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cacophonous - adjective - harsh-sounding or jarring; dissonant

caducity - noun - 1. the quality or state of being perishable 2. senility

caesure - noun - variant spelling of caesurae which means 1. a metrical break in a verse, occurring in the middle of a foot and commonly near the middle of the verse; a sense pause in the middle of a foot 2. a pause in a line of verse dictated by sense or natural speech rhythm rather than by metrics 3. a pause or interruption, as in conversation 4. [music] a pause or breathing at a point of rhythmic division in a melody

caitiff - adjective - despicable, base, cowardly - noun - a cowardly person; a wretch

caliginous - adjective - affected with darkness or dimness; dark; obscure; misty; gloomy

cantrip - noun - [chiefly Scottish] 1. a magic spell 2. a prank

caparison - noun - 1. an ornamented covering for a horse; trappings 2. clothing, equipment, and ornaments; outfit - verb - 1. to cover (a horse) in trappings 2. to adorn with rich clothing; to deck out

capriole - noun - 1. a leap that a horse makes with all fours, upwards only, without advancing, but with a kick or jerk of the hind legs when at the height of the leap 2. a leap or caper, as in dancing - verb - to perform a capriole

caracole - noun - 1. a half turn to right or left performed by a horse and rider 2. [archaic] a staircase in a spiral form - verb - to perform a caracole

carbuncle - noun - 1. a painful localized bacterial infection of the skin and subcutaneous tissue that usually has several openings through which pus is discharged 2. a) a deep-red garnet, unfaceted and convex b) [obsolete] a red precious stone 3. [heraldic] a charge or bearing supposed to represent the precious stone having eight scepters or staves radiating from a common center; also called escarbuncle

carcanet - noun - [archaic] a jeweled necklace, collar, or headband

carillon - noun - 1. set of stationary bells, each producing one tone if the chromatic scale, now usually sounded by means of a keyboard 2. a smaller instrument imitating this electronically, usually by amplifying the sounds made by striking metal tubes, bars, etc. instead of bells 3. a composition for the carillon 4. an organ stop producing a carillon-like sound

carious - adjective - having caries; decayed (N.B. caries is decay of bones, especially teethyum!)

carnal - adjective - 1. pertaining to or characterized by the flesh or the body, its passions and appetites; sensual 2. not spiritual; merely human; temporal; worldly

casque - noun - a helmet

castigation - noun - a punishment or reprimand

catafalque - noun - 1. a wooden framework, usually draped, on which the body in a coffin lies in state during an elaborate funeral 2. Roman Catholic Church a coffinlike structure used to represent the dead at a requiem Mass after the actual burial

cataphract - noun - 1. a type of armor worn to cover the whole body of a mounted soldier and that of the horse 2. a heavily armed and armored cavalryman

catastasis - noun - 1. the intensified part of the action directly preceding the catastrophe in classical tragedy 2. the climax of a drama 3. [rhetoric] that part of a speech, usually the exordium, in which the orator sets forth the subject matter to be discussed 4. [medical] the state, or condition of anything; constitution; habit of body

catechize - verb - 1. to teach, especially in the principles of Christian dogma, discipline, and ethics by the method of questions and answers 2. to question or examine closely or methodically

catenulate - adjective - 1. consisting of little links or chains 2. arranged like a chain; said both of color marks and of indentations when arranged like the links of a chain, as on shells, etc. (N.B. also used in noun form, catenulations, and in Donaldson as a verb to mean something like "linked")

cateran - noun - [Scottish] a Highland robber; a kind of irregular soldier; a marauder

cautery - noun - 1. an instrument or substance for cauterizing 2. the act of cauterizing

cavalcade - noun - 1. a procession of riders or horse-drawn carriages 2. a ceremonial procession or display 3. a succession or series

celerity - noun - swiftness in acting or moving; speed

cenotaph - noun - an empty tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person who is buried elsewhere

censer - noun - an ornamented container in which incense is burned

cerement - noun - a cerecloth; a shroud (N.B. a cerecloth is cloth treated with wax or a similar substance, especially one used formerly to wrap a dead person for burial)

cerulean - adjective - azure; sky-blue

chaconne - noun - 1. a slow, stately dance of the 18th century or the music for it 2. a form consisting of variations based on a reiterated harmonic pattern (N.B. other definitions state that the dance is "ancient" and that it is of either Spanish or Latin-American origins)

chancre - noun - 1. a dull red, hard, insensitive lesion that is the first manifestation of syphilis 2. an ulcer, lesion, or sore located at the initial point of entry of a pathogen

chancrous - adjective - of or having chancres

chaplet - noun - 1. a wreath or garland for the head 2. a) a string of prayer beads one third the length of a full rosary b) the prayers said with such beads 3. any string of beads; a necklace 4. [architecture] a small convex molding somewhat resembling a string of beads

