| abeyance |
temporary suspension or cessation. |
| alluvium |
sand, soil, gravel, or the like deposited by moving water, as along a river bed. |
| baleful |
threatening harm; full of malice; ominous. |
| decedent |
in law, one who has died. |
| epigraph |
a pertinent quotation or motto, especially found at the beginning of a literary work or of a chapter. |
| facsimile |
an exact copy or duplicate of something printed or of a picture. |
| festoon |
a decorative chain or strip of ribbons, flowers, leaves, or the like, suspended at the ends and hung in a curve. |
| kismet |
destiny, fortune, or fate. |
| laudatory |
expressing praise. |
| pedantic |
making or characterized by an excessive display of learnedness, or overly insistent on scholarly details and formalities. |
| penury |
severe poverty; pennilessness. |
| perilous |
causing or involving great danger; risky; hazardous. |
| peroration |
the concluding part of a speech in which there is a summing up of the principal points. |
| pungency |
sharpness or bite in taste or smell. |
| veneration |
a feeling of great respect; awe; reverence. |