diapason bass accompaniment to a melody
diaper towel
dich (?) do it
Dickon Dick (Richard)
Dido Queen of Carthage, loved and abandoned by Aeneas (seeAeneas)
diet sb. prescribed course; food; v. prescribe a course for, condition
difference distinguishing mark in heraldry; distinction; variety; variance, strife
diffidence doubt, mistrust
digression deviation (from right)
dilate extend; relate or set out extensively
dildo artificial phallus, frequently mentioned in ballads
dilemma argument which always catches an opponent out
diluculo surgere‘to rise early [is very healthy]’ (Lat., proverbial)
dint impression, force
directitude mistake for (?) discreditude (disrepute); (?) dejectitude (misfortune)
Dis Pluto (seePluto)
disable disqualify, disparage
disanimate dishearten
disappointed unprepared
disaster sign of ill-omen, as seen in the stars
disbranch break off, as from a tree trunk
discandy melt, thaw (cf.candied)
discase undress (cf.case)
discernings intellect
discomfortable having no word of comfort
discommend disapprove of
discontent discontented person, malcontent
discourse sb. talk, conversation; process or faculty of reasoning; v. talk
discover expose, reveal; distinguish
discovery revelation; exploration, reconnaissance
disdained disdainful
disease sb. unease, distress; v. make uneasy, trouble
disedg’d satisfied, with respect to appetite
disfurnish deprive, leave with nothing
disgracious lacking grace, unpleasant
disguise masque; wild drunkenness
dishabited dislodged, stripped
dishonest immodest
dishonesty unchastity
dislike displease; disapprove
disliken disguise
dislimn break up, smudge
disme tenth part
dismission dismissal
dismount (of swords) unsheathe; (of guns) lower
disorbed dislocated from its sphere
dispark put (parkland) to other uses
dispatch settle, conclude; kill; bereave, deprive
dispiteous merciless
disponge be sponged, drip
dispose sb. disposal; disposition; v. compose, make terms
disposer one who can do what he or she will with another
disposition arrangements
dispropertied dispossessed
dispursed disbursed, distributed
disputable disputatious, argumentative
dissembly Dogberry’s word for ‘assembly’
distain make colourless; stain, defile
distance (in fencing) correct space between the opponents
distaste be distasteful; make distasteful; find distasteful
distemper sb. lack of even temper, lack of balance; v. upset, disturb
distemperature constitutional disorder in the mind or body
distinctly separately, individually
distinguishment distinction
distract adj. separate; deranged, confused; v. divide; derange, confuse
distrain confiscate
distressful gained by misery and toil
dive-dapper dabchick, little grebe
divers several, various, different; perverse, evil
dividant separable, different
divided unfinished, broken
dividual separable
division musical notes that elaborate upon a basic melody; military arrangement
divulge openly proclaim
do him dead kill him
doctrine lesson
document lesson
doff take off; put off, dismiss
dog-apes baboons
dogged dog-like, cruel
doit small coin
dole grief; share; happy man be his dole = may his lot be that of a happy man (i.e. good luck to him)
dollar silver coin
domineer revel, feast
dominical red letter used to mark Sundays in almanacs
dominie schoolmaster
doom sb. judgement; day of judgement; v. judge, sentence
dotant senile person
double voucher testimony given by two independent parties
double-fatal fatal in two ways, as with the yew which was both poisonous and used for making bows
double-man supernatural apparition
doublet and hose vest and breeches (basic Elizabethan male dress)
doubt sb. suspicion; fear; v. suspect; fear
dout extinguish
dowlas coarse linen from Brittany
dowl one of the filaments or fibres of a feather
down-gyved fallen down and resembling gyves (fetters)
down-roping falling in long strings
dowsets testicles
doxy female beggar
drab strumpet
drachma silver coin
draff pig-swill
draught sink, privy
draw withdraw; receive; drain; draw dry-foot = hunt by the scent
drawer tapster, waiter
dress prepare; adorn, cultivate
dribbling (in archery) weakly shot, ineffective
drift sb. intention, purpose; shower; adj. driving
drollery puppet show; comic painting
drum rallying-point
drumble be sluggish, lag
dry-beat bruise, beat
ducat gold coin
ducdame ostensibly nonsense but possibly Cymric (‘Come to me’) or Italian (‘Lead him from me’)
dudgeon haft, handle
due endue, grace
duello correct practice of duelling (Ital.)
