Miscegenation

(1) The interbreeding of different races or of persons of different racial backgrounds.
(2) Cohabitation, sexual relations, or marriage involving persons of different races.
(3) A mixture or hybridization: “There was musical miscegenation at a time when segregation was the common rule”

Chiaroscuro

(1) The technique of using light and shade in pictorial representation.
(2) The arrangement of light and dark elements in a pictorial work of art.
(3a) A woodcut technique in which several blocks are used to print different shades of a color.
(3b) A woodcut print made by this technique.

ad hominem

Appealing to personal considerations rather than to logic or reason: Debaters should avoid ad hominem arguments that question their opponents' motives.

Stultifying

(1) To render useless or ineffectual; cripple.
(2) To cause to appear stupid, inconsistent, or ridiculous.
(3) Law. To allege or prove insane and so not legally responsible.

Atavism

(1) The reappearance of a characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence, usually caused by the chance recombination of genes.
(2) An individual or a part that exhibits atavism. Also called throwback.
(3) The return of a trait or recurrence of previous behavior after a period of absence.

Seriatim

One after another; in a series.

Appurtenance

(1) Something added to another, more important thing; an appendage. See Synonyms at appendage.
(2) Equipment, such as clothing, tools, or instruments, used for a specific purpose or task; gear.
(3) Law. A right, privilege, or property that is considered incident to the principal property for purposes such as passage of title, conveyance, or inheritance.

Molder

To crumble to dust; disintegrate.

Bilious

(1) Of, relating to, or containing bile; biliary.
(2a) Characterized by an excess secretion of bile.
(2b) Relating to, characterized by, or experiencing gastric distress caused by a disorder of the liver or gallbladder.
(2c) Appearing as if affected by such a disorder; sickly.
(3) Resembling bile, especially in color: a bilious green.
(4) Having a peevish disposition; ill-humored.

Augur

(1) One of a group of ancient Roman religious officials who foretold events by observing and interpreting signs and omens.
(2) A seer or prophet; a soothsayer.

Baluster

(1a) One of the upright, usually rounded or vase-shaped supports of a balustrade.
(1b) An upright support, such as a furniture leg, having a similar shape.
(2) One of the supporting posts of a handrail.

Lilliputian

n.
A very small person or being.


adj.
(1) Very small; diminutive.
(2) Trivial; petty.

Etymology: After Lilliput, a country in Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, where everything was diminutive.

Satori

A spiritual awakening sought in Zen Buddhism, often coming suddenly.

Verdigris

(1) A blue or green powder consisting of basic cupric acetate used as a paint pigment and fungicide.
(2) A green patina or crust of copper sulfate or copper chloride formed on copper, brass, and bronze exposed to air or seawater for long periods of time.

Surreptitious

(1) Obtained, done, or made by clandestine or stealthy means.
(2) Acting with or marked by stealth.