A Taming of the Shrew Glossary A to K

The Taming of the Shrew Glossary

A

Accomplished, performed, Induct, i. 112.
Achieve, gain, I. i. 161.
Advice, consideration, I. i. 117.
Advised, "art thou not advised," do you not see, I. i. 191.
Affected, inclined, I. i. 26.
Affied, betrothed, IV. iv. 49.
Agenor, "daughter of Agenor." Europa, who was wooed by Jupiter. I. i. 173.
Aglet-baby, Fr., aiguillette, a small figure at the end of a point or lace, I. ii. 79.
Aim'd, guessed, II. i. 237.
Alia nostra casa ben venuto, "welcome to our house," I. ii. 25.
All one, i.e., it makes no difference, IV. ii. 101.
Amort, depressed, IV. iii. 36.
Ancient, old, Induct, ii. 33 ; I. ii. 47.
"Angel," "ancient 'angel.'" A cant term for a worthy old man. IV. ii. 61.
Antic, buffoon, Induct, i. 101.
Apply, ply, study, I. i. 19.
Argosy, a merchant ship, II. i. 376.
Arras counterpoints, embroidered counterpanes, II. i. 353.
Assurance, legal settlement, II. i. 389.
Awful, just, V. ii. 109.

B

Baccare, a spurious Latin word implying go back, II. i. 73.
Balk logic, chop logic, I. i. 34.
Banquet, dessert, V. ii. 9.
Barefoot, "dance barefoot." This was the lot of the elder unmarried sisters if the youngest was first married. II. i. 33.
Bars, prevents, Induct, ii. 138.
Basta, enough, I. i. 203.
Bate, flatter, IV. i. 199.
Bear-herd, the leader of a tame bear, Induct, ii. 21.
Bears me fair in hand, encourages me, IV. ii. 3.
Beetle-headed, stupid, IV. i. 160.
Beholding, indebted, I. ii. 274.
Belike, apparently, I. i. 104; IV. iii. 103.
Be-mete, measure, IV. iii. 113.
Bemoiled, bemired, IV. i. 77.
Ben venuto, "I shall be your ben venuto," I will insure you a welcome, I. ii. 282.
Bestraught, distraught, distracted, Induct, ii. 27.
Bias, the weight on one side of a ball, which inclines its direction, IV. v. 25.
Blear'd, dimmed, V. i. 121.
Blue-coats, the dress of serving men, IV. i. 93.
Board, woo, I. ii. 95.
Boot, "no boot," no use, V. ii. 176.
Boss'd, embossed, II. i. 355.
Bottom, a ball of thread, IV. iii. 138.
Brach, female hound, Induct, i. 18.
Brave, handsomely dressed, Induct, i. 40.
Bravery, finery, IV. iii. 57.

Braves, bullying, III. i. 15.
Breathed, in good condition, Induct, ii. 50.
Breeching scholar, a boy liable to be whipped, III. i. 18.
Buckler thee, shield thee, III. ii. 241.
Bugs, bogies, I. ii. 211.
Burst, broken, Induct, i. 8 ; IV. i. 83.
Buttery, a place for keeping provisions, Induct, i. 102.
Buzzard, simpleton, with a play upon the word in the lines following, II. i. 207.

C

Cakes dough on both sides, a well-known proverb implying disappointment, I. i. no; V. i. 143.
Carpets, table covers, IV. i. 52.
Censer, a brazier in which perfumes were burned, IV. iii. 91.
Chafed, made angry, I. ii. 203.
Chapeless. The chape was the metal end of the scabbard protecting the sword point. III. ii. 48.
Close, secretly, Induct, i. 127.
Comonty, blunder for "comedy," Induct, ii. 140.
Compassed, round, IV. iii. 140.
Conceit, purpose, IV. iii. 162.
Conditions, "soft conditions," delicate qualities, V. ii. 167.
Conformable, compliant, II. i. 280.
Conserves, preserves, Induct, ii. 3.
Content you, restrain yourselves, II. i. 343.
Contrive, spend, I. ii. 276.
Con tutto il core, etc., "a good idea with all my heart," I. ii. 24.
Cony-catching, cheating, trickery, IV. i. 45 ; V. i. 102.
Copatain hat, a high-crowned hat, V. i. 69.
Countenance, do honour to, IV. i. 101.
Counterpoints, counterpanes, II. i. 353.
Crab, crab apple, II. i. 230.
Crack-hemp, one destined to be hanged, V. i. 46.
Craven, a beaten cock, II. i. 228.
Credit, do honour to, IV. i. 106.
Cullion, mean fellow, IV. ii. 20.
Cum privilegio ad imprimendum solum, with exclusive privileges, IV. iv. 93.
Cunning, clever, I. i. 97.
Curious, scrupulous, IV. iv. 36.
Curst, cross, ill-tempered, I. i. 185.
Curstest, crossest, II. i. 315.
Custard-coffin. The crust of a pie or custard was called the coffin. IV. iii. 82.
Cytherea, Venus, Induct, ii. 53.

D

Declining head into, head declining into, Induct, i. 119.
Demi-cannon, an old piece of ordnance carrying a ball of about thirty pounds, IV. iii. 88.
Denier, a trifling coin, Induct, i. 9.
Dog-weary, tired like a dog, IV. ii. 60.

