Words that rhyme with torchon

n 1: surgical removal of a body part or tissue [syn: ablation, extirpation, cutting out, excision] 2: the erosive process that reduces the size of glaciers

n 1: the ritual washing of a priest's hands or of sacred vessels

n 1: termination of pregnancy 2: failure of a plan [syn: miscarriage, abortion]

n 1: the condition of being formally forgiven by a priest in the sacrament of penance 2: the act of absolving or remitting; formal redemption as pronounced by a priest in the sacrament of penance [syn: absolution, remission, remittal, remission of sin]

n 1: a process of increasing by addition (as to a collection or group); "the art collection grew through accession" 2: (civil law) the right to all of that which your property produces whether by growth or improvement 3: something added to what you already have; "the librarian shelved the new accessions"; "he was a new addition to the staff" [syn: accession, addition] 4: agreeing with or consenting to (often unwillingly); "accession to such demands would set a dangerous precedent"; "assenting to the Congressional determination" [syn: accession, assenting] 5: the right to enter [syn: entree, access, accession, admission, admittance] 6: the act of attaining or gaining access to a new office or right or position (especially the throne); "Elizabeth's accession in 1558" [syn: accession, rise to power] v 1: make a record of additions to a collection, such as a library

n 1: an increase by natural growth or addition [syn: accretion, accumulation] 2: several things grouped together or considered as a whole [syn: collection, aggregation, accumulation, assemblage] 3: the act of accumulating [syn: accumulation, accrual, accruement] 4: (finance) profits that are not paid out as dividends but are added to the capital base of the corporation

n 1: a disposition to behave aggressively 2: a feeling of hostility that arouses thoughts of attack [syn: aggression, aggressiveness] 3: violent action that is hostile and usually unprovoked [syn: aggression, hostility] 4: the act of initiating hostilities 5: deliberately unfriendly behavior

n 1: (rhetoric) a formal or authoritative address that advises or exhorts

n 1: harsh criticism or disapproval [syn: censure, animadversion]

v 1: distribute according to a plan or set apart for a special purpose; "I am allocating a loaf of bread to everyone on a daily basis"; "I'm allocating the rations for the camping trip" [syn: allocate, apportion] 2: give out as one's portion or share [syn: share, divvy up, portion out, apportion, deal]

adj 1: anemic looking from illness or emotion; "a face turned ashen"; "the invalid's blanched cheeks"; "tried to speak with bloodless lips"; "a face livid with shock"; "lips...livid with the hue of death"- Mary W. Shelley; "lips white with terror"; "a face white with rage" [syn: ashen, blanched, bloodless, livid, white] 2: made of wood of the ash tree

n 1: a disparaging remark; "in the 19th century any reference to female sexuality was considered a vile aspersion"; "it is difficult for a woman to understand a man's sensitivity to any slur on his virility" [syn: aspersion, slur] 2: an abusive attack on a person's character or good name [syn: aspersion, calumny, slander, defamation, denigration] 3: the act of sprinkling water in baptism (rare) [syn: aspersion, sprinkling]

n 1: a declaration that is made emphatically (as if no supporting evidence were necessary) [syn: assertion, averment, asseveration] 2: the act of affirming or asserting or stating something [syn: affirmation, assertion, statement]

n 1: assigning some quality or character to a person or thing; "the attribution of language to birds"; "the ascription to me of honors I had not earned" [syn: attribution, ascription] 2: assigning to a cause or source; "the attribution of lighting to an expression of God's wrath"; "he questioned the attribution of the painting to Picasso" [syn: attribution, ascription]

n 1: a feeling of intense dislike [syn: antipathy, aversion, distaste] 2: the act of turning yourself (or your gaze) away; "averting her gaze meant that she was angry" [syn: aversion, averting]

