"A window that opens like a door" (OED).

"Difficult... opposite of obvious and easy" (OED).

"To bind; to enchain; to tie" (OED).

"temper of mind," (OED).

In other words, "who were lawyers." Edward's referencing the barrister's chambers in the Temple, an area of London.

These dashes don't have any grammatical meaning. Instead, Austen was notorious for her erratic punctuation. These dashes are her way of strengthening the emotional impact of whatever she just wrote.

A reference to a 1779 novel, Columella, or The Distressed Anchoret, a colloquial tale by Richard Graves. Susan Allen Ford points out how this rather esoteric reference to literature makes Elinor more alike her mother than previously indicated.

"Smart" here meaning fashionable or trendy. The church isn't fashionable enough for Edward's family, but the army is too much so for him.

An example of an early 19th century cottage, this one being the birthplace of author Thomas Hardy

A 1799 income tax put a particular strain on the middle and upper classes at this time. For Edward, being idly rich could also be beneficial. His options for rewarding work are few.