The Bible
Annunciation: An announcement made by the angel Gabriel to Mary, the mother of
Jesus, that she was going to bear a son, even though she was a virgin. Her son was to be
called Jesus.
Apocrypha (uh-POK-ruh-fuh): Religious writings that have been accepted as books of the
Bible by some groups but not by others. The Roma Catholic Church, for example, includes
seven books, such as Judith, I and II Maccabees, and Ecclesiasticus, in the Old Testament that
Jews and Protestants do not consider part of the Bible. Some churches may read the
Apocrypha for inspiration but not to establish religious doctrine.
 By extension, and “apocryphal” story is one that is probably false but nevertheless
has some value.
Cast thy bread upon the waters: An expression from the book of Ecclesiastes in the
Old Testament: “Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.”
 This saying calls on people to believe that their good deeds will ultimately benefit
them.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you: A command based on
words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount: “All things whatsoever ye would that men
should do to you, do ye even so to them.” The Mosaic Law contains a parallel
commandment: “Whatever is hurtful to you, do not do to any other person.”
 “Do unto others…” is a central ethical teaching of Jesus, often referred to as the
Golden Rule.
Good Samaritan: In one of the parables of Jesus, the only one of several passersby to
come to the aid of a Jew who had been robbed, beaten and left to die on the roadside. The
kindness of the Samaritan was particularly admirable because Jews and Samaritans (i.e.,
people of Samaria) were generally enemies. Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan to
answer a man who had asked him, “Who is my neighbor?” He forced his questioner to admit
that the Samaritan was the true neighbor of the man who had been robbed.
 Figuratively, “Good Samaritans” are persons who go out of their way to perform acts
of kindness to others, especially strangers.
Thirty pieces of silver: The money Judas Iscariot received for betraying Jesus to the
authorities. He later threw the money into the Temple of Jerusalem, and the chief priests
bought the “potter’s field” with it, to be used as a cemetery for foreigners.
 This money is referred to as “blood money” – money received for the life of another
human being.
 “Thirty pieces of silver” is also used proverbially to refer to anything paid or given for
a treacherous act.
Mythology and Folklore
Aphrodite (af-ruh-DEYE-tee): [Roman name Venus] The Greek and Roman goddess of love
and beauty; the mother of Eros and Aeneas. In what may have been the first beauty contest,
Paris awarded her the prize (the Apple of Discord), choosing her over Hera and Athena as the
most beautiful goddess. She was thought to have been born out of the foam of the sea and
is thus often pictured rising from the water, notably in The Birth of Venus, by Botticelli.
Apple of Discord: In classical mythology, an apple of gold thrown into a banquet of the
gods and goddesses by the goddess Discord, who had not been invited. The apple had “For
the Fairest” written on it. When three goddesses claimed it, the choice among them was
referred to the handsome Paris, prince of Troy.
Athena: [Roman name Minerva] The Greek and Roman goddess of wisdom. She had an
unusual birth, springing fully grown out of the forehead of her father, Zeus. Athena was one
of the goddesses angered by the Judgment of Paris, a Trojan, and she therefore helped the
Greeks in the ensuing Trojan War. Eventually, she became the protector of Odysseus on his
journey home.
 Athena was the guardian of the city of Athens, which was named in her honor.
Judgment of Paris: In classical mythology, the incident that ultimately brought on the
Trojan War. When the goddess Discord threw the Apple of Discord, marked “For the Fairest,”
among the gods, Zeus refused to judge which goddess was the most beautiful, but sent the
three contestants – Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera – to the Trojan prince Paris for a decision.
Each made offers to induce Paris to give her the apple. Athena and Hera offered military or
political power, but Aphrodite said that he could have the most beautiful woman in the
world. He gave the apple to Aphrodite, thereby making powerful enemies of Athena and
Hera. Aphrodite led him to Helen, afterward known as Helen of Troy, the most beautiful
woman in the world and wife of the king of Sparta in Greece. Paris carried her off to Troy
while her husband was away. The Greeks then combined forces to make war on Troy and
bring her back. Trojan civilization was destroyed in the process.
Trojan Horse: In classical mythology, a large, hollow horse made of wood used by the
Greeks to win the Trojan War. The resourceful Odysseus had come up with the plan for the
horse. The Greeks hid soldiers inside it and left it outside the gates of Troy. They anchored
their ships just out of sight of Troy and left a man behind to say that the goddess Athena
would be pleased if the Trojans brought the horse indies the city and honored it. The Trojans
took the bait, against the advice of Cassandra and Laocoon. That night the Greek army
returned to Troy. The men inside the horse emerged and opened the city gates for their
companions. The Greeks sacked the city, thus winning the war.