n 1: a highly polished gem that is cut convexly but without facets

n 1: the trait of being cautious; being attentive to possible danger; "a man of caution" [syn: caution, cautiousness, carefulness] [ant: incaution, incautiousness] 2: a warning against certain acts; "a caveat against unfair practices" [syn: caution, caveat] 3: judiciousness in avoiding harm or danger; "he exercised caution in opening the door"; "he handled the vase with care" [syn: caution, precaution, care, forethought] 4: the trait of being circumspect and prudent [syn: circumspection, caution] v 1: warn strongly; put on guard [syn: caution, admonish, monish]

n 1: the act of ceding [syn: cession, ceding]

n 1: a style that involves indirect ways of expressing things [syn: circumlocution, periphrasis, ambage] 2: an indirect way of expressing something [syn: circumlocution, indirect expression]

n 1: the act of turning or winding or folding around a central axis

n 1: a disorderly outburst or tumult; "they were amazed by the furious disturbance they had caused" [syn: disturbance, disruption, commotion, flutter, hurly burly, to- do, hoo-ha, hoo-hah, kerfuffle] 2: the act of making a noisy disturbance [syn: commotion, din, ruction, ruckus, rumpus, tumult] 3: confused movement; "he was caught up in a whirl of work"; "a commotion of people fought for the exits" [syn: whirl, commotion]

n 1: a deep awareness of and sympathy for another's suffering [syn: compassion, compassionateness] 2: the humane quality of understanding the suffering of others and wanting to do something about it [syn: compassion, pity]

n 1: an increase in the density of something [syn: compaction, compression, concretion, densification] 2: the process or result of becoming smaller or pressed together; "the contraction of a gas on cooling" [syn: compression, condensation, contraction] 3: encoding information while reducing the bandwidth or bits required [ant: decompression] 4: applying pressure [syn: compression, compressing] [ant: decompressing, decompression]

n 1: a contract granting the right to operate a subsidiary business; "he got the beer concession at the ball park" [syn: concession, grant] 2: the act of conceding or yielding [syn: concession, conceding, yielding] 3: a point conceded or yielded; "they won all the concessions they asked for"

n 1: injury to the brain caused by a blow; usually resulting in loss of consciousness 2: any violent blow

n 1: an admission of misdeeds or faults 2: a written document acknowledging an offense and signed by the guilty party 3: (Roman Catholic Church) the act of a penitent disclosing his sinfulness before a priest in the sacrament of penance in the hope of absolution 4: a public declaration of your faith 5: the document that spells out the belief system of a given church (especially the Reformation churches of the 16th century)

n 1: law determining the fundamental political principles of a government [syn: fundamental law, organic law, constitution] 2: the act of forming or establishing something; "the constitution of a PTA group last year"; "it was the establishment of his reputation"; "he still remembers the organization of the club" [syn: constitution, establishment, formation, organization, organisation] 3: the constitution written at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 and subsequently ratified by the original thirteen states [syn: United States Constitution, U.S. Constitution, US Constitution, Constitution, Constitution of the United States] 4: the way in which someone or something is composed [syn: constitution, composition, physical composition, makeup, make-up] 5: a United States 44-gun frigate that was one of the first three naval ships built by the United States; it won brilliant victories over British frigates during the War of 1812 and is without doubt the most famous ship in the history of the United States Navy; it has been rebuilt and is anchored in the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston [syn: Constitution, Old Ironsides]

n 1: a long and thoughtful observation 2: a calm, lengthy, intent consideration [syn: contemplation, reflection, reflexion, rumination, musing, thoughtfulness]

n 1: the act of twisting or deforming the shape of something (e.g., yourself) [syn: contortion, deformation] 2: a tortuous and twisted shape or position; "they built a tree house in the tortuosities of its boughs"; "the acrobat performed incredible contortions" [syn: tortuosity, tortuousness, torsion, contortion, crookedness]

