a. the practice of removing spikes, as from garden plants.
submitted by sjmaxq
chosen by etaoin

b. the act of removing a deacon or sexton from office
submitted by flatlander
chosen by maahey, musick, sjmaxq, dodyskin


c. marriage custom found in certain African and Pacific tribes where the preferred wife for a man is his mother's brother's daughter
submitted by bingley
chosen by consuelo, annastrophic


d. the practice of divining the future by examining the entrails of sacrificed animals.
submitted by annastrophic and reality
chosen by whitman o'neill, wofahulicodoc, coffeebean


e. n. in time of war, leadership by a government-in-exile
submitted by wofahulicodoc
chosen by belmarduk


f. the altered mental condition induced by hallucinogens.
submitted by maahey
chosen by flatlander, faldage

Annastrophic's submitted definition was: An ancient Greek practice of divining the future by examining a sacrificial animal's entrails.

However, the book where I came across this word was about Mesopotamia so I took the liberty of generalising the definition. I believe the same practice among the Romans is usually referred to as haruspicy.

Bingley

Bingley