Two closely related meanings of the verb conflate are “to confuse,” i.e. “to fail to differentiate,” and “to blend or bring together.”
// Be careful not to conflate gossip with real news.
// The movie conflates documentary footage and dramatized reenactments so seamlessly and ingeniously that viewers may not know what is real and what is not.
a period of time when there is no electricity in a building or area
The power outage left us in the dark for five hours. [=we did not have electrical power for five hours]
a soft murmuring or rustling sound; whisper.
Axiomatic is a formal adjective that describes something—usually a statement—that is understood as obviously true, such that it is or should be taken for granted.
// It is axiomatic that successful athletes are not just talented, but have put in years of dedicated training.
the act of departing from the right, normal, or usual course.
strictly required, as by etiquette, usage, or fashion.
A gargoyle is a strange or grotesque human or animal figure that sticks out from the roof of a building (such as a church) and is used to cause rainwater to flow away from the building's sides.
// Some of the exchange students were creeped out by all the gargoyles they passed during their walking tour of the old European town.
a person of puzzling or contradictory character.
To mangle something is to ruin it due to carelessness or a lack of skill. Mangle can also mean “to injure or damage something or someone severely by cutting, tearing, or crushing.”
// Half-remembering a joke from her favorite sitcom, Ally mangled the punch line, but honestly, this made it even funnier.
to gather, summon, rouse (often followed by up).