n 1: the part played by a person in bringing about a result; "I am proud of my contribution in advancing the project"; "they all did their share of the work" [syn: contribution, part, share] 2: a voluntary gift (as of money or service or ideas) made to some worthwhile cause [syn: contribution, donation] 3: act of giving in common with others for a common purpose especially to a charity [syn: contribution, donation] 4: an amount of money contributed; "he expected his contribution to be repaid with interest" 5: a writing for publication especially one of a collection of writings as an article or story

n 1: an event that results in a transformation [syn: conversion, transition, changeover] 2: a change in the units or form of an expression: "conversion from Fahrenheit to Centigrade" 3: a successful free throw or try for point after a touchdown 4: a spiritual enlightenment causing a person to lead a new life [syn: conversion, rebirth, spiritual rebirth] 5: (psychiatry) a defense mechanism represses emotional conflicts which are then converted into physical symptoms that have no organic basis 6: a change of religion; "his conversion to the Catholic faith" 7: interchange of subject and predicate of a proposition 8: act of exchanging one type of money or security for another 9: the act of changing from one use or function or purpose to another

n 1: the shape of something rotating rapidly [syn: whirl, swirl, vortex, convolution] 2: a convex fold or elevation in the surface of the brain [syn: gyrus, convolution] 3: the action of coiling or twisting or winding together

n 1: a revolution whose aim is to reverse the changes introduced by a previous revolution

n 1: a mechanical damper; absorbs energy of sudden impulses; "the old car needed a new set of shocks" [syn: shock absorber, shock, cushion] 2: the layer of air that supports a hovercraft or similar vehicle 3: a soft bag filled with air or a mass of padding such as feathers or foam rubber etc. v 1: protect from impact; "cushion the blow" [syn: cushion, buffer, soften]

n 1: restoring compressed information to its normal form for use or display [ant: compression] 2: relieving pressure (especially bringing a compressed person gradually back to atmospheric pressure) [syn: decompression, decompressing] [ant: compressing, compression]

n 1: (geology) the erosion of soil as a consequence of sand and dust and loose rocks being removed by the wind; "a constant deflation of the desert landscape" 2: a contraction of economic activity resulting in a decline of prices [ant: disinflation, inflation, rising prices] 3: the act of letting the air out of something [ant: inflation]

n 1: act of lowering in rank or position [ant: promotion]

n 1: a mental state characterized by a pessimistic sense of inadequacy and a despondent lack of activity [ant: elation] 2: a long-term economic state characterized by unemployment and low prices and low levels of trade and investment [syn: depression, slump, economic crisis] 3: a sunken or depressed geological formation [syn: natural depression, depression] [ant: elevation, natural elevation] 4: sad feelings of gloom and inadequacy 5: a period during the 1930s when there was a worldwide economic depression and mass unemployment [syn: Depression, Great Depression] 6: an air mass of lower pressure; often brings precipitation; "a low moved in over night bringing sleet and snow" [syn: low, depression] 7: a state of depression and anhedonia so severe as to require clinical intervention [syn: depressive disorder, clinical depression, depression] 8: a concavity in a surface produced by pressing; "he left the impression of his fingers in the soft mud" [syn: depression, impression, imprint] 9: angular distance below the horizon (especially of a celestial object) 10: pushing down; "depression of the space bar on the typewriter"

n 1: withdrawing support or help despite allegiance or responsibility; "his abandonment of his wife and children left them penniless" [syn: desertion, abandonment, defection] 2: the act of giving something up [syn: abandonment, forsaking, desertion]

n 1: a state without friends or money or prospects

n 1: the process of declining from a higher to a lower level of effective power or vitality or essential quality [syn: degeneration, devolution] [ant: development, evolution] 2: the delegation of authority (especially from a central to a regional government) [syn: devolution, devolvement]

n 1: a message that departs from the main subject [syn: digression, aside, excursus, divagation, parenthesis] 2: a turning aside (of your course or attention or concern); "a diversion from the main highway"; "a digression into irrelevant details"; "a deflection from his goal" [syn: diversion, deviation, digression, deflection, deflexion, divagation] 3: wandering from the main path of a journey [syn: digression, excursion]

