Vocabulary

debenture

1. A certificate or voucher acknowledging a debt.
2. An unsecured bond issued by a civil or governmental corporation or agency and backed only by the credit standing of the issuer.
3. A customhouse certificate providing for the payment of a drawback.

mameluke
1. A member of a former military caste, originally composed of slaves from Turkey, that held the Egyptian throne from about 1250 until 1517 and remained powerful until 1811.