 The story of the Trojan horse is the source of the saying “Beware of Greeks bearing
gifts.”
Cassandra: In classical mythology, a prophetess in Troy during the Trojan War whose
predictions, although true, were never believed by those around her. Apollo had given her
the girt of prophecy but made it worthless after she refused his amorous advances. The
Greeks captured Cassandra after their victory and sacrilegiously removed her from the
temple of Athena. As a result, Athena helped cause shipwrecks and enormous loss of life to
the Greeks on their return home.
 A “Cassandra” is someone who constantly predicts bade news.
Proverbs
Hope springs eternal: People always hope for the best, even in the face of adversity.
This saying is from “An Essay on Man,” by Alexander Pope.
Little strokes fell great oaks: Limited strength, when persistently applied, can
accomplish great feats. This proverb is found in Poor Richard’s Almanack, by Benjamin
Franklin.
Beware of Greeks bearing gifts: Do not trust enemies who bring you presents – they
could very well be playing a trick. The saying is adapted from the words of Laocoon in the
story of the Trojan horse.
Nothing will come of nothing: [Latin: ex nihilo nihil fit; literally “Out of nothing,
nothing comes.”] You will gain nothing if you invest nothing. This saying is spoken by the title
character in the play King Lear, by William Shakespeare. King Lear is telling his daughter
Cordelia that she will gain no favors from him if she does not make elaborate speeches
saying she loves him.
Win this one for the Gipper: Do this in memory of somebody you revere; attributed
to Knute Rockne, coach of the Notre Dame football team, during a half-time pep talk at the
1928 Army-Notre Dame football game. Rockne told his team that a former player, George
Gipp, had said on his deathbed, “Rock, someday when things look real tough for Notre
Dame, ask the boys to go out there and win for me.” The incident was made famous in a
movie in which future President Ronald Reagan played George Gipp.
Idioms
Albatross around one’s neck: An annoying burden: “That old car is an albatross
around my neck.” Literally, an albatross is a large sea bird. The phrase alludes to Samuel
Taylor Coleridge’s poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” in which a sailor who shoots a
friendly albatross is forced to wear its carcass around his neck as punishment.
Ad hominem: A Latin expression meaning “to the man.” An ad hominem argument is one
that relies on personal attacks rather than reason or substance.
Cross the Rubicon (ROOH-bi-kon): To make an irrevocable decision; it comes from the
name of the river Julius Caesar crossed with his army, thereby starting a civil war in Rome.
Hat trick: In some sports, such as ice hockey, three goals by one player in a single game:
“Lemieux scores for the third time tonight; he finally has the hat trick he’s been looking for
all season.”
 By extension, a hat trick is an outstanding performance by an individual, or a
particularly clever or adroit maneuver: “She pulled off a hat trick with her
presentation to the committee.”
 The phrase originally referred to a hat traditionally given to a cricket player who
scored three wickets, or goals.
Most unkindest cut of all: The most painful of insults, affronts, or offenses, often so
painful because it comes from a trusted friend. In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, Antony
describes the wound given to Caesar by his close friend Brutus as the “most unkindest cut of
all.”
Pound of flesh: Creditors who insist on having their “pound of flesh” are those who
cruelly demand the repayment of a debt, no matter how much suffering it will cost the
debtor: “The bank will have its pound of flesh; it is going to foreclose on our mortgage and
force us to sell our home.” The expression is from The Merchant of Venice, by William
Shakespeare.
World Literature, Philosophy, and Religion
Ali Baba: The title character in “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” a story from the Arabian
Nights. Ali Baba gains the treasure of the thieves, which they keep in a cave with a magical
entrance.
 Ali Baba opens the door of the thieves; cave with the magical password “Open,
sesame.”
Communion: A sacrament of Christianity. In a reenactment of the Last Supper, the words
of Jesus – “This is my body” and “This is my blood” – are spoken over bread and wine (the
elements of Communion), which are then shared by the worshipers. Communion, also known
as the Eucharist, commemorates the death of Jesus.
Epistemology (i-pis-tuh-MOL-uh-jee): The branch of philosophy concerned with the
nature and origin of knowledge. Epistemology asks the question “How do we know what we
know?”
Anne Frank: A teenage Dutch Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis for two years in World
War II. She lived with her family and several friends in a secret apartment in a warehouse in
Amsterdam until they were discovered by the Nazis in 1944. She was then sent to a
concentration camp where she died of typhus. Anne Frank’s story of her experiences was
published after the war as The Diary of a Young Girl.