n 1: a diluted solution 2: weakening (reducing the concentration) by the addition of water or a thinner [ant: concentration]

n 1: change toward something smaller or lower [syn: decline, diminution] 2: the statement of a theme in notes of lesser duration (usually half the length of the original) [ant: augmentation] 3: the act of decreasing or reducing something [syn: decrease, diminution, reduction, step-down] [ant: increase, step-up]

n 1: freedom to act or judge on one's own 2: knowing how to avoid embarrassment or distress; "the servants showed great tact and discretion" [syn: discretion, discreetness, circumspection, prudence] 3: refined taste; tact [syn: delicacy, discretion] 4: the power of making free choices unconstrained by external agencies [syn: free will, discretion] 5: the trait of judging wisely and objectively; "a man of discernment" [syn: discretion, discernment]

n 1: an extended communication (often interactive) dealing with some particular topic; "the book contains an excellent discussion of modal logic"; "his treatment of the race question is badly biased" [syn: discussion, treatment, discourse] 2: an exchange of views on some topic; "we had a good discussion"; "we had a word or two about it" [syn: discussion, give-and-take, word]

n 1: a reduction of prices intended to improve the balance of payments [ant: deflation, inflation, rising prices]

n 1: spreading widely or driving off [syn: dispersion, scattering] 2: the spatial or geographic property of being scattered about over a range, area, or volume; "worldwide in distribution"; "the distribution of nerve fibers"; "in complementary distribution" [syn: distribution, dispersion] [ant: compactness, concentration, denseness, density, tightness] 3: the act of dispersing or diffusing something; "the dispersion of the troops"; "the diffusion of knowledge" [syn: dispersion, dispersal, dissemination, diffusion]

n 1: the expulsion of someone (such as a tenant) from the possession of land by process of law [syn: eviction, dispossession, legal ouster] 2: freeing from evil spirits [syn: exorcism, dispossession]

n 1: lack of proportion; imbalance among the parts of something [ant: proportion, symmetry]

n 1: separation into component parts [syn: dissolution, disintegration] 2: the process of going into solution; "the dissolving of salt in water" [syn: dissolving, dissolution] 3: dissolute indulgence in sensual pleasure [syn: profligacy, dissipation, dissolution, licentiousness, looseness] 4: the termination of a meeting [syn: adjournment, dissolution] 5: the termination or disintegration of a relationship (between persons or nations) [syn: dissolution, breakup]

n 1: a change for the worse [syn: distortion, deformation] 2: a shape resulting from distortion [syn: distorted shape, distortion] 3: an optical phenomenon resulting from the failure of a lens or mirror to produce a good image [syn: aberration, distortion, optical aberration] 4: a change (usually undesired) in the waveform of an acoustic or analog electrical signal; the difference between two measurements of a signal (as between the input and output signal); "heavy metal guitar players use vacuum tube amplifiers to produce extreme distortion" 5: the act of distorting something so it seems to mean something it was not intended to mean [syn: distortion, overrefinement, straining, torture, twisting] 6: the mistake of misrepresenting the facts

n 1: (statistics) an arrangement of values of a variable showing their observed or theoretical frequency of occurrence [syn: distribution, statistical distribution] 2: the spatial or geographic property of being scattered about over a range, area, or volume; "worldwide in distribution"; "the distribution of nerve fibers"; "in complementary distribution" [syn: distribution, dispersion] [ant: compactness, concentration, denseness, density, tightness] 3: the act of distributing or spreading or apportioning 4: the commercial activity of transporting and selling goods from a producer to a consumer

n 1: an activity that diverts or amuses or stimulates; "scuba diving is provided as a diversion for tourists"; "for recreation he wrote poetry and solved crossword puzzles"; "drug abuse is often regarded as a form of recreation" [syn: diversion, recreation] 2: a turning aside (of your course or attention or concern); "a diversion from the main highway"; "a digression into irrelevant details"; "a deflection from his goal" [syn: diversion, deviation, digression, deflection, deflexion, divagation] 3: an attack calculated to draw enemy defense away from the point of the principal attack [syn: diversion, diversionary attack]