dumb-discoursive quietly seductive
dump tune, usually melancholy
dumps low spirits
dun sb. horse; log dragged out of an imaginary mire as a Christmas game; adj. dull grey- brown; dun’s the mouse = be still
dung earth, the physical world
dupp’d opened
durance durable cloth or nature; imprisonment
each, at end to end
eager sharp, bitter
ean (of sheep) give birth
eanling new-born lamb
ear v. hear; plough; by th’ears = at odds; in the ear = in earshot; shake your ears = behave like the ass you are
earing ploughing
earn grieve
earnest initial payment of money as a deposit
earthed laid in a grave
easy easily won over; small, light
eche augment, increase
ecstasy deranged mental state; unconsciousness
Edward shovel-board shilling from the reign of Edward VI later used in shovel-board (see shove-groat)
effectual conclusive
effigies likeness
effuse effusion
eftest Dogberry’s word for ‘aptest’
eftsoons afterwards
egall equal
egg worthless thing or person
egma Costard’s word for ‘enigma’
Ego et Rex meus I and my king (Lat.)
egregious outstanding, remarkable
eisel, eisell vinegar
eke also
elbow thrust back; rub the elbow = express pleasure
eld old age; people of a previous time
elder-gun pop-gun used for firing paper pellets
elect sb. people specially chosen; v. choose, accept
element one of the four universal substances (earth, water, air, fire); sky
elf sb. fairy, spirit; v. tangle or mat together
elf-locks hair tangled or matted together
Elizium, Elysium abode of the virtuous after death in the
ancient world
elm tree used to train vines
emballing taking up the orb, a symbol of royalty
embare make bare
embarquements embargos, hindrances
embattail, embattle prepare for battle
embayed sheltered in a bay
emblaze set forth, as in heraldry
embossed hunted down, exhausted; bulging, swollen
embounded enclosed
embowel disembowel
embrasure embrace
eminence superiority, high rank
Emmanuel‘God with us’, formula used to begin letters and documents
empale surround, encircle
empatron be patron to
emperial imperial
empery empire, sovereignty
empiric quack doctor
empiricutic characteristic of quack medicine
emulation envious rivalry
emulator petty rival, disparager
emulous envious
enciel’d screened
encompassment roundabout course
enew (in falconry) drive (the bird) into water
enfeoff surrender (property)
engage bind; pledge as security
engine plot, device; instrument; military machine
engineer, enginer military engineer, sapper
englut devour
engraffed, engrafted attached; ingrained
engross fatten; amass, gather; monopolize; write large
enlard fatten
enlarge set free
enlargement liberty; liberation
enormous monstrous
enow enough
enround encircle
ensconce hide, tuck away
enseamed greasy (cf.seam)
ensear dry up, wither
enskied placed in heaven
ensteeped under water
entertain sb. entertainment; v. treat; employ; maintain
entertainment treatment; employment
entitled, entituled called; having a claim
entreat sb. entertainment; v. negotiate, ask; treat
entreatment negotiation
envy sb. malice, spite; v. bear ill will towards
enwheel encircle
Ephesian revelling companion
epicurism gluttony
epithet, epitheton adjective, expression
equal balanced, just, fair
equinox time of the year when day and night are of equal length
Ercles Hercules (seeHercules)
Erebus place of darkness on the way to the underworld
erection Quickly’s word for
‘direction’ (instruction)
ergo therefore (Lat.)
eringo root of the sea-holly, a delicacy and aphrodisiac
erst once, formerly
escot provide for
esperance hope; the motto of the Percy family
espial spy
essay seeassay
estimable esteemed, valuable; esteeming, admiring
estimation rate of esteem, worth; esteemed or valued object; reputation; valuation
estridge ostrich; goshawk
Et bonum quo antiquius eo melius ‘And the older a good thing is, the better it is’ (Lat., proverbial)
eternize immortalize
Europa daughter of Agenor and loved by Jupiter, who transformed himself into a bull and carried her off to Crete
even sb. the level truth; v. make even; keep up with; even o’er = make sense of; go even = agree
even-Christen fellow Christians
event outcome
ever always; not ever = not always; ever among = all the while
Evil, the the King’s Evil (scrofula), supposed to be cured by the King’s touch
evil (?) privy; (?) brothel
evitate avoid
exactly expressly
examine question
except take exception to; set aside; except, before excepted = legal phrase common in leases (i.e. ‘with the aforesaid exceptions’)
exception disapproval, objection
excitement exhortation
exclaim exclamation, outcry
exclamation reproach
excrement outgrowth from the body, particularly hair
excursion (in stage directions) skirmish
exempt separated, far away
exequies funeral ceremonies
exercise devotional exercise; homily
exhalation meteor, falling star
exhale draw out
exhaust draw out, elicit
exhibit submit, introduce; Gobbo’s word for ‘inhibit’
exhibition gift; allowance, maintenance; Verges’ word for ‘commission’ (authority)
exigent critical moment
exion Quickly’s word for ‘action’
