a grant (by a sovereign or a legislative body) of resources to maintain a dependent member of a ruling family; "bishoprics were received as appanages for the younger sons of great families"
any customary and rightful perquisite appropriate to your station in life; "for thousands of years the chair was an appanage of state and dignity rather than an article of ordinary use"
form or compose; "This money is my only income"; "The stone wall was the backdrop for the performance"; "These constitute my entire belonging"; "The children made up the chorus"; "This sum represents my entire income for a year"; "These few men comprise his entire army"
an unstable construction with playing cards; "he built three levels of his cardcastle before it collapsed"
a speculative scheme that depends on unstable factors that the planner cannot control; "his proposal was nothing but a house of cards"; "a real estate bubble"