E

Eleven and twenty, an allusion to a game of cards. See under "Two and thirty." IV. ii. 57.
Emboss'd, short of breath, tired out, Induct, i. 17.
Encounter, meeting, I. ii. 105 ; greeting, IV. v. 54.
Expect, believe, IV. iv. 91.

F

Faced it with a card of ten. "To face it meant, as it still does, to bully, to attack by impudence of face; whether a card of ten was properly a cooling card has not yet been ascertained, but they are united in the following passage from Lyly's Euphues: 'And all lovers, he only excepted, are cooled with a card of ten.' SINGER. II. i. 407.
Fardingales for farthingales, hoops supporting the skirts, IV. iii. 56.
Fashions, a skin disease in horses.
Fay, faith, Induct, ii. 83.
Fear, scare, I. ii. 211.
Fellows, companions, I. ii. 280.
Few, "in a few," in few words, I. ii. 52.
Fives, a disease of the glands of a horse, III. ii. 54.
Florentius' love. This is an allusion to a story told by Gower of a knight who bound himself to marry an ugly woman if she solved a riddle on which his life depended. I. ii. 69.
Flouts, mocks, II. i. 29.
Formal, precise, III. i. 61.
Foul, ugly, I. ii. 69.
Frets, stops which regulate the strings, II. i. 150.
Fretting, spoiling, II. i. 330.
Full, exactly, I. i. 203.
Furniture, dress, IV. iii. 182.

G

Galliasses, large galleys, II. i. 380.
Gambold, the ancient form of gambol, Induct, ii. 140.
Gamut, the scale in music, III. i. 73.
Gawds, trifling ornaments, II. i. 3.
Gentles, gentlemen, III. ii. 95.
Gifts, endowments, I. i. 106.
Gird, sneer, gibe, V. ii. 58.
Give you over, leave you, I. ii. 105.
Go by Jeronimy, a popular saying from Kyd's " Spanish Tragedy," Induct, i. 9.
Good, "made it good," recovered the scent, Induct, i. 19.
Good shipping, good fortune, V. i. 43.
Gramercies, great thanks, I. i. 41.
Green, new, HI. ii. 213.
Grissel. See Chaucer's Clerk's Tale for the story of Griselda, the type of womanly patience. II. i. 297.

H

Haggard, an untamed hawk, IV. ii. 39; "man my haggard," tame my wild hawk, IV. i. 196.
Haled, taken by force, V. i. Hi.
Halt, limp, II. i. 258.
Hand, "at any hand," in any case, I. ii. 147.
Hap, good fortune, I. ii. 269.
Happily, perchance, haply, IV. iv. 54.
Happy, fortunate, opportune, Induct, i. 90.
Happy man be his dole, may he be a happy man. The phrase was once familiar. I. i. 144.
Ha' to thee, here's to thee, V. ii. 37.
Hie ibat Simois, etc., Ovid, Heroides (i. 33), III. i. 28.
Hilding, contemptible person, II. i. 26.
Hit the white, i.e., the centre of the target, V. ii. 186.
Holidame, "by my holidame." For halidome, upon my sacred oath or honour. V. ii. 99.
"Humour of forty fancies," probably a cheap book or broad- side, so called, stuck into the side of his hat, III. ii. 70-
Hungerly, scantily, III. ii. 177.
Husband, housekeeper, V. i. 71.
Husbanded with modesty, not exaggerated, Induct, i. 68.

I

Indifferent, equally, I. ii. 181 ; ordinary, IV. i. 94.
Ingenious, liberal, I. i. 9.
In good sadness, in all seriousness, V. ii. 63.
In good time, an expression indicating agreement, II. i. 196.
Ingrate, ungrateful, I. ii. 270.
Institute, begin, I. i. 8.
Intend, pretend, IV. i. 206.
I wis, truly, indeed, I. i. 62.

J

Jacks and Jills, drinking vessels made of leather and tin; but there is also an allusion here to men and maid servants, IV. i. 5i, 52.
Jade, a worn-out horse, I. ii. 249.
Jump, agree, I. i. 195.
Junkets, dainties, III. ii. 250.

K

Kates, for "cates," dainty food, II. i. 190; used by Petruchio for cats, II. i. 280.
Keep you warm. To have wit enough to keep oneself warm is a familiar proverb. See "Much Ado about Nothing " (I. i. 69). II. i. 268.
Kennel, gutter, IV. iii. 98.
Kersey boot-hose, stocking of coarse wool, III. ii. 68.
Kindly, well, Induct i. 66.
Knack, knick-knack, trifle, IV. iii. 67.

The Taming of the Shrew Glossary - L to Z

How to cite this article:
Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Ed. John Dennis. London: G. Bell, 1902. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2011. < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/taming/tamingglossaryatok.html >.

____

Related Articles

The Taming of the Shrew: The Complete Play

Introduction to The Taming of the Shrew

How to Pronounce the Names in The Taming of the Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew: Questions and Answers

The Taming of the Shrew: Plot Summary

The Purpose of the Induction in The Taming of the Shrew

Introduction to Katharina

Introduction to Petruchio

The Most Famous Quotations from The Taming of the Shrew

Elements of Shakespearean Comedy

Why, There's a Wench: Shakespeare's Unconventional Love Plots