n 1: the act of coming (or going) out; becoming apparent [syn: egress, egression, emergence]

n 1: execution by electricity [syn: electrocution, burning] 2: killing by electric shock

n 1: an expert manner of speaking involving control of voice and gesture

n 1: the process of extracting one material from another by washing with a solvent to remove adsorbed material from an adsorbent (as in washing of loaded ion-exchange resins to remove captured ions); used to obtain uranium ions

n 1: (astronomy) the reappearance of a celestial body after an eclipse [syn: egress, emersion] [ant: immersion, ingress] 2: the act of emerging [syn: emergence, emersion]

n 1: any strong feeling

n 1: the condition of being enclosed (as in a capsule); "the encapsulation of tendons in membranous sheaths" 2: the process of enclosing (as in a capsule)

n 1: a process in which something passes by degrees to a different stage (especially a more advanced or mature stage); "the development of his ideas took many years"; "the evolution of Greek civilization"; "the slow development of her skill as a writer" [syn: development, evolution] [ant: degeneration, devolution] 2: (biology) the sequence of events involved in the evolutionary development of a species or taxonomic group of organisms [syn: evolution, organic evolution, phylogeny, phylogenesis]

n 1: a journey taken for pleasure; "many summer excursions to the shore"; "it was merely a pleasure trip"; "after cautious sashays into the field" [syn: excursion, jaunt, outing, junket, pleasure trip, expedition, sashay] 2: wandering from the main path of a journey [syn: digression, excursion]

n 1: putting a condemned person to death [syn: execution, executing, capital punishment, death penalty] 2: the act of performing; of doing something successfully; using knowledge as distinguished from merely possessing it; "they criticised his performance as mayor"; "experience generally improves performance" [syn: performance, execution, carrying out, carrying into action] 3: (computer science) the process of carrying out an instruction by a computer [syn: execution, instruction execution] 4: (law) the completion of a legal instrument (such as a contract or deed) by signing it (and perhaps sealing and delivering it) so that it becomes legally binding and enforceable [syn: execution, execution of instrument] 5: a routine court order that attempts to enforce the judgment that has been granted to a plaintiff by authorizing a sheriff to carry it out [syn: execution, writ of execution] 6: the act of accomplishing some aim or executing some order; "the agency was created for the implementation of the policy" [syn: execution, implementation, carrying out] 7: unlawful premeditated killing of a human being by a human being [syn: murder, slaying, execution]

n 1: use of physical or mental energy; hard work; "he got an A for effort"; "they managed only with great exertion" [syn: effort, elbow grease, exertion, travail, sweat]

n 1: the feelings expressed on a person's face; "a sad expression"; "a look of triumph"; "an angry face" [syn: expression, look, aspect, facial expression, face] 2: expression without words; "tears are an expression of grief"; "the pulse is a reflection of the heart's condition" [syn: expression, manifestation, reflection, reflexion] 3: the communication (in speech or writing) of your beliefs or opinions; "expressions of good will"; "he helped me find verbal expression for my ideas"; "the idea was immediate but the verbalism took hours" [syn: expression, verbal expression, verbalism] 4: a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations; "pardon the expression" [syn: saying, expression, locution] 5: the style of expressing yourself; "he suggested a better formulation"; "his manner of expression showed how much he cared" [syn: formulation, expression] 6: a group of symbols that make a mathematical statement [syn: formula, expression] 7: (genetics) the process of expressing a gene 8: a group of words that form a constituent of a sentence and are considered as a single unit; "I concluded from his awkward constructions that he was a foreigner" [syn: construction, grammatical construction, expression] [ant: misconstruction] 9: the act of forcing something out by squeezing or pressing; "the expression of milk from her breast"