John Locke: A seventeenth-century English philosopher. Locke argued against the belief
that human beings are born with certain ideas already in their minds. He claimed that, on the
contrary, the mind is a tabula rasa (blank slate) until experience begins to “write” on it. In his
political writings, Locke attacked the doctrine of the Divine Right of Kings and argued that
governments depend on the consent of the governed.
 Locke’s political ideas were taken up by the American Founding Fathers; his influence
is especially apparent in the Declaration of Independence.
The Odyssey: An ancient Greek epic by Homer that recounts the adventures of Odysseus
during his return from the war in Troy to his home in the Greek island of Ithaca.
 Figuratively, an “odyssey” is any difficult, prolonged journey.
Literature in English
Francis Bacon: An English author of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.
Bacon is known in philosophy for his defense of the scientific method. In literature, he is
known for his essays; they contain such memorable thoughts as “Reading maketh a full man,
conference a ready man, and writing an exact man.”
 Bacon has sometimes been mentioned as a possible author of the plays commonly
attributed to William Shakespeare.
Geoffrey Chaucer (CHAW-suhr): A fourteenth-century English poet, called the father of
English poetry: he was the first great poet to write in the English language. Chaucer’s bestknown work is The Canterbury Tales.
Elementary, my dear Watson:
A phrase often attributed to Sherlock Holmes, the
English detective in the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes supposedly says this to his
amazed companion, Dr. Watson, as he explains his reasoning in solving a crime. Though
these precise words are never used in the Holmes stories, something like them appears in the
story “The Crooked Man”: “’Excellent!’ I [Watson] cried. ‘Elementary,’ said he.”
Far from the madding crowd: A phrase adapted from the “Elegy Written in a Country
Churchyard,” by Thomas Gray: madding means “frenzied.” The lines containing the phrase
speak of the people buried in the churchyard: “Far from the madding crowd’s ignoble strife /
Their sober wishes never learned to stray.”
 In the late nineteenth century, the English author Thomas Hardy named one of his
novels Far From the Madding Crowd.
The Pilgrim’s Progress: (1678, 1684) A religious allegory by the seventeenth-century
English author John Bunyan. Christian, the central character, journeys from the City of
Destruction to the Celestial City. Along the way he faces many obstacles, including the
Slough of Despond. He is eventually successful in his journey, and is allowed into Heaven.
Water, water everywhere, / Nor any drop to drink: Lines from “The Rime of
the Ancient Mariner,” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The speaker, a sailor on a becalmed ship, is
surrounded by salt water that he cannot drink.
 By extension, these lines are used to describe a situation in which someone is in the
midst of plenty but cannot partake of it.
Conventions of Written English
Allegory: A story that has a deeper or more general meaning in addition to its surface
meaning. Allegories are composed of several symbols or metaphors. For example, in The
Pilgrim’s Progress, by John Bunyan, the character named Christian struggles to escape from a
bog or swamp. The story of his difficulty is a symbol of the difficulty of leading a good life in
the “bog” of this world. The “bog” is a metaphor or symbol of life’s hardships and
distractions. Similarly, when Christian loses a heavy pack that he has been carrying on his
back, this symbolizes his freedom from the weight of sin that he has been carrying.
Bowdlerizing (BOHD-luh-reye-zing, BOWD-luh-reye-zing): Amending a book by removing
passages and words deemed obscene or objectionable. The name comes from Thomas
Bowdler’s 1818 edition of the plays of William Shakespeare, which was amended so that it
could “be read aloud in a family.”
Circumlocution (sur-kuhm-loh-KYOOH-shuhn): Roundabout speech or writing: “The
driveway was not unlike that military training device known as an obstacle course” is a
circumlocution for “The driveway resembled an obstacle course.” Circumlocution comes
from Latin words meaning “speaking around.”
Hyperbole (heye-PUR-buh-lee): An exaggerated, extravagant expression. It is hyperbole
to say, “I’d give my whole fortune for a bowl of bean soup.”
Plagiarism: Literary theft. Plagiarism occurs when a writer duplicates another writer’s
language or ideas and then calls the work his or her own. Copyright laws protect writers’
words as their legal property. To avoid the charge of plagiarism, writers take care to credit
those from whom they borrow and quote.
 Similar theft in music or other arts is also called plagiarism.
Satire: A work of literature that mocks social conventions, another work of art, or anything
its author thinks ridiculous. Gulliver’s Travels, by Jonathan Swift, is a satire of eighteenthcentury British society.
Fine Arts
A Cappella (ah kuh-PEL-uh): Choral singing performed without instruments. The
expression means “in chapel style” in Italian. Centuries ago, religious music composed for
use in chapels – which, unlike large churches, had no organs – was usually for voices only.
Count Basie (BAY-see): A twentieth-century African-American jazz pianist and bandleader.
