lemniscate: like the ∞ symbol, two closed symmetrical loops that meet at a central node
cincture: to encircle or surround, or something that does (e.g. a belt or girdle)
corant: corruption of courante, a fast 17th c. dance (fr. French, courir, to run)
talus: a slope or sloping fortification, or piled rocky detritus at its base
odylic: relating to the od, a hypothetical universal force in nature
loess: a light, fine, wind-deposited accumulation of silt and clay
esker: a winding ridge of sand or gravel often left by meltwater
glyptal: trademarked resin used for coatings (glycerol phthalic)
burren: area of the Irish coast famous for its caves and ruins
katabatic: winds naturally blowing downhill (ant. anabatic)
mortice: a hole cut in wood, to be jointed with a tenon
searce: to sift finely, or a sieve through which to do so
penetralia: innermost recesses or most secret items
jaggery: brown sugar made from date palm sap
flaysome: frightening (northern English dialect)
éclaircissement: enlightenment or clarification
coir: coconut fiber used for rope or matting
strathspey: a slow Scottish dance in 4/4
oupire: Polish variation on the vampire
crepitate: to crackle, rattle, or rustle

isinglass: gelatin made from the air bladders of fish (fr. Dutch huysenblas, ‘sturgeon-bladder’)
extravasate: for a liquid to be forced out of its proper vessel, as blood from artery into tissue
spokeshave: a plane with handles on each side for shaping spokes and like items
pomander: ball or container of aromatic substances carried to prevent infection
marl: to wind a rope, hitching every turn, with marlin, a light tarred rope
tierce: a third of a pipe of wine or liquid, amounting to about 42 gallons
teetotum: a four-sided top with letters on each side, used in gambling
bermoothes: certain islands, possibly fictional, possibly the Bermudas
bombazine: a twilled fabric, often black and often worn for mourning
embonpoint: plumpness (fr. French, en bon point, in good condition)
scoria: crust or slag leftover or rising atop smelted metal – or lava
puncheon: a cask holding 80 gallons, or simply that volume itself
calenture: fever or heat stroke encountered in tropical climes
obloquy: reproach or defamation, esp. from many unto one
ukase: an order or edict issuing from monarchy (esp. czars)
pantechnicon: van or warehouse used for storing furniture
marplot: one who defeats (mars) a plan or project (plot)
prelusive: introductory, i.e. pertaining to the prelude
diffide: to lack faith, or otherwise doubt or distrust
galliot: small ship propelled by both sail and oar
ope: archaic version of open, as hark to harken
scarlatina: another name for the scarlet fever
dudeen: a short-stemmed clay pipe
yare: quick or nimble, esp. of a ship
featly: skillfully, neatly, elegantly
holp: archaic past tense of help
bosky: wooded, bushy, shaded
avaunt: begone, away w’ye
malapert: overly saucy
leal: scots, loyal

chapfallen: having one’s jaw (chap) hanging out of exhaustion or disappointment
chlorotic: lacking coloration due to lack of iron, in either plants and people
picquet: also piquet, a two-player game played with a 32-card deck
osculation: in mathematics, to touch and share a tangent; to kiss
paregoric: medicinal opium originally prescribed to children
stylobate: a continuous base for a series of columns
rodomontade: a boast, or to speak or act boastfully
contumacious: stubborn or resistant to authority
algedonic: relating to both pleasure and pain
carious: decayed, esp. bones or teeth
apaugasma: a brightly shining light
puteal: a classical-style wellhead
batrachian: toadlike or froglike
desipience: folly or silliness
slammakin: loose or untidy
nacreous: pearlescent

cathead: a beam projecting from the bow of a ship used as support in lifting anchor
coaming: a raised frame around a roof, floor, or hatch, to keep water out (or in)
pergola: an arbor or colonnade with horizontal trelliswork for vines or plants
cenotaph: a monument honoring someone who is buried elsewhere
marplot: the person or circumstance that defeats a plan or design
saker: a field gun below demiculverin size; also a type of falcon
goffer: decorative frills or plaits, or the process of adding them
bawcock: familiar term for a comrade (from Fr. beau coq)
cess: Irish slang for luck, particularly in “bad cess to you”
madapollam: a smooth, glazed calico cotton fabric
wherry: a light rowboat or skiff, or to pilot one
doxy: a woman of questionable reputation
marline: a tarred two-strand nautical rope
veracious: a better way to say truthful
plethoric: turgid or overstuffed

mandrel: the bar or cylinder on which a spinning tool or workpiece (e.g. a millstone) is mounted
gabion: wicker baskets or steel drums filled with rocks and used in fortification or construction
palingenesis: rebirth or baptism; in biology, embryonic forms revisiting evolutionary history
maquis: a scrubby Mediterranean plant; also, a French resistance group in World War II
ergastulum: a subterranean prison or dungeon in which dangerous slaves were kept
fytte: archaic spelling of fit, in this case meaning a section of a poem or ballad
prorogue: to defer or postpone, especially in legislative bodies
encaustic: art formed or fixed by a burning or heating process
swivet: a state of nervous excitement, confusion, or anxiety
haruspex: one who divines the future by observing entrails
brontoscopy: divination through the sound of thunder
febrifuge: a drug or drink for reducing fever
dubitation: archaic term for doubt
ferine: alternative spelling of feral
kyst: a chest or container

