by Homer
sixpence NOUN a sixpence was half of a shilling if she had only a shilling in the world, she would be very lilkely to give away sixpence of it (Emma by Jane Austen)
slavey NOUN the word slavey was used when there was only one servant in a house or boarding-house–so she had to perform all the duties of a larger staff Two distinct knocks, sir, will produce the slavey at any time (The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens)
slender ADJ weak In slender accents of sweet verse (The Prelude by William Wordsworth)
slop-shops NOUN slop-shops were shops where cheap ready-made clothes were sold. They mainly sold clothes to sailors Accordingly, I took the jacket off, that I might learn to do without it; and carrying it under my arm, began a tour of inspection of the various slop-shops. (David Copperfield by Charles Dickens)
sluggard NOUN a lazy person “Stand up and repeat ‘’Tis the voice of the sluggard,’” said the Gryphon. (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll)
smallpox NOUN smallpox is a serious infectious disease by telling the men we had smallpox aboard (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
smalls NOUN smalls are short trousers It is difficult for a large-headed, small-eyed youth, of lumbering make and heavy countenance, to look dignified under any circumstances; but it is more especially so, when superadded to these personal attractions are a red nose and yellow smalls (Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens)
sneeze-box NOUN a box for snuff was called a sneeze-box because sniffing snuff makes the user sneeze To think of Jack Dawkins—lummy Jack—the Dodger—the Artful Dodger—going abroad for a common twopenny-halfpenny sneeze-box! (Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens)
snorted VERB slept Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den? (The Good-Morrow by John Donne)
snuff NOUN snuff is tobacco in powder form which is taken by sniffing as he thrust his thumb and forefinger into the proffered snuff-box of the undertaker: which was an ingenious little model of a patent coffin. (Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens)
soliloquized VERB to soliloquize is when an actor in a play speaks to himself or herself rather than to another actor “A new servitude! There is something in that,” I soliloquized (mentally, be it understood; I did not talk aloud) (Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë)
sough NOUN a sough is a drain or a ditch as you may have noticed the sough that runs from the marshes (Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë)
spirits NOUN a spirit is the nonphysical part of a person which is believed to remain alive after their death that I might raise up spirits when I please (Doctor Faustus 1.5 by Christopher Marlowe)
spleen NOUN here spleen means a type of sadness or depression which was thought to only affect the wealthy yet here I could plainly discover the true seeds of spleen (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift) NOUN irritability and low spirits Adieu to disappointment and spleen (Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen)
spondulicks NOUN spondulicks is a slang word which means money not for all his spondulicks and as much more on top of it (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
stalled of VERB to be stalled of something is to be bored with it I’m stalled of doing naught (Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë)
stanchion NOUN a stanchion is a pole or bar that stands upright and is used as a building support and slid down a stanchion (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
stang NOUN stang is another word for pole which was an old measurement These fields were intermingled with woods of half a stang (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
starlings NOUN a starling is a wall built around the pillars that support a bridge to protect the pillars There were states of the tide when, having been down the river, I could not get back through the eddy-chafed arches and starlings of old London Bridge (Great Expectations by Charles Dickens)
startings NOUN twitching or night-time movements of the body with midnight’s startings (On His Mistress by John Donne)
stomacher NOUN a panel at the front of a dress but send her aunt the pattern of a stomacher (Emma by Jane Austen)
stoop VERB swoop Once a kite hovering over the garden made a stoop at me (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
succedaneum NOUN a succedaneum is a substitute But as a succedaneum (The Prelude by William Wordsworth)
suet NOUN a hard animal fat used in cooking and your jaws are too weak For anything tougher than suet (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll)
sultry ADJ sultry weather is hot and damp. Here sultry means unpleasant or risky for it was getting pretty sultry for us (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
summerset NOUN summerset is an old spelling of somersault. If someone does a somersault, they turn over completely in the air I have seen him do the summerset (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
supper NOUN supper was a light meal taken late in the evening. The main meal was dinner which was eaten at four or five in the afternoon and the supper table was all set out (Emma by Jane Austen)
surfeits VERB to surfeit in something is to have far too much of it, or to overindulge in it to an unhealthy degree He surfeits upon cursed necromancy (Doctor Faustus chorus by Christopher Marlowe)
surtout NOUN a surtout is a long close-fitting overcoat He wore a long black surtout reaching nearly to his ankles (The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens)
swath NOUN swath is the width of corn cut by a scythe while thy hook Spares the next swath (Ode to Autumn by John Keats)
sylvan ADJ sylvan means belonging to the woods Sylvan historian (Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats)
taction NOUN taction means touch. This means that the people had to be touched on the mouth or the ears to get their attention without being roused by some external taction upon the organs of speech and hearing (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