n 1: an exorbitant charge 2: unjust exaction (as by the misuse of authority); "the extortion by dishonest officials of fees for performing their sworn duty" 3: the felonious act of extorting money (as by threats of violence)

n 1: (psychology) an extroverted disposition; concern with what is outside the self [syn: extraversion, extroversion] [ant: ambiversion, introversion]

n 1: (psychology) an extroverted disposition; concern with what is outside the self [syn: extraversion, extroversion] [ant: ambiversion, introversion]

n 1: how something is done or how it happens; "her dignified manner"; "his rapid manner of talking"; "their nomadic mode of existence"; "in the characteristic New York style"; "a lonely way of life"; "in an abrasive fashion" [syn: manner, mode, style, way, fashion] 2: characteristic or habitual practice 3: the latest and most admired style in clothes and cosmetics and behavior 4: consumer goods (especially clothing) in the current mode v 1: make out of components (often in an improvising manner); "She fashioned a tent out of a sheet and a few sticks" [syn: fashion, forge]

v 1: make (to feel) fresh; "The cool water refreshed us" [syn: refresh, freshen] 2: become or make oneself fresh again; "She freshened up after the tennis game" [syn: freshen, refresh, refreshen, freshen up] 3: make fresh again [syn: refresh, freshen, refreshen] [ant: fag, fag out, fatigue, jade, outwear, tire, tire out, wear, wear down, wear out, wear upon, weary]

n 1: an increased depth and rate of breathing greater than demanded by the body needs; can cause dizziness and tingling of the fingers and toes and chest pain if continued

n 1: sinking until covered completely with water [syn: submergence, submerging, submersion, immersion] 2: (astronomy) the disappearance of a celestial body prior to an eclipse [syn: ingress, immersion] [ant: egress, emersion] 3: complete attention; intense mental effort [syn: concentration, engrossment, absorption, immersion] 4: a form of baptism in which part or all of a person's body is submerged 5: the act of wetting something by submerging it [syn: submersion, immersion, ducking, dousing]

n 1: a vague idea in which some confidence is placed; "his impression of her was favorable"; "what are your feelings about the crisis?"; "it strengthened my belief in his sincerity"; "I had a feeling that she was lying" [syn: impression, feeling, belief, notion, opinion] 2: an outward appearance; "he made a good impression"; "I wanted to create an impression of success"; "she retained that bold effect in her reproductions of the original painting" [syn: impression, effect] 3: a clear and telling mental image; "he described his mental picture of his assailant"; "he had no clear picture of himself or his world"; "the events left a permanent impression in his mind" [syn: mental picture, picture, impression] 4: a concavity in a surface produced by pressing; "he left the impression of his fingers in the soft mud" [syn: depression, impression, imprint] 5: a symbol that is the result of printing or engraving; "he put his stamp on the envelope" [syn: stamp, impression] 6: all the copies of a work printed at one time; "they ran off an initial printing of 2000 copies" [syn: impression, printing] 7: (dentistry) an imprint of the teeth and gums in wax or plaster; "the dentist took an impression for use in preparing an inlay" 8: an impressionistic portrayal of a person; "he did a funny impression of a politician" 9: the act of pressing one thing on or into the surface of another; "he watched the impression of the seal on the hot wax"

n 1: the trait of forgetting or ignoring possible danger [syn: incaution, incautiousness] [ant: carefulness, caution, cautiousness]

n 1: the act of entering some territory or domain (often in large numbers); "the incursion of television into the American living room" 2: an attack that penetrates into enemy territory [syn: penetration, incursion] 3: the mistake of incurring liability or blame

n 1: the trait of being injudicious [syn: indiscretion, injudiciousness] 2: a petty misdeed [syn: indiscretion, peccadillo]

