Jane Eyre Vocabulary
p. 12—preternatural
I wiped my tears and hushed my sobs, fearful lest any sign of violent grief might waken a
preternatural voice to comfort me, or elicit from the gloom some haloed face, bending over
me with strange pity.
supernatural, not of this earth
p. 12—aperture
Was it, I asked myself, a ray from the moon penetrating some aperture in the blind?
a hole or opening, esp. one that can be made smaller or larger
p. 12—conjecture
I can now conjecture readily that this streak of light was, in all likelihood, a gleam from a
lantern carried by some one across the lawn: but then, prepared as my mind was for horror,
shaken as my nerves were by agitation, I thought the swift darting beam was a herald of
some coming vision from another world.
guess, but based on some facts
p. 20—bunglingly
Again I paused; then bunglingly enounced'But John Reed knocked me down, and my aunt shut me up in the red-room.'
clumsily, poorly, doing something so poorly that it will surely fail
p. 24—hiatus
Bessie supplied the hiatus by a homily of an hour's length, in which she proved beyond a
doubt that I was the most wicked and abandoned child ever reared under a roof.
a break or vacation
p. 24—homily
Bessie supplied the hiatus by a homily of an hour's length, in which she proved beyond a
doubt that I was the most wicked and abandoned child ever reared under a roof.
in church, the speech the minister makes after the bible reading
p. 26—capricious
I remember her as a slim young woman, with black hair, dark eyes, very nice features, and
good, clear complexion; but she had a capricious and hasty temper, and indifferent ideas of
principle or justice: still, such as she was, I preferred her to any one else at Gateshead Hall.
likes to change her mind for no reason at all
p. 27—pinafore
'Miss Jane, take off your pinafore; what are you doing there?
woman’s (under?) blouse
p. 28—poltroon
What a miserable little poltroon had fear, engendered of unjust punishment, made of me in
those days!
a fool
p. 35—sotto voce
'I will indeed send her to school soon,' murmured Mrs. Reed sotto voce; and gathering up
her work, she abruptly quitted the apartment.
very quietly spoken, so others can’t overhear
p. 36—congealed
I covered my head and arms with the skirt of my frock, and went out to walk in a part of
the plantation which was quite sequestered; but I found no pleasure in the silent trees, the
falling fir-cones, the congealed relics of autumn, russet leaves, swept by past winds in
heaps, and now stiffened together.
dried and thickened (often used to describe blood or other liquids that will become more
“gooey” and solid as they thicken and dry
p. 44—refectory
The refectory was a great, low-ceiled, gloomy room; on two long tables smoked basins of
something hot, which, however, to my dismay, sent forth an odour far from inviting.
a dining room, especially in a monastery or boarding school
p. 44&45—buxom
'Silence!' ejaculated a voice; not that of Miss Miller, but one of the upper teachers, a little
and dark personage, smartly dressed, but of somewhat morose aspect, who installed herself
at the top of one table, while a more buxom lady presided at the other.
This is used to mean “stout” or “heavy” for a woman, now it generally means “with big
breasts”.
p. 46—Veneration
I suppose I have a considerable organ of Veneration, for I retain yet the sense of admiring
awe with which my eyes traced her steps.
respect
p. 46&47—benignant
Seen now, in broad day-light, she looked tall, fair, and shapely; brown eyes with a
benignant light in their irids, and a fine pencilling of long lashes round, relieved the
whiteness of her large front; on each of her temples her hair, of a very dark brown, was
clustered in round curls, according to the fashion of those times, when neither smooth
bands nor long ringlets were in vogue; her dress, also in the mode of the day, was of purple
cloth, relieved by a sort of Spanish trimming of black velvet; a gold watch (watches were
not so common then as now) shone at her girdle.
from “benign”, meaning “good” or friendly
p. 48—inclement
I shuddered as I stood and looked round me: it was an inclement day for outdoor exercise;
not positively rainy, but darkened by a drizzling yellow fog; all under foot was still
soaking wet with the floods of yesterday.
physically severe; virtually always used as here “inclement weather” meaning unfriendly
and “opposing” your going outside
p. 48—verandah
The stronger among the girls ran about and engaged in active games, but sundry pale and
thin ones herded together for shelter and warmth in the verandah; and amongst these, as
the dense mist penetrated to their shivering frames, I heard frequently the sound of a
hollow cough.