Tag and Rag and Bobtail PHRASE the riff-raff, or lower classes. Used in an insulting way “No,” said he; “not till it got about that there was no protection on the premises, and it come to be considered dangerous, with convicts and Tag and Rag and Bobtail going up and down.” (Great Expectations by Charles Dickens)
tallow NOUN tallow is hard animal fat that is used to make candles and soap and a lot of tallow candles (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
tan VERB to tan means to beat or whip and if I catch you about that school I’ll tan you good (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
tanyard NOUN the tanyard is part of a tannery, which is a place where leather is made from animal skins hid in the old tanyard (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
tarry ADJ tarry means the colour of tar or black his tarry pig-tail (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
thereof PHRASE from there By all desires which thereof did ensue (On His Mistress by John Donne)
thick with, be PHRASE if you are “thick with someone” you are very close, sharing secrets–it is often used to describe people who are planning something secret Hasn’t he been thick with Mr Heathcliff lately? (Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë)
thimble NOUN a thimble is a small cover used to protect the finger while sewing The paper had been sealed in several places by a thimble (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
thirtover ADJ thirtover is an old word which means obstinate or that someone is very determined to do want they want and can not be persuaded to do something in another way I have been living on in a thirtover, lackadaisical way (Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy)
timbrel NOUN timbrel is a tambourine What pipes and timbrels? (Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats)
tin NOUN tin is slang for money/cash Then the plain question is, an’t it a pity that this state of things should continue, and how much better would it be for the old gentleman to hand over a reasonable amount of tin, and make it all right and comfortable (The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens)
tincture NOUN a tincture is a medicine made with alcohol and a small amount of a drug with ink composed o
f a cephalic tincture (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
tithe NOUN a tithe is a tax paid to the church and held farms which, speaking from a spiritual point of view, paid highly-desirable tithes (Silas Marner by George Eliot)
towardly ADJ a towardly child is dutiful or obedient and a towardly child (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
toys NOUN trifles are things which are considered to have little importance, value, or significance purchase my life from them bysome bracelets, glass rings, and other toys (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
tract NOUN a tract is a religious pamphlet or leaflet and Joe Harper got a hymn-book and a tract (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
train-oil NOUN train-oil is oil from whale blubber The train-oil and gunpowder were shoved out of sight in a minute (Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë)
tribulation NOUN tribulation means the suffering or difficulty you experience in a particular situation Amy was learning this distinction through much tribulation (Little Women by Louisa May Alcott)
trivet NOUN a trivet is a three-legged stand for resting a pot or kettle a pocket-knife in his right; and a pewter pot on the trivet (Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens)
trot line NOUN a trot line is a fishing line to which a row of smaller fishing lines are attached when he got along I was hard at it taking up a trot line (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
troth NOUN oath or pledge I wonder, by my troth (The Good-Morrow by John Donne)
truckle NOUN a truckle bedstead is a bed that is on wheels and can be slid under another bed to save space It rose under my hand, and the door yielded. Looking in, I saw a lighted candle on a table, a bench, and a mattress on a truckle bedstead. (Great Expectations by Charles Dickens)
trump NOUN a trump is a good, reliable person who can be trusted This lad Hawkins is a trump, I perceive (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
tucker NOUN a tucker is a frilly lace collar which is worn around the neck Whereat Scrooge’s niece’s sister—the plump one with the lace tucker: not the one with the roses—blushed. (A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens)
tureen NOUN a large bowl with a lid from which soup or vegetables are served Waiting in a hot tureen! (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll)
turnkey NOUN a prison officer; jailer As we came out of the prison through the lodge, I found that the great importance of my guardian was appreciated by the turnkeys, no less than by those whom they held in charge. (Great Expectations by Charles Dickens)
turnpike NOUN the upkeep of many roads of the time was paid for by tolls (fees) collected at posts along the road. There was a gate to prevent people travelling further along the road until the toll had been paid. Traddles, whom I have taken up by appointment at the turnpike, presents a dazzling combination of cream colour and light blue; and both he and Mr. Dick have a general effect about them of being all gloves. (David Copperfield by Charles Dickens)
twas PHRASE it was twas but a dream of thee (The Good-Morrow by John Donne)
tyrannized VERB tyrannized means bullied or forced to do things against their will for people would soon cease coming there to be tyrannized over and put down (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
’un NOUN ’un is a slang term for one–usually used to refer to a person She’s been thinking the old ’un (David Copperfield by Charles Dickens)
undistinguished ADJ undiscriminating or incapable of making a distinction between good and bad things their undistinguished appetite to devour everything (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
use NOUN habit Though use make you apt to kill me (The Flea by John Donne)
vacant ADJ vacant usually means empty, but here Wordsworth uses it to mean carefree To vacant musing, unreproved neglect (The Prelude by William Wordsworth)