psephology: the study of elections (from psephos, pebble, once used to vote in Greece)
hobbledehoy: a clumsy, awkward youth (one literal etymology yields “hedge-goblin”)
pelmet: ornamentation over windows or doors to conceal curtain fastenings
compony : in heraldry, alternating squares of color and metal (also gobony)
anteambulo: one who walks before an important person to clear the way
gamboge: strong yellow pigment, made from a resin used as a purgative
Cencian: patricidal or fratricidal, after an infamous Italian noblewoman
manumission: the act of freeing a slave, or the state of a slave freed
tufa: porous limestone usually deposited by mineral-rich streams
exuviae: cast-off parts, skins, or moltings, such as shells or wings
ormolu: alloys made to imitate gold on jewlery and decorations
consol: a type of government bond yielding perpetual interest
curule: of the highest rank (occupier of the eponymous chair)
claque: sycophants, or hired applause (fr. claquer, to clap)
meteoria: ancient roman term for scatter-brainedness
jorum: a large bowl or vessel, or its contents
tenebrous: dark or gloomy (also tenebrose)
persiflage: light banter, or a frivolous style
raddled: interwoven or wattled; unkempt
paletot: a loose outer garment

atrabilious: morose, melancholy, or in a like way ill-tempered (from the latin for ‘black bile’)
jonquil: corruption of the bird ‘junco,’ revised to refer to an associated type of narcissus
sough: a rustling or sighing noise; or, to speak or preach whinily; or, a ditch or marsh
mythomane: abbreviation of mythomaniac, similarly graphomane, monomane, etc
imbrangle: also embrangle, to involve in a brangle, a noisy fuss or squabble
afflatus: divine or otherwise miraculous creative inspiration or knowledge
posset: an old cold remedy, spiced milk curdled with beer or wine
bistre: a brownish-yellow pigment derived from wood soot
petroliferous: capable of yielding petroleum, e.g. oil shale
palter: to act or talk carelessly or deceitfully, or to haggle
parclose: a rail or screen dividing parts of a church
cark: care or worry; to carken is to burden

galloon: a decorative piece of braid or trimming for clothes or furniture, often silver or gold
ob-, re-, in-, sub-sequent: types of streams, determined by surrounding erosion patterns
inselberg: a hill that rises abruptly from an otherwise flat plain (German: island-hill)
auricule: the exterior portion of the ear, or a certain flower resembling a bear’s ear
cryptogamous: of or relating to a now-obsolete taxonomy of seedless organisms
weirdsma: made-up word indicating interesting geological formations
antinomy: laws or philosophical positions apparently in contradiction
orogeny: mountain formation, often by folding or thrust faulting
interfluve: the raised land separating two adjacent river valleys
rutilence: a glow or glitter, usually reddish, warm, or golden
rebec: a lute-shaped but violin-like string instrument
westering: moving or tending towards the west
apologue: an allegory or moral tale
vug: a crystal-lined cavity in rock

machicolation: a parapet or gallery with openings through which to send projectiles, oil, etc
uncomatible: literally (and incredibly) “un-come-at-able,” in use as early as the 17th century
zouave: one of a French-Algerian infantry unit known for their vigor and colorful uniforms
enlizement: to become stuck in quicksand, mud, or figuratively in a situation or argument
stercorary: a place for securing waste or manure from the elements (sewer or storage)
barathrum: a pit in Athens into which criminals were thrown; synonymous with hell
praemunire: the offense of unnecessarily seeking an alternative to royal jurisdiction
scolopendra: “a genus of venomous myriapod” – also a mythical fish, per Spenser
tergiversate: to rapidly change attitudes or loyalties, or to be evasive in general
morion: a common Renaissance-period crested helmet (also a type of quartz)
epithalamium: an ode, poem, or song written to commemorate a wedding
excrescence: an outgrowth, animal or vegetable, normal or abnormal
firk: to hasten, rouse, drive, or strike
ochlocracy: mob rule

lapidary: an expert in or book on, or simply pertaining to, gemmary; or, of gemlike character
pinchbeck: a spurious or counterfeit item, named for a copper-zinc alloy used to fake gold
octroi: a duty on certain goods; also, when a sovereign grants the people a constitution
auscultation: diagnosis by listening to the sounds of the body, as with a stethoscope
phalanstery: an ~1800-person commune under the rules of socialistic Fourierism
cotemporary: variant of contemporary, and makes more sense really
amaranthine: purplish red like the flower, or unfading and eternal
distrain: to seize or hold goods in order to satisfy a debt or claim
compeer: a peer or comrade equal in rank, ability, status, etc
coromandel: a tropical tree known for its hard, brown wood
pellucid: translucent or clear, either optically or in style
purulent: containing, discharging, or producing pus
libration: oscillation, especially of the moon
puling: whining, crying, or whimpering