balcony
p. 50&51—pelisses
'The one with red cheeks is called Miss Smith; she attends to the work, and cuts out- for
we make our own clothes, our frocks, and pelisses, and everything; the little one with black
hair is Miss Scatcherd; she teaches history and grammar, and hears the second class
repetitions; and the one who wears a shawl, and has a pocket-handkerchief tied to her side
with a yellow ribband, is Madame Pierrot: she comes from Lisle, in France, and teaches
French.'
woman’s long cloak, lined with fur
p. 55—gloaming
The ruddy gloaming, the licensed uproar, the confusion of many voices gave one a welcome
sense of liberty.
twilight--darkening
p. 57—assiduity
Now, mine continually rove away; when I should be listening to Miss Scatcherd, and
collecting all she says with assiduity, often I lose the very sound of her voice; I fall into a
sort of dream.
working carefully, industriously
p. 59—cumbrous
We are, and must be, one and all, burdened with faults in this world: but the time will
soon come when, I trust, we shall put them off in putting off our corruptible bodies; when
debasement and sin will fall from us with this cumbrous frame of flesh, and only the spark
of the spirit will remain,- the impalpable principle of light and thought, pure as when it
left the Creator to inspire the creature: whence it came it will return; perhaps again to be
communicated to some being higher than man- perhaps to pass through gradations of glory,
from the pale human soul to brighten to the seraph!
like cumbersome, unwieldy, difficult to carry around
p. 59—impalpable
We are, and must be, one and all, burdened with faults in this world: but the time will
soon come when, I trust, we shall put them off in putting off our corruptible bodies; when
debasement and sin will fall from us with this cumbrous frame of flesh, and only the spark
of the spirit will remain,- the impalpable principle of light and thought, pure as when it
left the Creator to inspire the creature: whence it came it will return; perhaps again to be
communicated to some being higher than man- perhaps to pass through gradations of glory,
from the pale human soul to brighten to the seraph!
like intangible—can’t be touched
p. 59—seraph
We are, and must be, one and all, burdened with faults in this world: but the time will
soon come when, I trust, we shall put them off in putting off our corruptible bodies; when
debasement and sin will fall from us with this cumbrous frame of flesh, and only the spark
of the spirit will remain,- the impalpable principle of light and thought, pure as when it
left the Creator to inspire the creature: whence it came it will return; perhaps again to be
communicated to some being higher than man- perhaps to pass through gradations of glory,
from the pale human soul to brighten to the seraph!
angel
p. 61—stalwart
I can remember Miss Temple walking lightly and rapidly along our drooping line, her plaid
cloak, which the frosty wind fluttered, gathered close about her, and encouraging us, by
precept and example, to keep up our spirits, and march forward, as she said, 'like stalwart
soldiers.'
brave and unyielding
p. 62—archdeacon
I have not yet alluded to the visits of Mr. Brocklehurst; and indeed that gentleman was
from home during the greater part of the first month after my arrival; perhaps prolonging
his stay with his friend the archdeacon: his absence was a relief to me.
higher than regular deacon (head deacon) Deacon is a protestant minister
p. 63—perfidious
I had my own reasons for being dismayed at this apparition; too well I remembered the
perfidious hints given by Mrs. Reed about my disposition, etc.; the promise pledged by Mr.
Brocklehurst to apprise Miss Temple and the teachers of my vicious nature.
deceitful and untrustworthy
p. 66—deferentially
These ladies were deferentially received by Miss Temple, as Mrs. and the Misses
Brocklehurst, and conducted to seats of honour at the top of the room.
respectfully, treating as one higher (in status) than you
p. 75—mien
Miss Temple had always something of serenity in her air, of state in her mien, of refined
propriety in her language, which precluded deviation into the ardent, the excited, the eager:
something which chastened the pleasure of those who looked on her and listened to her, by
a controlling sense of awe; and such was my feeling now: but as to Helen Burns, I was
struck with wonder.
attitude as shown externally (esp. in one’s face), bearing, demeanor
p. 77—phylactery
Next morning, Miss Scatcherd wrote in conspicuous characters on a piece of pasteboard the
word 'Slattern,' and bound it like a phylactery round Helen's large, mild, intelligent, and
benign-looking forehead.
a little container holding a religious relic; an amulet or charm
p. 78—Cuyplike
That night, on going to bed, I forgot to prepare in imagination the Barmecide supper of hot
roast potatoes, or white bread and new milk, with which I was wont to amuse my inward
cravings: I feasted instead on the spectacle of ideal drawings, which I saw in the dark; all
the work of my own hands: freely pencilled houses and trees, picturesque rocks and ruins,
Cuyplike groups of cattle, sweet paintings of butterflies hovering over unblown roses, of
birds picking at ripe cherries, of wrens' nests enclosing pearl-like eggs, wreathed about with
young ivy sprays.