charlock - noun - an annual weed (Sinapis arvensis) in the mustard family, native to Eurasia and naturalized in North America, having racemes of yellow flowers and hairy stems and foliage (N.B. the usage must refer to the color of the flowers)

charnel - adjective - of, like, or fit for a charnel - noun - 1. [obsolete] a cemetary 2. a building or place where corpses or bones are deposited

chary - adjective - 1. not taking chances; careful; cautious 2. not giving freely; sparing

chasuble - noun - a sleeveless outer vestment worn over the alb by priests at Mass

chatelaine - noun - 1. the keeper of a castle; castellan 2. the mistress of an elegant or fashionable household 3. a hooklike clasp or a chain for suspending keys, trinkets, scissors, a watch, etc., worn at the waist by women 4. a woman's lapel ornament resembling this

chatoyant - adjective - having a changeable color or luster like the eye of a cat - noun - a gem or polished stone, as the cat's-eye, with such luster

chiaroscuro - noun - 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 3. a) awoodcut technique in which several blocks are used to print different shades of a color b) a woodcut print made by this technique

chicane - noun - chicanery; trickery - verb - 1. to trick 2. to get by trickery

chirurgeon - noun - archaic variation of surgeon

chlamys - noun - a short mantle fastened at the shoulder, worn by men in ancient Greece

choleric - adjective - 1. bilious 2. having or showing a quick temper or irascible nature

chrism - noun - 1. consecrated oil used in baptism and other sacraments in certain churches 2. a sacramental anointing with this oil

chrysoprase - noun - a light-green variety of chalcedony, sometimes used as a semiprecious stone (N.B. chalcedony is a kind of quartz that has the luster of wax and is variously colored, usually grayish or milky: it comprises agate, sard, cat's-eye, jasper, carnelian, and chrysoprase)

circinate - adjective - 1. ring-shaped 2. [botany] rolled up in the form of a coil with the tip in the center, as an unexpanded fern frond - verb - [obsolete] to make a circle around; to encompass

clave - noun 1. a cylindrical hardwood stick used in a pair as a percussion instrument 2. a syncopated two-bar musical pattern - verb [archaic] a past tense of cleave (N.B. cleave 1 is 1. to part or divide by force; to split or rive; to cut 2. to part or open naturally; to divide 3. to make or accomplish by or as if by cutting 4. to pierce, penetrate or pass through something, such as water or air; cleave 2 is 1. to adhere closely; to stick; to hold fast; to cling 2. to be faithful 3. to unite or be united closely in interest or affection; to adhere with strong attachment 4. to fit; to be adapted; to assimilate)

claymore - noun - 1. a large, two-edged broadsword formerly used by Scottish Highlanders 2. a broadsword with a basket hilt worn by Scottish regiments

clewed - adjective - 1. rolled or coiled in to a ball 2. [nautical] with "up," used to describe a square sail with its lower corners raised by means of clew lines

climacteric - noun - 1. a) a period of life characterized by physiological and psychic change that marks the end of the reproductive capacity of women and terminates with the completion of menopause b) a corresponding period sometimes occurring in men that may be marked by a reduction in sexual activity, although fertility is retained 2. critical period or year in a person's life when major changes in health or fortune are thought to take place 3. a critical stage, period, or year - adjective - critical; crucial

clinquant - adjective - glittering; dressed in, or overlaid with, tinsel finery - noun - imitation gold leaf; tinsel; glitter

chthonic - adjective - of or pertaining to the deities, spirits, and other beings dwelling under the earth

cohere - verb - 1. to stick together; be united; hold fast, as parts of the same mass 2. [physics] to be united within a body by the action of molecular forces 3. to be naturally or logically connected 4. to agree; to be congruous

coign - noun - 1. a) an exterior angle of a wall or other piece of masonry b) any of the stones used in forming such an angle, often being of large size and dressed or arranged so as to form a decorative contrast with the adjoining walls 2. a keystone 3. [printing] a wedge-shaped block used to lock type in a chase 4. a wedge used to raise the level of a gun

col - noun - a pass between two mountain peaks or a gap in a ridge

colloquy - noun - 1. a conversation, especially a formal discussion; conference 2. a written dialogue

concatenate - adjective - linked together; connected - verb - to link together or join, as in a chain

concatenation - noun - 1. a linking together or being linked together in a series 2. a series of things or events regarded as causally or dependently connected

concupiscence - noun - strong desire or appetite, especially sexual desire; lust

condign - adjective - deserved; suitable: said especially of punishment for wrongdoing (N.B. see also incondign)

conduce - verb - to tend to lead (to an effect); contribute

connivance - noun - 1. agreement on a secret plot 2. [law] tacit approval of someone's wrongdoing

consonance - noun - 1. harmony or agreement of elements or parts; accord 2. a pleasing combination of simultaneous musical sounds; harmony of tones 3. [prosody] a partial rhyme in which consonants in stressed syllables are repeated but vowels are not (example: mocker, maker)