His real first name was William. Count Basie was known particularly for the “Big Band” sound
that was popular in the 1930s and 1940s.
Brooklyn Bridge: A suspension bridge built between Manhattan and Brooklyn in the late
nineteenth century: Manhattan and Brooklyn are today two boroughs of New York City. At
the time of its completion, the Brooklyn Bridge was the world’s longest suspension bridge.
 The Brooklyn Bridge is mentioned in several common expressions about the sale of
the bridge by one person to another (the bridge is actually public property). A person
who “could sell someone the Brooklyn Bridge” is persuasive; a person who “tries to
sell the Brooklyn Bridge” is extremely dishonest; a person who “would buy the
Brooklyn Bridge” is gullible.
Fresco: A painting on wet plaster. When the plaster dries, the painting is bonded to the
wall. Fresco was a popular method for painting large murals during the Renaissance. The Last
Supper, by Leonardo da Vinci, is a fresco, as are the paintings by Michelangelo in the Sistine
Chapel.
Jolly Roger: A black flag with a white skull and crossbones, flown in past centuries by
pirate ships.
Marc Chagall (shuh-GAHL): A Russian-born twentieth-century artist whose vivid, playful
works incorporate dreamlike images. He is also known for his stained-glass panels in
Jerusalem and his murals at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.
American Windows is a three-panel piece displayed at the Art Institute of Chicago. Two panels
are below.
World History to 1550
Babylon: A city in ancient Mesopotamia, famed for its hanging gardens (one of the Seven
Wonders of the Ancient World) and for the sensual lifestyle of its people.
 The Jews were taken captive into Babylon in the sixth century B.C.
Inquisition: A court established by the Roman Catholic Church in the thirteenth century to
try cases of heresy and other offenses against the church. Those convicted could be handed
over to the civil authorities for punishment, including execution.
 The Inquisition was most active in Spain, especially under Tomás de Torquemada; its
officials sometimes gained confessions through torture. It did not cease operation in
the Spanish Empire until the nineteenth century.
 By association, a harsh or unjust trial or interrogation may be called an “inquisition.”
Marco Polo: An Italian explorer of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries; one
of the first Europeans to travel across Asia. He visited the court of Kublai Khan, the Mongol
ruler of China, and became a government official in China. His account of his travels was
distributed after his return to Italy.
Rosetta Stone: A stone discovered in Egypt in the late eighteenth century, inscribed with
ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics and a translation of them in Greek. The stone proved to be
the key to understanding Egyptian writing.
 A “Rosetta stone” is the key to understanding a complex problem.
Vandals: A people of northern Europe, known for their cruelty and destructiveness, who
invaded the Roman Empire and plundered Rome itself in the fifth century.
 The term vandalism, meaning wanton destructiveness, comes from the name of the
Vandals.
William the Conqueror: The duke of Normandy, a province of France, and the leader of
the Norman Conquest of England. He defeated the English forces at the Battle of Hastings in
1066 and became the first Norman king of England.
World History since 1550
Spanish Armada (ahr-MAH-duh): A fleet of more than a hundred ships sent by King Philip
II of Spain to conquer England in 1588. Although called the “Invincible Armada,” it was
destroyed by a combination of English seamanship, Dutch reinforcements, and bad weather.
Several thousand Spaniards were killed, and about half the Spanish ships were lost.
 The defeat of the Armada was a sharp blow to the influence and prestige of Spain in
the world and was an important step in England’s ascent to power.
Bastille (ba-STEEL): A prison in Paris where many political and other offenders were held
and tortured until the time of the French Revolution. It was attacked by workers on July 14,
1789, during the revolution; the prisoners were released, and the building was later
demolished.
 The anniversary of the attack, Bastille Day, is the most important national holiday in
France.
Cuban Missile Crisis: A confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union
in 1962 over the presence of missile sites in Cuba; one of the “hottest” periods of the Cold
War. The Soviet Premier, Nikita Khrushchev, placed Soviet military missiles in Cuba, which
had come under Soviet influence since the success of the Cuban Revolution three years
earlier. President John F. Kennedy of the United States set up a naval blockade of Cuba and
insisted that Khrushchev remove the missiles. Khrushchev did.
Reign of Terror: A phase of the French Revolution aimed at destroying all alleged
pockets of resistance to the revolution. Robespierre was a leader of the Terror, during which
thousands were sent to the guillotine.
Florence Nightingale: An English nurse of the nineteenth century, known for
establishing a battlefield hospital for British soldiers wounded in the Crimean War. Her
tireless service, at night as well as during the day, gained her the nickname “Lady with the
Lamp.”
 Florence Nightingale’s diligence made her a symbol for all nursing and for any kind of
dedicated service.