n 1: a general and progressive increase in prices; "in inflation everything gets more valuable except money" [syn: inflation, rising prices] [ant: deflation, disinflation] 2: (cosmology) a brief exponential expansion of the universe (faster than the speed of light) postulated to have occurred shortly after the big bang 3: lack of elegance as a consequence of being pompous and puffed up with vanity [syn: ostentation, ostentatiousness, pomposity, pompousness, pretentiousness, puffiness, splashiness, inflation] 4: the act of filling something with air [ant: deflation]

n 1: a message (spoken or written) that is introduced or inserted; "with the help of his friend's interpolations his story was eventually told"; "with many insertions in the margins" [syn: interpolation, insertion] 2: the act of putting one thing into another [syn: insertion, introduction, intromission]

n 1: an organization founded and united for a specific purpose [syn: institution, establishment] 2: an establishment consisting of a building or complex of buildings where an organization for the promotion of some cause is situated 3: a custom that for a long time has been an important feature of some group or society; "the institution of marriage"; "the institution of slavery"; "he had become an institution in the theater" 4: the act of starting something for the first time; introducing something new; "she looked forward to her initiation as an adult"; "the foundation of a new scientific society" [syn: initiation, founding, foundation, institution, origination, creation, innovation, introduction, instauration] 5: a hospital for mentally incompetent or unbalanced person [syn: mental hospital, psychiatric hospital, mental institution, institution, mental home, insane asylum, asylum]

n 1: a prayer to God on behalf of another person 2: the act of intervening (as to mediate a dispute, etc.); "it occurs without human intervention" [syn: intervention, intercession]

n 1: the act of combining one thing at intervals among other things; "the interspersion of illustrations in the text" [syn: interspersion, interspersal]

n 1: the condition of being folded inward or sheathed [syn: invagination, introversion] 2: the folding in of an outer layer so as to form a pocket in the surface; "the invagination of the blastula" [syn: invagination, introversion, intussusception, infolding] 3: (psychology) an introverted disposition; concern with one's own thoughts and feelings [ant: ambiversion, extraversion, extroversion]

n 1: the layer of air near the earth is cooler than an overlying layer 2: abnormal condition in which an organ is turned inward or inside out (as when the upper part of the uterus is pulled into the cervical canal after childbirth) 3: a chemical process in which the direction of optical rotation of a substance is reversed from dextrorotatory to levorotary or vice versa 4: (genetics) a kind of mutation in which the order of the genes in a section of a chromosome is reversed 5: the reversal of the normal order of words [syn: anastrophe, inversion] 6: (counterpoint) a variation of a melody or part in which ascending intervals are replaced by descending intervals and vice versa 7: a term formerly used to mean taking on the gender role of the opposite sex [syn: inversion, sexual inversion] 8: turning upside down; setting on end [syn: inversion, upending] 9: the act of turning inside out [syn: inversion, eversion, everting]

n 1: reduction in size of an organ or part (as in the return of the uterus to normal size after childbirth) 2: a long and intricate and complicated grammatical construction 3: marked by elaborately complex detail [syn: elaborateness, elaboration, intricacy, involution] 4: the act of sharing in the activities of a group; "the teacher tried to increase his students' engagement in class activities" [syn: engagement, participation, involvement, involution] [ant: non-engagement, non- involvement, nonparticipation] 5: the process of raising a quantity to some assigned power [syn: exponentiation, involution] 6: the action of enfolding something [syn: involution, enfolding]

n 1: doubt concerning two or more possible alternatives or courses of action; "his indecision was only momentary but the opportunity was lost" [syn: indecision, indecisiveness, irresolution] 2: the trait of being irresolute; lacking firmness of purpose [syn: irresoluteness, irresolution] [ant: firmness, firmness of purpose, resoluteness, resolution, resolve]

n 1: law enacted by a legislative body [syn: legislation, statute law] 2: the act of making or enacting laws [syn: legislation, legislating, lawmaking]

n 1: a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations; "pardon the expression" [syn: saying, expression, locution]

