"war times"
a reference to the Napoleonic Wars, 1799-1815, which places the setting of Part One in the early nineteenth century
'bate
abate
'cute
acute or clever
'sizes
assizes, that is, meetings of a county's most important court, held several times a year
addled
rotten
anthim
anthem, a hymn of praise (in this case reserved for Christmas worship)
arrears
the state of being behind in payments
assurance of salvation
a condition of being sure about one's religious salvation, especially among Calvinists who are of the "elect" (the people chosen by God for salvation)
Athanasian Creed
a set of Christian beliefs, commonly accepted today, written by Athanasius as a refutation of heresy
bakhus
a structure containing a large oven for general use
band-boxes
boxes filled with items necessary for a dance, tied with a band
beauty born of murmuring sound
a line from Wordsworth's "Three Years She Grew"
blowsy
disheveled
bossed
embossed
chary
stingy
christened
baptized, which includes being named (in Marner's religion adults, not infants, were baptized, given adherence to believers' baptism)
city of destruction
a city such as Sodom or Gomorrah, which God destroys in the Old Testament due to the wickedness of their townspeople. Angels guided Sodom's only virtuous inhabitants, Lot and his family, out of the city just in time.
clave
clung to, was faithful to
clew
clue; also a ball of thread or yarn
coiffure
hair-style
collogue
French, to conspire, as in "collusion"
colloquies
conversations, esp. formal ones
colly
to make "coaly," that is, black as coal
Commission of the Peace
a legal body overseeing justices of the peace
cravat
necktie
cupidity
lust, esp. for wealth
dame school
the local school, usually run by women
David and Jonathan
two men who shared a devoted friendship in the Bible. Jonathan was the son of King Saul, and David was the future king. See 1 Samuel 18.
distrain
seize property as settlement for a debt
drawing o' lots in the Bible
The drawing of lots occurs several times in the Old Testament as a way to discern God's will in a decision.
drenching
administering of medicine
dropsy
an ailment characterized by the accumulation of fluid in the body
Durhams
shorthorn cattle
ear-droppers
Priscilla's facetious term for earrings
efficacy
effectivenenss
entail
legal restriction over the inheritance of property
epigram
a brief, witty, often paradoxical statement
exiguity
scantiness
familiars
companions; also, witches' animal totems, like the black cat
famous ring
a reference to a story in the Contes des Fees, by Mme. Leprince de Beaumont (1785)
farrier
one who shoes and doctors horses
fervid
fervent
fetishism
superstitious worship or belief in an object, such as the hearth
filberts
hazelnuts
foxes' brushes
fox tails
freaks
unnatural acts
furze
a spiny shrub
fustian
coarse, sturdy cloth of cotton and flax
gods of the hearth
In ancient religions, especially that of Ancient Rome, every home was said to have a protective deity centered on the hearth.
hack
a hackney, that is, a light English saddle-horse
hedge-row
a row of vegetation held in place by stakes
hogsheads
large barrels or casks
hornpipe
a lively dance
horseblock
post for tying horses
I.H.S.
abbreviation of Latin words referring to Jesus as savior of humans
jacks
skewers on which to rotate meat
joseph
a long riding coat
King Alfred
The famous ninth-century King of England who drove out the Vikings
King George
George III, 1760-1820
knots in the hands
gout
laudanum
a liquid form of opium
leeching and poulticing
applying leeches or poultices to the unwell, in common medical practice before the 20th century
lief
willingly
listing
enlisting as a common soldier (rather than paying an officer's commission)
Lunnon
London
make free
act irresponsibly
Mant's Bible
A multi-volume Bible, with commentary, published in 1816 (which places Part Two of the novel after the Neapolitan Wars).
mawkin
a gangly woman, with lower-class connotations
Michaelmas
a church holiday, held on September 29, celebrating the archangel Michael
moithered
befuddled
mushed
made miserable, misused
nattiness
neatness
nolo episcopari
Latin for "I don't want to be a bishop." Said as a ceremonial display of humility by those about to be ordained as bishops.
Old Harry
rural nickname for the devil
orts
scraps
ostler
a person in charge of horses, a stableman
outwork
fortification constructed for defense (in this case, Mrs. Winthrop)
pettitoes
pig's feet prepared as food
phial
vial
piert
lively
pillions
carriage seats
pocket-pistol
flask
poor-rate
tax levied for the poor
provident
frugal, attending to the future
putting the haft for the handle
akin to "putting the cart before the horse"
ratepayer
one who pays property taxes
rectory
parish minister's house
rickets
a deforming bone disease usually found in children
ride to cover
ride to the area where a hunt is to take place
ringing the pigs
fitting rings into pigs' snouts, which makes it painful for them to root
scarify
prick with many incisions
scrag
piece of lean body meat
shell-less
disembodied
shilly-shally
wishy-washy
Sir Roger de Coverley
a lively tune that marks the beginning of a dance
smock-frocks
long, loose outer garments
sodger
soldier
speaking fair
speaking well of, behaving well towards
springe
spry
strapped
stright-jacketed
summat warm
"something warm," that is, liquor, which makes one feel warm
surplice
loose-fitting white robe worn by clergy
sword hanging over him
a reference to the sword of Damocles, which hung over Damocles' head by a single hair while he feasted to remind him of the fragility of power
tale
in weaving, the whole of a piece of work
throstle
a thrush (also a machine used to spin fibers, like a loom)
tinder-box
a metal box for keeping flammable materials dry
toilettes
gowns, accoutrements
tow'rt
toward
transported
shipped to a penal colony
treadmill
something monotonous
treddles
pedals
turn-tail cur
cowardly dog
turnpike
toll-road
unexampled
unparalleled, unique
unwonted
unusual
utensil
tool
vallying
valuing
vicinage
vicinity
wainscot
veneer of wood paneling applied to the walls of a room
whist
a card game like bridge
yarbs
dialect for herbs
