Truffle oil is often used as a lower cost and convenient substitute for truffles; to provide flavoring; or to enhance the flavor and aroma of truffles in cooking.

Johnston was a "distinct individual; through all the heat and bustle of the game he was never seen without a blade of grass or some convenient substitute protruding from his mouth."

Exile, which Mr. Dorfman termed a "convenient substitute for death," has been widely used against opponents of the Pinochet regime since it came to power in 1973 in a coup in which President Allende was killed.

Other applications may operate in dangerous or expensive fluids so the testing is carried out in a more convenient substitute.

Considered a convenient substitute to chutneys, it is usually available in most households in Tamil Nadu.

The Philistines in the narrative of 1 Samuel have no image of the Israelites' god, Yahweh, but they understand, or think they understand, the significance of the ark, and regard it as a convenient substitute.

Officer Sullivan also showed her that in the absence of a wall to put a suspect's hands against, the horse (when trained to cooperate) makes a convenient substitute.

Even National Geographic praises our local scene: "Central Park isn't just a convenient urban substitute for a 'real' birding trip," it says on its Web site, www.nationalgeographic.com.

This is causing Americans to feel indignant, particularly during an election year, in which indignation is often a convenient substitute for thought.

If, as Ariel Dorfman put it, exile is a "a convenient substitute for death," then Mr. Dorfman has been restored to life.