attrition perish treacherous unrest waver

attrition

at·tri·tion /əˈtrɪʃən/noun [uncountable] formal

the process of gradually destroying your enemy or making them weak by attacking them continuously:
- a war of attrition
when people leave a company or course of study and are not replaced:
- Staff reductions could be achieved through attrition and early retirements.

per·ish /ˈperɪʃ/ verb

[intransitive] formal or literary to die, especially in a terrible or sudden way:
- Hundreds perished when the ship went down.
[intransitive and transitive] if rubber or leather perishes, it decay

treach·e·rous /ˈtretʃərəs/adjective

someone who is treacherous cannot be trusted because they are not loyal and secretly intend to harm you:
- a sly and treacherous woman
- a treacherous plot to overthrow the leader
ground, roads, weather conditions etc that are treacherous are particularly dangerous because you cannot see the dangers very easily:
- treacherous mountain roads
- Strong winds and loose rocks made climbing treacherous.

un·rest /ʌnˈrest/noun [uncountable]

a political situation in which people protest or behave violently:

political/social/industrial etc unrest

The protests were the biggest show of social unrest since the government came to power.

wa·ver /ˈweɪvə $ -ər/verb [intransitive]

to become weaker or less certain:
- Her voice wavered uncertainly.
- The students’ attention id not waver.
waver in
- Harris never wavered in his loyalty.
waver from
- We were determined not to waver from our goals.
to not make a decision because you have doubts:
- Shareholders who were wavering met the directors.
waver between something and something
- The party wavered between free trade and protectionism.
to move gently in several different directions:
- The candle flame wavered, throwing shadows on the wall