Othello
Act I Vocabulary
thine
Yours
 Thy = your
 Ex: it is thine or take thy face hence!

certes
It is certain, certainly, surely
 “For certes,” quoth he, “I have already
chosen my officer...”

forsooth
In truth, indeed
 Soothsayers are those who tell certain
“truths”
 “…I have already chose my officer.” And
what was he? Forsooth…one Michael
Cassio…”

prattle
Babbling talk (noun or verb)
 “He knows nothing! He is mere prattle
without practice. He’s all talk”

ancient
An ensign; a low-ranking position in
the military; standard-bearer
 Iago is in this job for the General Othello

naught
Nothing!
 FYI: in England, tic-tac-toe is called
“naughts and crosses”

‘Zounds! or ‘Sblood!

These are mild curse words or oaths.
They are contractions for “By His
Wounds” or “By His Blood,” respectively.
iniquities
Sins, faults, flaws
 It’s the (plural) noun form of the word.

palpable
Touchable, tangible
 The tension in the air was so palpable,
you could cut it with a knife.

facile

Easy! Use your Latin roots!
mountebanks
Crooks, conmen, liars, those who’ll cheat
you or be capable of evil deeds
 “I bought an unction of a mountebank,
so mortal that, but dip a knife it…where
it draws blood…[nothing] can save the
thing from death” (Hamlet IV vii 161165).

hither

Here
thence
From there
 NOT meaning “then.”

whence
From where
 NOT WHEN!!
 Whence came he and wither goest he?
 He landed in Fife and thence shall journey
to Dumferling.

bootless
Useless; futile
 Resistance is bootless!
 Sonnet 29. “When in disgrace with
Fortune and men's eyes, I all alone
beweep my outcast state, And trouble
deaf heaven with my bootless cries…”

beseech

Verb – to beg; to ask for; to plead.
You’re pretty emotional and usually
down on your knees when you’re
beseeching.
visage
Your FACE
 What’s that other word for face?
 countenance

engendered
What’s the Greek/Latin root?
 Literally: given birth to, but it could be
like “came up with” (an idea or
something)
 Iago has engendered a plan to destroy
Othello’s life.

cuckold
Noun and verb
 To be unfaithful to a spouse OR to be that
guy whose wife is unfaithful to him.
 The word is used exclusively for men.
 Those who are cuckolded are usually
depicted with horns coming out of their
heads to make them look foolish.

So when is this quiz?