Mata Hari: A Dutch spy who worked for both the French and the Germans during World
War I. The French executed her in 1917.
 A “Mata Hari” is a seductive, double-dealing woman.
American History to 1865
Appomattox Court House (ap-uh-MAT-uhks): A village
(not a court house!) in Virginia
where General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant in April 1865, effectively
ending the American Civil War.
Benedict Arnold: An American general of the Revolutionary War. He performed notably
in the early days of the war but became bitter over several setbacks to his career. After
receiving command of the American fort at West Point, New York, Arnold plotted to betray it
to the British. The plan was revealed when the American forces captured Major John André
of the British army, who was carrying messages between Arnold and the British. Arnold
escaped to England and continued a military career, but he was widely scorned by the
English.

Calling someone a “Benedict Arnold” is to label the person a traitor.
Give me liberty or give me death: Words from a speech by Patrick Henry urging the
American colonies to revolt against England. Henry spoke only a few weeks before the
Revolutionary War began: “Gentlemen may cry Peace, Peace, but there is no peace. The war
is actually begun. The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of
resounding arms. Our brethren are already in the field … Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as
to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what
course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”
Nathan Hale: An American soldier and spy of the eighteenth century, captured and
hanged by the British during the Revolutionary War. He is said to have declared at his
execution in 1776, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”
Pennsylvania Dutch: The German and Swiss settlers of Pennsylvania in the seventeenth
and eighteenth centuries, and their descendants. “Dutch” is a version of the German
Deutsch, meaning “German.” The Pennsylvania Dutch are known for their tidy farms and
their distinctive crafts and customs. A considerable number of them belong to strict religious
denominations, such as the Amish.
New Amsterdam: A city founded by Dutch settlers in the seventeenth century on the
present site of New York City.
 An early governor of the Dutch colony surrounding New Amsterdam bought
Manhattan Island, the present center of New York City, from the Native Americans
for twenty-four dollars’ worth of jewelry.
American History since 1865
Apollo 11: The space vehicle that carried three American astronauts to the moon and back
in July 1969. The vehicle consisted of a command module, which stayed in lunar orbit, and a
lunar module, which carried two of the three crewmen to a safe landing on the moon.
 On becoming the first person to set foot on the moon, Neil Armstrong declared:
“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
 The other members of the crew were Buzz Aldrin, the second person to walk on the
moon, and Michael Collins.
Clara Barton: A reformer and nurse of the nineteenth century, who founded the
American Red Cross in the 1880s. She had organized nursing care for Union soldiers during
the Civil War.
The business of America is business: A statement made by President Calvin
Coolidge in the 1920s.

Coolidge’s words are often mentioned as typical of the overconfidence in the
American economy that preceded the Great Depression.
Jesse Owens: An African-American athlete of the twentieth century. He won four gold
medals in track and field events at the Olympic Games of 1936, held in Germany when Adolf
Hitler was leader. His victories were a source of pride to the United States and also – because
Owens was black – a blow to the Nazi notions of a master race.
Oklahoma City Bombing: The destruction of a federal office building in Oklahoma Cit
in 1995 by a truck loaded with explosives; the blast killed 168 people. Timothy McVeigh, a
former U.S. soldier, and two conspirators were convicted of the crime; McVeigh was
executed.
 Many Americans initially assumed that this act of terrorism was the work of Arabs in
retaliation for U.S. support of Israel and were shocked to learn that the perpetrators
were Americans. McVeigh and his conspirators had vague ties to the militia
movement of the 1990s.
Plessy v. Ferguson: A case decided by the Supreme Court in the 1890s. The Court held
that a state could require racial segregation in public facilities if the facilities offered the two
races were equal. The Court’s requirement became known as the “Separate but Equal”
doctrine. It was overturned by the Court in 1954 in Brown v. Board of Education.
World Politics
Apartheid (uh-PAHR-teyet, uh-PAHR-tayt): The racist policy of South Africa that long
denied blacks and other nonwhites civic, social, and economic equality with whites. It was
dismantled during the 1990s.
Banana Republics: A term describing any of several small nations in Latin America that
have economies based on a few agricultural crops.
 The term banana republic is often used in a disparaging sense; it suggests an unstable
government.
Coup d'état (kooh day-TAH): A quick and decisive seizure of governmental power by a
strong military or political group. In contrast to a revolution, a coup d'état, or coup, does not
involve a mass uprising. Rather, in the typical coup, a small group of politicians or generals
arrests the incumbent leaders, seizes the national radio and television services, and proclaims
itself in power. Coup d'état is French for “stroke of the state” or “blow to the government.”
Hezbollah: A radical Arabic organization that arose after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.