consonant - adjective - 1. being in agreement or accord 2. corresponding or alike in sound, as words or syllables 3. harmonious in sound or tone - noun - 1. speech sound produced by a partial or complete obstruction of the air stream by any of various constrictions of the speech organs 2. a letter or character representing such a speech sound

contumely - noun - 1. an insulting display of contempt in words or actions; contemptuous or humiliating treatment 2. rudeness or contempt arising from arrogance; insolence 3. a humiliating insult

coomb - noun - a deep hollow or valley, especially on flank of a hill, mainly surviving in place names

coquelicot - noun - 1. the wild poppy, or red corn rose or corn poppy 2. the color of the wild poppy; a color nearly red, like orange mixed with scarlet

cordon - noun - 1. a cord or ribbon bestowed or borne as a badge of honor; a broad ribbon, usually worn after the manner of a baldric, constituting a mark of a very high grade in an honorary order 2. a rich and ornamental lace or string, used to secure a mantle in some costumes of state 3. in fortifications, the coping of the scarp wall, which projects beyond the face of the wall a few inches 4. a line of people, military posts, or ships stationed around an area to enclose or guard it 5. [botany] a tree or shrub, especially a fruit tree such as an apple or pear, repeatedly pruned and trained to grow on a support as a single ropelike stem

corselet - noun - 1. a piece of armor worn to protect the trunk, often the body breastplate and backpiece taken together; also used for the entire suit of the day, including breastplate and backpiece, tasset and headpiece 2. an undergarment that is a combination of a light corset and a brassiere

cortege - noun - 1. a funeral procession 2. the group following and attending to some important person; a retinue 3. a train of attendants

corybantic - adjective - of, pertaining to, or resembling, the Corybantes or their rites; frantic, frenzied

coruscate - verb - to give off flashes of light; glitter; sparkle

coruscation - noun - 1. a coruscating; sparkling 2. a flash or gleam of light 3. a sudden brilliant display, as of wit

cotillion - noun - 1. a ball at which young ladies are presented to society 2. a lively dance originating in France in the 18th century 3. a tune which regulates the dance 4. a kind of woolen material for women's skirts

countervail - verb - 1. to make up for; compensate 2. to counteract; be successful, useful, etc. against; avail against 3. [archaic] to match or equal; to avail (against something)

covert - adjective - 1. concealed; secret; disguised; not openly practiced, avowed, engaged in, accumulated, or shown 2. covered; sheltered 3. [law] being married and therefore protected by one's husband - noun - 1. a covering or cover 2. a) a place that covers and protects; a shelter; a defense b) thick underbrush or woodland affording cover for game 3. [zoology] one of the small feathers covering the bases of the longer feathers of a bird's wings or tail 4. a flock of coots (N.B. coots are a type of bird)

crèche - noun - 1. a display of a stable with figures, as at Christmas, representing a scene at the birth of Jesus 2. an institution for foundlings 3. [chiefly British] a day nursery

crenellation - noun - 1. a rampart built around the top of a castle with regular gaps for firing arrows or guns 2. a notch; an indentation; an embrasure (N.B. also spelled with one L)

crepitation - noun - a slight, sharp, repeated crackling sound

crepuscular - adjective - 1. of or like twilight; dim 2. [zoology] becoming active at twilight or before sunrise, as do bats and certain insects and birds

cromlech - noun - 1. a prehistoric monument consisting of monoliths encircling a mound 2. a dolmen (N.B. a dolmen is a Neolithic tomb or monument consisting of a large, flat stone laid across upright stones)

crozier - noun - 1. a staff with a crook at the top, carried by or before a bishop or abbot as a symbol of his pastoral function 2. [botany] the coiled tip of a young fern frond (N.B. the more-used spelling is crosier)

cuirass - noun - 1. defensive armor for the torso comprising a breastplate and backplate, originally made of leather; also called "corselet" 2. either of the plates forming such armor 3. any similar covering, as the protective armor of a ship 4. [zoology] a hard shell or other covering forming an indurated defensive shield - verb - to equip or cover with a cuirass

cruse - noun - 1. a small earthenware container, such as a pot or jar, for holding liquids 2. a bottle for holding water, oil, honey, etc 3. a cup or dish

curvet - noun - a light leap by a horse, in which both hind legs leave the ground just before the forelegs are set down - verb - 1. to leap in a curvet 2. to prance; frolic

cymar - noun - a woman's long dress or robe; also light covering; a scarf (N.B. also spelled cimar, samare, simare)

cynosure - noun - 1. a) the constellation Ursa Minor, to which, as containing the polar star, the eyes of mariners and travelers were often directed b) the North Star in the constellation Ursa Minor 2. that which serves to direct or to guide 3. any person or thing that is a center of attention or interest

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