I’ve no idea!
p. 78&79—beck
I discovered, too, that a great pleasure, an enjoyment which the horizon only bounded, lay
all outside the high and spike-guarded walls of our garden: this pleasure consisted in
prospect of noble summits girdling a great hill-hollow, rich in verdure and shadow; in a
bright beck, full of dark stones and sparkling eddies.
small stream
p. 80—effluvia
While disease had thus become an inhabitant of Lowood, and death its frequent visitor;
while there was gloom and fear within its walls; while its rooms and passages steamed
with hospital smells, the drug and the pastille striving vainly to overcome the effluvia of
mortality, that bright May shone unclouded over the bold hills and beautiful woodland out
of doors.
slight invisible vapor, esp. and unpleasant one
p. 86—resurgam
Her grave is in Brocklebridge churchyard: for fifteen years after her death it was only
covered by a grassy mound; but now a grey marble tablet marks the spot, inscribed with her
name, and the word ‘Resurgam’.
Latin for “will rise again” –don’t worry about this one!
p. 87—virulence
When the typhus fever had fulfilled its mission of devastation at Lowood, it gradually
disappeared from thence; but not till its virulence and the number of its victims had drawn
public attention on the school.
(Does this have something to do with a virus)
(originally yes…) sharp, angry temper
p. 87—fetid
The unhealthy nature of the site; the quantity and quality of the children's food; the
brackish, fetid water used in its preparation; the pupils' wretched clothing and
accommodations- all these things were discovered, and the discovery produced a result
mortifying to Mr. Brocklehurst, but beneficial to the institution.
nasty and stinky (liquid)
p. 90—soliloquised
'A new servitude! There is something in that,' I soliloquised (mentally, be it understood; I
did not talk aloud).
to give a speech to an audience (usually by a character in a play, who stops and speaks
what is on his/her mind
p. 105—cuirass
I halted there a minute; I looked at some pictures on the walls (one, I remember,
represented a grim man in a cuirass, and one a lady with powdered hair and a pearl
necklace), at a bronze lamp pendent from the ceiling, at a great clock whose case was of
oak curiously carved, and ebon black with time and rubbing.
protective armor worn over the body—can be leather or metal
p. 106—incumbent
To be sure I am distantly related to the Rochesters by the mother's side, or at least my
husband was; he was a clergyman, incumbent of Hay- that little village yonder on the hilland that church near the gates was his.
1. in office now (the incumbent president)
2. one’s duty (“it is incumbent upon me to tell you…)
p. 117—stagnation
Women are supposed to be very calm generally; but women feel just as men feel; they need
exercise for their faculties and a field for their efforts as much as their brothers do; they
suffer from too rigid a restraint, too absolute a stagnation, precisely as men would suffer;
and it is narrow-minded in their more privileged fellow-creatures to say that they ought to
confine themselves to making puddings and knitting stockings, to playing on the piano and
embroidering bags.
Can’t move or circulate, and cannot “freshen” or renew (often refers to water or air that
then becomes putrid; also to people and ideas who/which get stuck and can’t grow
p. 117&118—staid
Her appearance always acted as a damper to the curiosity raised by her oral oddities; hard
featured and staid, she had no point to which interest could attach.
Stuck in old-fashioned ways
p. 118—vapid
The other members of the household, viz., John and his wife; Leah, the housemaid, and
Sophie, the French nurse, were decent people, but in no respect remarkable; with Sophie I
used to talk French, and sometimes I asked her questions about her native country; but she
was not of a descriptive or narrative turn, and generally gave such vapid and confused
answers as were calculated rather to check than encourage inquiry.
Empty (here meaning stupid)
p. 118—pliability
I accorded it, deeming that I did well in showing pliability on the point.
Changeability, flexibility
p. 118—belfry
It was three o'clock; the church bell tolled as I passed under the belfry; the charm of the
hour lay in its approaching dimness, in the low-gliding and pale-beaming sun.
The top part of a church—where the bell is
p. 119—stile
This lane inclined up-hill all the way to Hay; having reached the middle, I sat down on a
stile which led thence into a field.