The Hezbollah has often been accused of terrorism.
Kibbutz (ki-BOOTS): plur. Kibbutzim (ki-boot-SEEM): A communal farm or settlement in
Israel. Kibbutzim have helped build national spirit in Israel, and the residents have
transformed barren land into fertile, crop-producing land.
Propaganda: Official government communications to the public that are designed to
influence opinion. The information may be true or false, but it is always carefully selected for
its political effect.
American Politics
Attorney General of the United States: The head of the United States Department
of Justice and a member of the president’s cabinet. The attorney general is the chief law
enforcement officer of the United States government.
Clear and present danger: The standard set by the Supreme Court for judging when
freedom of speech may lawfully be limited. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., illustrated the
point by arguing that no one has a constitutional right to shout “Fire!” in a crowded theater
when no fire is present, for such action would pose a “clear and present danger” to public
safety.
E Pluribus Unum (EE PLOOR-uh-buhs YOOH-nuhm): A motto of the United States; Latin
for “Out of many, one.” It refers to the Union formed by the separate states. E pluribus
unum was adopted as a national motto in 1776 and is now found on the Great Seal of the
United States and on United States currency.
Foreign Service: The professional arm of the executive branch that supplies diplomats
for the United States embassies and consulates around the world. Ambassadors, though
officially members of the Foreign Service, are sometimes friends of the president of the
United States appointed in gratitude for support given during elections.
National Guard: The volunteer military forces of each state, which the governor of a
state can summon in times of civil disorder or natural disaster. Through congressional and
presidential order, the National Guard can be called into service in the regular United States
army.
Rider: A provision, usually controversial and unlikely to pass on its own merits, that is
attached to a popular bill in the hopes that it will “ride” to passage on the back of the
popular bill.
World Geography
Aegean Sea (i-JEE-uhn): An arm of the Mediterranean Sea off southeastern Europe
between Greece and Turkey.
 This sea was a main trade route for the ancient civilizations of Crete, Greece, Rome,
and Persia (now Iran).
Antipodes (an-TIP-uh-deez): Two places on the globe that are exactly opposite each other;
for example the North Pole and South Pole.
Indochina: Region in Southeast Asia, including Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Laos,
Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam.
 The French colonies of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia were organized as French
Indochina.
Jordan River: River in northern Israel, flowing south through the Sea of Galilee to the
Dead Sea.
 In the Bible, the Jordan was the scene of the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist.
Manitoba: Province in central Canada bordered to the north by the Northwest Territories,
to the northeast by Hudson Bay, to the east by Ontario, to the south by Minnesota and North
Dakota, and to the west by Saskatchewan. Winnipeg is the capital and largest city.
The Western Wall: A wall in the old city of Jerusalem, whose stones may have formed
part of the Temple of Solomon. Sometimes called the Wailing Wall, it is visited in great
numbers by Jews as a holy place that commemorates their sorrows from earliest times.
American Geography
Appalachia (ap-uh-LAY-chuh, ap-uh-LACH-uh): A mountainous region in the eastern
United States, running from northern Alabama to Pennsylvania, and including parts of
Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, and all of West
Virginia.
 A major coal-mining center and one of the most impoverished regions of the country.
Great Lakes: Group of five large freshwater bodies in central North America. They include,
west to east, Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. Except
for Lake Michigan, which is entirely within the United States, the Great Lakes serve as
borders between the United States and Canada.
 Major shipping route through the St. Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean.
Mason-Dixon Line: Part of the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland
established by the English surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the 1760s. The line
resolved disputes caused by unclear description of the boundaries in the Maryland and
Pennsylvania charters.

Though the line did not actually divide North and South, it became the symbolic
division between free states and slave states. Today, it still stands for the boundary
between northern and southern states.
New England: Region in the northeastern United States that includes Connecticut, Maine,
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
 The region is thought to have been named by Captain John Smith for its resemblance
to the English coast.
Sierra Nevada: Mountain range in eastern California.

Location of Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the United States outside of Alaska.
St. Lawrence River: River flowing northeast from Lake Ontario to the Atlantic Ocean.
Ontario and Quebec, Canada, and New York State are along its banks.
 Important trade route. The St. Lawrence Seaway, a system of locks, allows
oceangoing ships to pass between the Atlantic and the Great Lakes.
Anthropology, Psychology, and Sociology
Anthropology: The scientific study of the origin, development, and varieties of human
beings and their societies, particularly so-called primitive societies.
Ego: The “I” or self of any person (ego is Latin for “I”). In psychological terms, the ego is the
part of the psyche that experiences the outside world and reacts to it, coming between the
primitive drives of the Id and the demands of the social environment, represented by the
superego.