n 1: any of various cosmetic preparations that are applied to the skin 2: liquid preparation having a soothing or antiseptic or medicinal action when applied to the skin; "a lotion for dry skin" [syn: lotion, application]

n 1: the use of movements (especially of the hands) to communicate familiar or prearranged signals [syn: gesture, motion] 2: a natural event that involves a change in the position or location of something [syn: movement, motion] 3: a change of position that does not entail a change of location; "the reflex motion of his eyebrows revealed his surprise"; "movement is a sign of life"; "an impatient move of his hand"; "gastrointestinal motility" [syn: motion, movement, move, motility] 4: a state of change; "they were in a state of steady motion" [ant: lifelessness, motionlessness, stillness] 5: a formal proposal for action made to a deliberative assembly for discussion and vote; "he made a motion to adjourn"; "she called for the question" [syn: motion, question] 6: the act of changing location from one place to another; "police controlled the motion of the crowd"; "the movement of people from the farms to the cities"; "his move put him directly in my path" [syn: motion, movement, move] 7: an optical illusion of motion produced by viewing a rapid succession of still pictures of a moving object; "the cinema relies on apparent motion"; "the succession of flashing lights gave an illusion of movement" [syn: apparent motion, motion, apparent movement, movement] v 1: show, express or direct through movement; "He gestured his desire to leave" [syn: gesticulate, gesture, motion]

n 1: a vague idea in which some confidence is placed; "his impression of her was favorable"; "what are your feelings about the crisis?"; "it strengthened my belief in his sincerity"; "I had a feeling that she was lying" [syn: impression, feeling, belief, notion, opinion] 2: a general inclusive concept 3: an odd or fanciful or capricious idea; "the theatrical notion of disguise is associated with disaster in his stories"; "he had a whimsy about flying to the moon"; "whimsy can be humorous to someone with time to enjoy it" [syn: notion, whim, whimsy, whimsey] 4: (usually plural) small personal articles or clothing or sewing items; "buttons and needles are notions"

n 1: the act of contributing to the funds of a church or charity; "oblations for aid to the poor" [syn: oblation, offering] 2: the act of offering the bread and wine of the Eucharist [syn: Oblation, religious offering]

n 1: an irrational motive for performing trivial or repetitive actions, even against your will; "her compulsion to wash her hands repeatedly" [syn: compulsion, obsession] 2: an unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone [syn: obsession, fixation]

n 1: a large body of water constituting a principal part of the hydrosphere 2: anything apparently limitless in quantity or volume [syn: ocean, sea]

n 1: the act of subjugating by cruelty; "the tyrant's oppression of the people" [syn: oppression, subjugation] 2: the state of being kept down by unjust use of force or authority: "after years of oppression they finally revolted" 3: a feeling of being oppressed [syn: oppression, oppressiveness]

n 1: too much population

n 1: a strong feeling or emotion [syn: passion, passionateness] 2: the trait of being intensely emotional [syn: heat, warmth, passion] 3: something that is desired intensely; "his rage for fame destroyed him" [syn: rage, passion] 4: an irrational but irresistible motive for a belief or action [syn: mania, passion, cacoethes] 5: a feeling of strong sexual desire 6: any object of warm affection or devotion; "the theater was her first love"; "he has a passion for cock fighting"; [syn: love, passion] 7: the suffering of Jesus at the Crucifixion [syn: Passion, Passion of Christ]

n 1: the act of playing a percussion instrument 2: the act of exploding a percussion cap 3: the section of a band or orchestra that plays percussion instruments [syn: percussion section, percussion, rhythm section] 4: tapping a part of the body for diagnostic purposes [syn: percussion, pleximetry]

n 1: the act of persecuting (especially on the basis of race or religion)

n 1: a curve that reverses the direction of something; "the tendrils of the plant exhibited perversion"; "perversion also shows up in kinky telephone cords" 2: an aberrant sexual practice; [syn: perversion, sexual perversion] 3: the action of perverting something (turning it to a wrong use); "it was a perversion of justice"