exorcise conjure up evil spirits
expectancy expectation, hope
expedience speed, expedition
expedient swift
expense expenditure
experimental of experience
expiate adj. terminated; v. extinguish
expostulate discuss, inquire into, argue
exposture exposure
express adj. well formed, well executed; v. show forth, make known
expressure expression; impression
exsufflicate (?) inflated, far- fetched
extemporal extempore
extend seize in satisfaction for a debt
extent behaviour; exercise; seizure (cf.extend)
extenuate mitigate, weaken the force of
extirp extirpate, root out
extracting drawing everything else away with it, absorbing
extraught extracted, derived
extravagancy vagrancy
extravagant straying beyond its proper bounds, vagrant
eyases young hawks, noted for their clamour
eyas-musket young sparrow- hawk
eye sb. spot; hole in a bowling ball; v. appear; in the eye = in sight
eye-glass lens of the eye
eye-strings muscles or tendons of the eye
eyne eyes
eyrie nest of a bird of prey
face sb. outward show; v.(of garments) trim with braid or velvet; bully; deceive; (in cards) call an opponent’s bluff; face down = swear blind; face out = brazen out, intimidate, bluff
face-royal head depicted on a coin
Facile precor gelida quando pecus omne sub umbra Ruminat Holofernes’s misquotation from a pastoral poem by Mantuanus (Lat.= ‘[Faustus], I pray, while all the herd chews the cud in the cold shade …’)
facinerious facinorous, wicked
fact deed, crime; in the fact = red-handed
factious of or forming a faction, rebellious
factor agent, representative
faculty power; quality, nature
fadge turn out, succeed
fading word used in contemporary songs
fail sb. failure; failure to produce a son; death; v. fail in; die
fain adj. glad, well pleased, content; adv. gladly
fairings gifts bought at a fair
faithed believed
falchion curved broadsword
fall sb. cadence in music; v. let fall, bring down; befall; happen, turn out; waste away; at fall = at ebb; fall from = desert; fall off = revolt
falling-sickness epilepsy
falsing deceptive
fame sb. public image or opinion; v. make famous
familiar sb. spirit or demon; close friend; adj. native, accustomed
fan sift (e.g. grain) by means of an air current
fanatical frantic, outlandish
fancy sb. love; short piece of poetry or music, fantasia; v. love
fancy-free free from love
fancy-monger dealer in love
fangled pretentiously fashionable
fantastic sb. person given to flights of fancy; fop, gallant; adj. of the mind; given to or produced by extravagant flights of fancy, crazy
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br /> fantastical seefantastic (adj.)
fantasy imagination; imagining, fancy; self-delusion
fap drunk
farborough Sly’s word for ‘thirdborough’ (seethirdborough)
farce stuff
fardel pack
fare travel; feed; be, feel
far-fet far-fetched, highly cunning
farm rent; lease out profits from taxes in return for an immediate sum of cash; in farm = leased out
farrow pigs of a litter
farthingale petticoat stretched over whalebone hoops
fashions farcy, a disease in horses
fat stuffy; (?) sweating
Fates three deities who span the threads of human lives
fatigate fatigued, weary
faucet-seller seller of taps for wine-barrels
fault sin; misfortune; (in hunting) lost or ‘cold’ scent; for fault of = for want of
favour appearance, face, feature; charm; token of good will
fay faith
fazed tattered, frayed
feat adj. graceful; adv. gracefully, neatly; v.(?) make or render graceful
feature appearance of the body
federary seefeodary
fee livestock; estate of a feudal lord; reward for services to a lord; in fee = outright; in fee- farm = permanent
feeder servant; parasite
fee-grief particular grief, suggesting a large estate rented by a single tenant (cf.fee)
feeze beat
felicitate made happy
fell sb. skin, fleece; adj. terrible, savage
fellies parts of a wheel that form the rim
fence sb. defence; swordsmanship; v. shut in, defend
feodary confederate
fere companion; husband or wife
fern-seed seed supposed both to possess and to impart invisibility
ferret torment; search thoroughly
ferula teacher’s cane for beating
fescue teacher’s stick for pointing
festinate hurried, hasty
fetch sb. trick, evasion; v. make; strike; fetch about = change tack; fetch in = surround, catch; fetch off = rescue; get the better of, kill
fettle groom, prepare
few, in in short
fewness and truth the truth in short
fia seevia
fico fig (Ital.) (seefig)
fidelicet Evans’s word for ‘videlicet’ (seevidelicet)
field-bed camp bed
fielded in the battle field
fifteens fifteenths (seefifteenth)
fifteenth tax of one-fifteenth levied on personal property
fig sb. contemptuous exclamation; obscene gesture sometimes called the ‘fig of Spain’; v. make the ‘fig’ gesture
fights protective screens used on warships
fig’s-end seefig
figure sb. numeral or letter; esoteric diagram; rhetorical device; imagining; v. express, represent; imagine
file sb. body of men, especially soldiers; list; v. defile; keep pace, as in marching
The Arden Shakespeare Complete Works Page 581