 The term ego is often used to mean personal pride and self-absorption: “Losing at
chess doesn’t do much for my ego.”
Margaret Mead: An American anthropologist of the twentieth century, who
revolutionized the field of anthropology in 1928 with her book Coming of Age in Samoa, which
emphasized the role of social convention rather than biology in shaping human behavior. In
her writings, she described how the behavior of men and women differed from one culture
to another and thereby challenged the notion that all gender differences were innate.
Emily Post: A twentieth-century American authority on manners and etiquette. Post’s
book Etiquette first appeared in the 1920s, and new editions are still issued regularly.
Old boy network: A set of relationships based on past friendship or acquaintance that
sometimes replaces or undermines official organizations. “He didn’t deserve that promotion;
he got it because of his connections to the old boy network.”
Pavlov’s dogs: The dogs used in conditioned response experiments by a Russian scientist
of the late nineteenth century, Ivan Pavlov. In these experiments, Pavlov sounded a bell
while presenting food to a dog, thereby stimulating the natural flow of saliva in the dog’s
mouth. After the procedure was repeated several times, the dog would salivate at the sound
of the bell, even when no food was presented.
 Someone who reacts instinctively rather than reflectively to a situation is said to be
engaging in a Pavlovian reaction.
Business and Economics
Agribusiness: The part of the economy devoted to the production, processing, and
distribution of food, including the financial institutions that fund these activities.
 Agribusiness emphasizes agriculture as a big business rather than as the work of
small family farms.
Capital gain: Personal income earned by the sale of assets, such as stocks or real
property. The gain is the difference between the price paid for the asset and the selling price.
Most conservatives want capital gains taxed at a lower rate than ordinary income in order to
stimulate investment, whereas most liberals oppose a lower rate for capital gains as a
subsidy for the wealthy.
Caveat emptor (KAV-ee-aht EMP-tawr): Latin for “Let the buyer beware.” It means that a
customer should be cautious and alert to the possibility of being cheated: “Caveat emptor is
the first rule of buying a used car.”
Federal Reserve System (the Fed): The central monetary authority of the United
States. The Board of Governors supervises the twelve Federal Reserve banks, which deal
with other banks rather than with the public. The system has many functions, including
regulating interest rates.
Henry Ford: An American industrial leader of the late nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries. Ford perfected the assembly line technique of mass production, by which the
Model T automobile and its successors were made available “for the multitude.”
 Ford said, “History is bunk,” and was often considered a man of extreme
conservatism and hardheaded practicality. The Ford Foundation, which he
established in the 1930s, has funded a great number of educational projects.
Welfare state: An economic system that combines features of capitalism and socialism by
retaining private ownership while the government enacts broad programs of social welfare,
such as pensions and public housing.
Physical Science and Mathematics
Background radiation: Low-level radiation at the surface of the earth that comes from
cosmic rays and from small amounts of radioactive materials in rocks and the atmosphere.
Centrifugal force (sen-TRIF-uh-guhl): A force that tends to move objects away from the
center in a system undergoing circular motion. Centrifugal force keeps the water in a whirling
bucket from spilling or throws a rider in a car against the door when the car goes around a
sharp curve. Centrifugal force is actually a form of inertia.
E = mc 2 : An equation derived by the twentieth-century physicist Albert Einstein, in which E
represents units of energy, m represents units of mass, and c 2 is the speed of light squared,
or multiplied by itself.
 Because the speed of light is a very large number and is multiplied by itself, this
equation points out how a small amount of matter can release a huge amount of
energy, as in a nuclear reaction.
Geometry: The branch of mathematics that treats the properties, measurement, and
relations of points, lines, angles, surfaces, and solids.
Hypothesis (heye-POTH-uh-sis) plur. Hypotheses (heye-POTH-uh-seez): In science, a
statement of a possible explanation for some natural phenomenon. A hypothesis is tested by
drawing conclusions from it; if observation and experimentation show a conclusion to be
false, the hypothesis must be false.
Radium: A naturally occurring radioactive chemical element. Its symbol is Ra.

Radium was discovered by the chemists Marie and Pierre Curie.
Earth Sciences
Igneous rock (IG-nee-uhs): Rocks formed by the cooling and solidifying of molten
materials. Igneous rocks can form beneath the earth’s surface, or at its surface, as lave.
 Granite, solid volcanic lava, and basalt are examples of igneous rock.
Magnetic storm: The effect on the ionosphere of large bursts of charged particles from
the sun.
 During a magnetic storm, radio reception can become very difficult.
Microclimate: The long-term weather conditions in a small area on the earth. Usually, this
term refers to such things as the differences in weather between the tops of hills and
neighboring valleys, or between different parts of the same piece of land.
