| conclave |
a secret, private, or confidential meeting or gathering. |
| ensconce |
to position (oneself) firmly or comfortably. |
| expiation |
the act or the means of making amends, as for a sin or crime. |
| flange |
a collar or rim that projects from a pipe, housing, or the like to provide strength, stability, or a place for attaching other parts. |
| guru |
in a cult or religious movement, a spiritual guide or leader, sometimes believed to be divine. |
| laureate |
one honored for achievement in a particular field or by a particular award, especially in the arts or sciences. |
| macerate |
to soften (food or the like) by soaking, as in digestion. |
| malingerer |
one who pretends to be ill or injured, especially in order to avoid work or duty. |
| periphrasis |
an indirect or roundabout way of phrasing something; circumlocution. |
| proselytize |
to convert or try actively to convert (others) to one's own beliefs or religion. |
| pungent |
sharp and strong in taste or smell. |
| recidivism |
chronic return to bad habits, especially criminal relapse. |
| Saturnalia |
an occasion of unrestrained revelry. |
| supine |
lying with the face upward. |
| unscathed |
not hurt or harmed; completely uninjured. |