English 11a Vocabulary

UNIT 1

Anglo-Saxon Era

The Words

AsunderAvengeBogBroodInfamous

Lamenting

RelishSpoilTemporalTribute

Define In Context

Asunder – The log was split asunder by one powerful blow of the axe.

Avenge – The angry soldiers sought to avenge the death of their comrade.

Bog – It is dangerous to ride a horse across a bog because its hoof might get caught in the mulch and it might break a leg.

Brood – the mother hen sat on her nest until she hatched her brood.

Infamous – Jesse James was an infamous outlaw of the nineteenth century in the American West.

Lamenting – My brother moaned and cursed, lamenting in grief when my parents took his video game privileges away.

Relish – Renee relished Sunday afternoons because she had time to do whatever she wanted – read a novel, skate in the park, or get together with friends.

Spoil – The victors of a war often take spoils from the defeated.

Temporal – The minister said that solving our temporal troubles is less important than caring for our immortal souls.

Tribute – Ancient Egypt became a wealthy nation in part because of the tributes of gold and products it demanded from nations it conquered.

Definition

Asunder – apart; separateAvenge – to take vengeance for or on behalf

of someone elseBog – wet, spongy groundBrood – offspring, or a family of offspring, of

animals

Infamous – having a very bad reputation; notorious; in disgrace or dishonor

Lamenting – to mourn aloud; wail; to express sorrow, mourning, or regret, often in a demonstrative way.

Relish – enjoy; like

Spoil – arms, money, or goods taken from a defeated foe; plunder

Temporal – lasting only for a time, limited; of this world, not spiritual

Tribute – regular payment of money or goods made by one ruler or nation to another as acknowledgement of servitude, for protection from invasion, etc.

UNIT 2

The Medieval Era

The Words

AccrueArbitrateBeguileMiscreantMortification

PersonableSaucySolicitousStrifeWanton

Define in context

Accrue – I went to the bank to see how much interest my savings had accrued.

Arbitrate – We need an unbiased party to arbitrate this argument.

Beguile – Did the deceptive advertisement beguile you into buying the product?

Miscreant – Because Rick performed so many malicious deeds and showed no sign of reforming, he was seen as the town’s miscreant.

Mortification – When the diary entry was read aloud over the public address system, my mortification was complete.

Personable – Lila hit it off immediately with her personable new neighbor.

Saucy – George’s hat was outdated, but he thought it was stylish with its saucy feather.

Solicitous – Nancy shows little concern for her own well-being, but she is extremely solicitous of others.

Strife – There seldom was peace between the two countries; they were in a constant state of bitter strife.

Wanton – “Eat, drink, and be merry” is the motto of one of my wanton friends.

Definitions

Accrue – accumulate periodicallyArbitrate – settle a disputeBeguile – mislead by trickingMiscreant – evil personMortification – shame; humiliation

Personable – having a pleasant appearance and personality

Saucy - stylishSolicitous – showing concernStrife – conflict; struggleWanton – unrestrained; extravagant

UNIT 3

The Renaissance (Hamlet)

The Words

Aside Apparition

BrevityEssentialFoil

FrailtyInferKin Rationalize

Soliloquy

Define in context

Aside – see examples Scrubs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PemRiFuCgYM Malcolm in the Middle:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNa8QyAl2YEApparition - In the Dickens classic, "A Christmas

Carol," the character Scrooge is visited by three apparitions.

Brevity – That six hour speech lacked the necessary brevity to keep the audience interested.

Essential – When shooting landscapes, good light is absolutely essential, which is why photographers often rise before dawn.

Foil example – Sherlock Holmes & Doctor Watson

Frailty – Due to its frailty, glass must be handled with care.

Infer – She inferred that the watch she was given as a gift was a signal to be more punctual.

Kin – My uncle John is kin to me!Rationalize – Addiction to cigarettes

(nicotine) has been used as a rationalization as to why it is so hard to quit smoking.

Soliloquy – In Romeo and Juliet, Juliet starts out speaking in what she thinks is a soliloquy except that unknown to her Romeo is listening below her balcony.

Definition

Aside – a statement made by a character in a play, intended to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on the stage.

Apparition – a ghost or ghostlike image of a personBrevity – concise and exact use of words in writing

or speechEssential – absolutely necessary; extremely

importantFoil – a characters whose attributes, or

characteristics, contrast with and therefore throw into relief the attributes of another character.

Frailty – the condition of being weak and delicate; weakness in character or morals

Infer – deduce or conclude (information) from evidence and reasoning rather than from explicit statements

Kin – one's family and relationsRationalize – attempt to explain or justify (one's

own or another's behavior or attitude) with logical, plausible reasons, even if these are not true

Soliloquy – a speech delivered by a lone character that reveals the speaker’s thoughts and feelings.

UNIT 3

The Renaissance (Macbeth)

The Words

AsideAugment

Corporal

FoilHarbinger

Malevolence

Recompense

SurmiseTrifleUsurper

Define in context

Aside – see examples Scrubs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PemRiFuCgYM Malcolm in the Middle:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNa8QyAl2YEAugment – Joe augmented his income by

playing saxophone in a jazz clubCorporal – The whipping of people for

minor offenses was a common form of corporal punishment in colonial America.

Foil – example Sherlock Holmes & Doctor Watson

Harbinger – The robin is often described as the harbinger of spring.

Malevolence – The villain of the murder mystery displayed his malevolence through an evil glare and wicked laugh.

Recompense – Carmen demanded recompense for all the extra hours she had worked.

Surmise – Although he did not know what was in the sealed locker, an intelligent surmise told him that the locker’s contents must be very valuable.

Trifle – After the writer was made poet laureate, people expected great things of him, but his later poems were only trifles.

Usurper – After the election was shown to be illegal, the candidate who had originally lost the race took office, and the usurper went to jail.

Definition

Aside – a statement made by a character in a play, intended to be heard by the audience but not by other characters on the stage

Augment – add to; supplementCorporal – of the body; bodilyFoil – a character whose attributes, or

characteristics, contrast with and therefore throw into relief the attributes of another character

Harbinger – person or thing that comes before and hints at what is to follow

Malevolence – malice, spitefulnessRecompense – repayment; rewardSurmise – guessing, imagined actionsTrifle – something of little value or

importanceUsurper – one who assumes power without

right