A little wall between fields (we had this word earlier!)
p. 127—mosaic
In the clear embers I was tracing a view, not unlike a picture I remembered to have seen of
the castle of Heidelberg, on the Rhine, when Mrs. Fairfax came in, breaking up by her
entrance the fiery mosaic.
A picture or design made by combining lots of small bits into patterns
p. 128—denoting
I recognized his decisive nose, more remarkable for character than beauty; his full nostrils,
denoting, I thought, choler; his grim mouth, chin and jaw—yes, all three were very grim,
and no mistake.
Representing, meaning
p. 128—choler
I recognized his decisive nose, more remarkable for character than beauty; his full nostrils,
denoting, I thought, choler; his grim mouth, chin and jaw—yes, all three were very grim,
and no mistake.
In old “science” the body and moods were determined by the proportions of the four fluids
(the “humors”). If you have a lot of “choler” you are “Choleric” and have a lot of energy and
like to get motivated and do things
p. 128—physiognomy
His shape, now divested of cloak, I perceived harmonized in squareness with his
physiognomy; I suppose it was a good figure, in the athletic sense of the
term—broad-chested and thin-flanked, though neither tall nor graceful.
face
p. 131&132—eulogiums
"Don't trouble yourself to give her a character," returned Mr. Rochester; "eulogiums will not
bias me; I shall judge for myself. She began by felling my horse."
A eulogy is the part of the church service where the minister gives a speech about that
weeks “lesson” or theme. A eulogy is a long speech to influence somebody
p. 139—anatomical
"And mind," he continued, "don't bother me with any details of the anatomical process, or
any notice of the condition of the entrails.
Of the physical body
p. 139—repletion
I have forbidden Adele to talk to me about her presents, and she is bursting with repletion;
have the goodness to serve her as auditress and interlocutrice; it will be one of the most
benevolent acts you ever performed."
Completely filled up
p. 139—interlocutrice
I have forbidden Adele to talk to me about her presents, and she is bursting with repletion;
have the goodness to serve her as auditress and interlocutrice; it will be one of the most
benevolent acts you ever performed."
Person who talks to someone else
p. 141—nonnette
"Ah! By my word! there is something singular about you," said he; "you have the air of a
little nonnette—quaint, quiet, grave and simple, as you sit with your hands before you,
and your eyes generally bent on the carpet (except, by-the-by, when they are directed
piercingly to my face; as just now, for instance); and when one asks you a question, or
makes a remark to which you are obliged to reply, you rap out a round rejoinder, which, if
not blunt, is at least brusque.
I don’t know. It’s French
p. 141—repartee
"Mr. Rochester, allow me to disown my first answer. I intended no pointed repartee: it was
only a blunder."
Sharp and clever response to someone else’s comment
p. 141&142—philantropist
No, young lady, I am not a general philanthropist; but I bear a conscience;" and he pointed
to the prominences which are said to indicate that faculty, and which, fortunately for him,
were sufficiently conspicuous; giving, indeed, a marked breadth to the upper part of his
head: "and, besides, I once had a kind of rude tenderness of heart.
Someone who donates money to charity
p. 142—gregarious
Young lady, I am disposed to be gregarious and communicative to-night."
chatty
p. 142—intrinsic
I am sure most people would have thought him an ugly man; yet there was so much
unconscious pride in his port; so much ease in his demeanor; such a look of complete
indifference to his own external appearance; so haughty a reliance on the power of other
qualities, intrinsic or adventitious, to atone for the lack of mere personal attractiveness,
that, in looking at him, one inevitably shared the indifference, and, even in a blind,
imperfect sense, put faith in the confidence.
Naturally and inherently part of something larger
p. 143—legitimate
This is legitimate—et j'y tiens, as Adele would say; and it is by virtue of this superiority
and this alone that I desire you to have the goodness to talk to me a little now, and divert
my thoughts, which are galled with dwelling on one point—cankering as a rusty nail."
Real and acceptable “a legitmate complaint” would mean a true complaint, not
something silly and unimportant.
This also means your parents are married.
p. 145—palliate
I know it, and I don't wish to palliate them, I assure you.
Make something bad—like a disease or a crime—weaker or seem less important. Here
it means make a morally wrong compromise to prevent argument or fighting
p. 146—salubrious
"All right then; limpid, salubrious; no gush of bilge water had turned it to a fetid puddle.
