| canard |
a deliberately false story or rumor, usually defamatory to someone. |
| disinter |
to dig up or remove from a place of burial; exhume. |
| facsimile |
an exact copy or duplicate of something printed or of a picture. |
| heterodox |
deviating from an officially approved belief or doctrine, especially in religion. |
| hirsute |
covered with hair or stiff hairs; hairy or shaggy. |
| inanition |
a state of exhaustion caused by a lack of nourishment. |
| maverick |
a person who thinks and behaves independently, especially one who refuses to adhere to the orthodoxy of the group to which he or she belongs. |
| mésalliance |
marriage with someone of lower social standing than oneself. |
| misfeasance |
a normally lawful act performed in an unlawful way. |
| peroration |
the concluding part of a speech in which there is a summing up of the principal points. |
| recidivism |
chronic return to bad habits, especially criminal relapse. |
| seminal |
of critical importance; essential. |
| sepsis |
infection, especially by pus-forming bacteria in the blood or tissues. |
| stickler |
one who must observe or conform to something (usually followed by "for"). |
| sylph |
a slender, graceful woman or girl. |