valetudinarian NOUN one too concerned with his or her own health. for having been a valetudinarian all his life (Emma by Jane Austen)
vamp VERB vamp means to walk or tramp to somewhere Well, vamp on to Marlott, will ’ee (Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy)
vapours NOUN the vapours is an old term which means unpleasant and strange thoughts, which make the person feel nervous and unhappy and my head was full of vapours (Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe)
vegetables NOUN here vegetables means plants the other vegetables are in the same proportion (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
venturesome ADJ if you are venturesome you are willing to take risks he must be either hopelessly stupid or a venturesome fool (Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë)
verily ADV verily means really or truly though I believe verily (Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe)
vicinage NOUN vicinage is an area or the residents of an area and to his thought the whole vicinage was haunted by her. (Silas Marner by George Eliot)
victuals NOUN victuals means food grumble a little over the victuals (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
vintage NOUN vintage in this context means wine Oh, for a draught of vintage! (Ode on a Nightingale by John Keats)
virtual ADJ here virtual means powerful or strong had virtual faith (The Prelude by William Wordsworth)
vittles NOUN vittles is a slang word which means food There never was such a woman for givin’ away vittles and drink (Little Women by Louisa May Alcott)
voided straight PHRASE voided straight is an old expression which means emptied immediately see the rooms be voided straight (Doctor Faustus 4.1 by Christopher Marlowe)
wainscot NOUN wainscot is wood panel lining in a room so wainscoted means a room lined with wooden panels in the dark wainscoted parlor (Silas Marner by George Eliot)
walking the plank PHRASE walking the plank was a punishment in which a prisoner would be made to walk along a plank on the side of the ship and fall into the sea, where they would be abandoned about hanging, and walking the plank (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
want VERB want means to be lacking or short of The next thing wanted was to get the picture framed (Emma by Jane Austen)
wanting ADJ wanting means lacking or missing wanting two fingers of the left hand (Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson)
wanting, I was not PHRASE I was not wanting means I did not fail I was not wanting to lay a foundation of religious knowledge in his mind (Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe)
ward NOUN a ward is, usually, a child who has been put under the protection of the court or a guardian for his or her protection I call the Wards in Jarndcye. They are caged up with all the others. (Bleak House by Charles Dickens)
waylay VERB to waylay someone is to lie in wait for them or to intercept them I must go up the road and waylay him (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
weazen NOUN weazen is a slang word for throat. It actually means shrivelled You with a uncle too! Why, I knowed you at Gargery’s when you was so small a wolf that I could have took your weazen betwixt this finger and thumb and chucked you away dead (Great Expectations by Charles Dickens)
wery ADV very Be wery careful o’ vidders all your life (Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens) See wibrated
wherry NOUN wherry is a small swift rowing boat for one person It was flood tide when Daniel Quilp sat himself down in the wherry to cross to the opposite shore. (The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens)
whether PREP whether means which of the two in this example we came in full view of a great island or continent (for we knew not whether) (Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift)
whetstone NOUN a whetstone is a stone used to sharpen knives and other tools I dropped pap’s whetstone there too (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
wibrated VERB in Dickens’s use of the English language “w” often replaces “v” when he is reporting speech. So here “wibrated” means “vibrated”. In Pickwick Papers a judge asks Sam Weller (who constantly confuses the two letters) “Do you spell it with a ‘v’ or a ‘w’?” to which Weller replies “That depends
upon the taste and fancy of the speller, my Lord” There are strings … in the human heart that had better not be wibrated (Barnaby Rudge by Charles Dickens)
wicket NOUN a wicket is a little door in a larger entrance Having rested here, for a minute or so, to collect a good burst of sobs and an imposing show of tears and terror, he knocked loudly at the wicket (Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens)
without CONJ without means unless You don’t know about me, without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
wittles NOUN wittles is a slang word which means food I live on broken wittles–and I sleep on the coals (David Copperfield by Charles Dickens) See wibrated
woo VERB courts or forms a proper relationship with before it woo (The Flea by John Donne)
words, to have PHRASE if you have words with someone you have a disagreement or an argument I do not want to have words with a young thing like you. (Black Beauty by Anna Sewell)
workhouse NOUN workhouses were places where the homeless were given food and a place to live in return for doing very hard work And the Union workhouses? demanded Scrooge. Are they still in operation? (A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens)
yawl NOUN a yawl is a small boat kept on a bigger boat for short trips. Yawl is also the name for a small fishing boat She sent out her yawl, and we went aboard (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
yeomanry NOUN the yeomanry was a collective term for the middle classes involved in agriculture The yeomanry are precisely the order of people with whom I feel I can have nothing to do (Emma by Jane Austen)
yonder ADV yonder means over there all in the same second we seem to hear low voices in yonder! (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain)
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