Glossary: Words Common in the 17Th Century Meanings with Page Numbers

Eng. 3/British Lit

The Year of Wonders

Mrs. Frederick

Glossary: words common in the 17th century meanings with page numbers

naught 5 nothing

handfasted 7 to be married

boose 10 stall or crib for an ox or cow

dale 11 a valley

Papist 17 a Roman Catholic

journeyman 23 One who has fully served an apprenticeship in a trade or craft and is employed by another

croft small farm

crofter tenant

garth small piece of enclosed land next to a house, often a garden

chouse 34 to cheat or defraud

rutting 40 sexual activity, usually in animals

bavins 41 kindling for starting a fire

doxy 49 a sexually promiscuous woman

gib-cat 52 a male cat especially one which as been neutered

rake 57 an immoral person

bucolic the scene at the river in “Rat-Fall” countryside or country life; rustic

copse 67 a grove of trees

sennight 76 a week

cataplasm 81 a poultice, heated mixture spread on a cloth and applied to the skin to treat inflamed areas

palliative 83 relieving or soothing the symptoms of a disease or disorder without effecting a cure

sillion 86 thick body of soil that is turned over by the plough, here a grave

hirsel 87 sheep

clough 87 ravine

adit 89 an entrance to a mine

stemple 89 a crossbar of wood in a shaft, serving as a step

ley 95 grass or meadow-land

assize 96 a session of a court

carter 103 someone whose work is driving carts

albeit 110 although

quail 110 to shrink back in fear, to cower

succor 110 to aid and assist

shippon 126 a barn or stable

planet-struck 127 affected adversely by the supposed influence of a planet, stricken with terror

branks 130 a metal frame for the head and a bit to restrain the tongue, formerly used to punish scolds

pipkin 131 an earthenware cooking pot

posset 136 hot milk drink often with wine used for medicinal purposes

whisk and hands 136 a collar and cuffs

guttered 137 the fired guttered - reduced to ashes

Shrovetide 141 three days, Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, Shrove Tuesday, preceding Ash Wednesday

byre 143 a barn, chiefly for cows

fortnight 150 a period of 14 days or 2 weeks

halberd 151 16th century weapon an axlike blade and a steel spike mounted on the end of a long shaft

scion 151 a descendant or heir

wort 154 a plant

spud 157 a sharp spadelike tool used for rooting or digging out weeds

purl 157 warm ale flavoured with bitters and spiked with whisky or brandy or mixed with sweetened milk

kine 158 plural for cow

aught 158 anything whatever

caudle 162 warm drink wine or ale mixed with sugar, eggs, bread, spices, sometimes given to ill persons

draught 163 a portion of liquid to be drunk, esp. a dose of medicine

clemmed 163 starved or famished

alms 164 money or goods given as charity to the poor

alchemist 164 deals in alchemy the discovery of the panacea, and the preparation of the elixir of longevity

tannin 164 derived from the bark and fruit of many plants, coffee and tea contain tannic acid

noncomformist 166 another name for the Quaker religion

burning drake 170 a comet or shooting star

cairn 184 mound of stones erected as a memorial or marker

jabot 186 ornamental cascade of ruffles or frills down the front of a shirt, blouse, or dress

Among Those That Go Down to the Pit: mining terms

Peakrill folk people who worked in the mines especially in Derbyshire

delving to dig the ground, as with a spade

buddling washing crushed ore with running water to flush away impurities

trews close-fitting trousers

jerkin short, close-fitting, often sleeveless coat or jacket, usually of leather

fathom unit of length equal to 6 feet

fother of ore a wagonload; a load of any sort

Body of the Mines all miners who make up a sort of union or association

stocks and cucking stool 104 means of public punishment by social humiliation. A cucking stool was a

chair into which the victim could be tied and exposed at her door or the site of her offence.

nethers 205 could be underwear or her buttocks

gainsay 206 to deny or oppose, especially by contradiction

manikin 208 a mannequin

cat of nine tails 209 'the cat', a multi-tailed whipping device originating in the British Royal Navy

keel-hauling 210 the sailor was tied to a rope thrown overboard on one side of the ship, dragged

under the ship's keel to the other side. The ship’s hull was often covered in marine growth resulting in cuts and other injuries.

thruppece/tuppence 213 3 or 2 pence or pennies

tups 216 mating

fourscore 217 a score is 20 so 4x20 = 80

farrier 218 blacksmith

turve 222 turf

surplice 256 liturgical garment tunic white linen, reaching to the knee or to the ankles, with wide sleeves

spavined 271 horse with swollen joints

tempered 272 to harden or strengthen

carrack 299 large galleon – sailing ship –used in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries

pig 299 a block of metal, probably lead in this novel

Barbary 300 region of northern Africa on the Mediterranean coast between Egypt and the Atlantic

Ocean. Settled by Berbers conquered by Arabs in the 7th century a.d. From the 16th to the

19th century it was used as a base by pirates who raided ships in the Mediterranean Sea .

mussalman 300 a Muslim mullah clergy

Bey 301 Turkish, originally a word for chieftain

Salaam 303 peace