whelp
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young wolf or dog
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whorl
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ring of leaves around stem; ring
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winnow
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sift; separate good parts from bad
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yen
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longing; urge
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yokel
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country bumpkin
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