Vocabulary

to age; to grow old (esp. in appearance); to show marks of age

apology

straw

methodical; precise; meticulous; scrupulous; regular; punctual

to mutter; to murmur; to grumble

beak; bill

euphemistic; circumlocutory; periphrastic; roundabout; indirect

supple; flexible; elastic

cage; pen; (jail) cell

to dress stylishly

to run (of liquid); to spread; to bleed; to blot

to rise (of a building, mountain, etc.); to tower; to soar

discipline; training; teaching manners

germ; germs; bacteria; bug

to intimidate; to frighten; to scare

truth; reality; fact

to tear off; to peel off; to rip off; to strip off; to skin; to flay

all people; everybody

to warp; to bend; to contort

and so on; and so forth; et cetera; and such; and the like

faint; dim; weak; slight; vague; indistinct

warehouse; storehouse; cellar; magazine; granary; godown

crowd; community; group; herd; gathering; assembly

to shut oneself in (e.g. one's room); to be confined in; to seclude oneself; to hide away; to stay inside (one's shell)

to garnish; to accompany (as a card does a gift)

precious; valuable; priceless

to value; to prize; to esteem

to swallow; to gulp down

to regard (as); to consider (to be); to deem; to look upon (as); to think of (as)

folk customs; folkways; ethnic customs

thigh

to leak out; to escape; to come through; to shine through; to filter out

residence; estate; grounds; premises; mansion

depression; melancholy; dejection; gloom; despondency

nursing; (protective) care

very; greatly; much; to a large extent; quite

late at night; small hours of the morning

at a stroke; with a single swoop

secret; private; surreptitious

in spite of; despite; although