Richter scale: A scale used to rate the intensity of earthquakes. The scale is open-ended,
with each succeeding level representing ten times as much energy as the last. A serious
earthquake might rate six to eight, and very destructive quakes rate higher.

No quake greater than nine has ever been recorded.
Ore: In geology, a mineral that contains a commercially useful material, such as gold or
uranium.
 Ore deposits are generally mined, and the ore is processed to recover the material.
Tundra: A land near the North Pole where the soil is permanently frozen a few feet
underground.
 There are no trees on the tundra: the vegetation is primarily lichens and mosses.
 Tundra is widespread in Lapland and in the far northern portions of Alaska, Canada,
and the Soviet Union.
Life Sciences
Bacteria (sing. Bacterium): Microorganisms made up of a single cell that has no distinct
nucleus. Bacteria reproduce by fission or by forming spores.
 Some bacteria are beneficial to humans (for example, those that live in the stomach
and aid digestion) , and some are harmful (for example, those that cause disease).
Cold-blooded animals: Animals, such as reptiles, fishes, and amphibians, that cannot
control their body temperature and therefore become sluggish in cold weather.
 Cold-blooded animals are often seen sunning themselves to warm up.
Dioxin (deye-OK-sin): A group of pollutants created as by-products in many industrial
processes. Dioxins accumulate in human tissue and affect human metabolism. They are
carcinogens. Eliminating dioxins is an important goal of environmental policy.
Ecosystem: A collection of living things and the environment in which they live. For
example, a prairie ecosystem includes coyotes, the rabbits on which they feed, and the
grasses that feed the rabbits.
 Chemical substances move through ecosystems on the earth in cycles.
 The source of energy for almost every ecosystem on Earth is the sun.
Opposable thumb: A thumb that can be used for grasping.


Opposable thumbs are one of the distinguishing features of primates.
The opposable thumb of human beings allows us to use tools.
Photosynthesis: Use by green plants of the energy in sunlight to carry out chemical
reactions, such as the conversion of carbon dioxide into oxygen. Photosynthesis also
produces the sugars that feed the plant.
 Green plants depend on chlorophyll to carry out photosynthesis.
Medicine and Health
Arteriosclerosis (ahr-teer-ee-oh-skluh-ROH-sis): A disease commonly called hardening of
the arteries. In arteriosclerosis, the walls of the arteries thicken and harden. The loss of
flexibility results in a lessening of the flow of blood to the various organs of the body.
Communicable disease: Any disease transmitted from one person or animal to
another; also called contagious disease. Sometimes quarantine is required to prevent the
spread of disease.
Eustachian tube (yooh-STAY-shuhn): A tube made up of bone and cartilage that
connects the middle ear to the back of the mouth.
 Swallowing during airplane takeoffs and landings allows air to move through the
Eustachian tube to equalize pressure across the eardrum, causing the ears to “pop.”
Retina: The inner layer of the eye, sensitive to light, that is connected to the brain by the
optic nerve. The retina lines the rear of the eyeball. The lens of the eye focuses waves of light
on the retina.
Pneumonia: A disease characterized by inflammation of the lungs. Pneumonia can be
caused by many factors, including bacterial infections, viral infections, and the inhalation of
chemical irritants.
Vital signs: The pulse rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and rate of respiration of a
person. The vital signs are usually measured to obtain a quick evaluation of the person’s
general physical condition.
Technology
Chernobyl (chuhr-NOH-buhl): A place in Ukraine where a nuclear power plant – a
generator powered by a nuclear reactor – underwent a meltdown in 1986. A cloud of
radioactive gases spread throughout the region of Chernobyl and to foreign countries as
well. Forty thousand people living nearby were evacuated. Dozens of deaths and hundreds of
illnesses were reported to have been caused by the accident.
Cyberwarfare: The use of computers and other devices to attack an enemy’s information
systems as opposed to an enemy’s armies or factories.
Kilowatt-hour (kwh): A unit of energy: the expenditure of one kilowatt of power for one
hour. A toaster running for an hour will use about this much energy.
Retinal scan: A technology for the identification of individuals that depends on the
uniqueness of the pattern of blood vessels in the retinas of people’s eyes.

Retinal scans are one means of identification that developed rapidly following the
September 11 attacks (2001).
Sonic boom: The sharp, explosive sound generated by an airplane traveling at speeds
greater than the speed of sound. The sonic boom follows the aircraft much like a wake
follows a ship.
The Spirit of St. Louis: The specially designed airplane that Charles Lindbergh flew in the
first nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean. It is on display in a museum of the Smithsonian
Institution in Washington, D.C.