| collateral |
property or other security put forward to guarantee repayment of a loan. |
| diurnal |
occurring or active during, or belonging to, the daytime rather than nighttime. |
| entreat |
to beg for something, or to do something. |
| foible |
a minor flaw or weakness in personality, character, or behavior. |
| immiscible |
not able to be mixed or blended. |
| magnum opus |
a great work of art, literature, or music, especially a particular person's masterpiece. |
| obtrusive |
aggressive and self-assertive, or inclined to be so. |
| penury |
severe poverty; pennilessness. |
| periphrasis |
an indirect or roundabout way of phrasing something; circumlocution. |
| precursory |
coming before and serving to indicate what will follow; premonitory. |
| preferment |
the act of promoting or being promoted to a higher position or office. |
| prolix |
wordy and boringly long. |
| quondam |
having been in the past; former. |
| tamp |
to compress and pack tightly by repeated light taps. |
| travesty |
something so grotesque or inferior as to seem a parody. |