Good for our health
p. 146—paltry
Now, when any vicious simpleton excites my disgust by his paltry ribaldry, I cannot flatter
myself that I am better than he: I am forced to confess that he and I are on a level.
Small and unimportant
p. 146—ribaldry
Now, when any vicious simpleton excites my disgust by his paltry ribaldry, I cannot flatter
myself that I am better than he: I am forced to confess that he and I are on a level.
Dirty jokes
p. 147—neophyte
"You have no right to preach to me, you neophyte, that have not passed the porch of life,
and are absolutely unacquainted with its mysteries."
beginner
p. 148—charnel
Already it has done me good: my heart was a sort of charnel; it will now be a shine."
A place where bones and the dead are put “charnel house”
p. 148—shrine
Already it has done me good: my heart was a sort of charnel; it will now be a shrine."
A holy place for worship
p. 148—sententious
"Sententious sage! so it is; but I swear by my household gods not to abuse it."
1. Tends to give pompous (know-it-all-in-an-irritating-way) speeches
2. Short and to the point sayings
p. 152—equipages
"I liked bonbons, too, in those days, Miss Eyre, and I was croquant—overlook the
barbarism—croquant chocolate comfits, and smoking alternately, watching meantime the
equipages that rolled along the fashionable streets toward the neighboring opera-house,
when, in an elegant close carriage, drawn by a beautiful pair of English horses, and
distinctly seen in the brilliant city night, I recognized the 'voiture' I had given Celine.
carriages
p. 153—welkin
I like Thornfield; its antiquity; its retirement; its old crow-trees and thorn-trees; its gray
facade, and lines of dark windows reflecting that metal welkin; and yet how long have I
abhorred the very thought of it; shunned it like a great plague-house!
This is archaic, but means the vault of the blue sky
p. 153—paramount
Wild was the wrestle which should be paramount; but another feeling rose and triumphed;
something hard and cynical, self-willed and resolute; it settled his passion and petrified his
countenance.
Of greatest importance
p. 154—leviathan
I will break obstacles to happiness, to goodness—yes, goodness; I wish to be a better man
than I have been; than I am—as Job's leviathan broke the spear, the dart and the
habergeon; hindrances which others count as iron and brass I will esteem but straw and
rotten wood."
the giant whale of the bible
p. 154—habergeon
I will break obstacles to happiness, to goodness—yes, goodness; I wish to be a better man
than I have been; than I am—as Job's leviathan broke the spear, the dart and the
habergeon; hindrances which others count as iron and brass I will esteem but straw and
rotten wood."
Don’t know
p. 156—etiolated
Next morning I had the pleasure of encountering him; left a bullet in one of his poor
etiolated arms, feeble as the wing of a chicken in the pip, and then thought I had done
with the whole crew.
White because got no sunlight
p. 157—paroxysm
As he had said, there was probably nothing at all extraordinary in the substance of the
narrative itself—a wealthy Englishman's passion for a French dancer, and her treachery
to him, were every-day matters enough, no doubt, in society—but there was something
decidedly strange in the paroxysm of emotion which had suddenly seized him, when he was
in the act of expressing the present contentment of his mood, and his newly revived
pleasure in the old hall and its environs.
Like spasms or convulsions
p. 157—environs
As he had said, there was probably nothing at all extraordinary in the substance of the
narrative itself—a wealthy Englishman's passion for a French dancer, and her treachery
to him, were every-day matters enough, no doubt, in society—but there was something
decidedly strange in the paroxysm of emotion which had suddenly seized him, when he was
in the act of expressing the present contentment of his mood, and his newly revived
pleasure in the old hall and its environs.
environment
p. 157—hauteur
I never seemed in his way; he did not take fits of chilling hauteur; when he met me
unexpectedly the encounter seemed welcome—he had always a word and sometimes a smile
for me; when summoned by formal invitation to his presence, I was honored by a cordiality
of reception that made me feel I really possessed the power to amuse him, and that these
evening conferences were sought as much for his pleasure as for my benefit.
Do you know “haughty”? Means to act high and mighty, better than everyone else
p. 161—fulminating
Though it was now dark, I knew he was awake, because I heard him fulminating strange
anathemas at finding himself lying in a pool of water.
Thundering, cursing
p. 161—anathemas
Though it was now dark, I knew he was awake, because I heard him fulminating strange
anathemas at finding himself lying in a pool of water.
1curses
2. something hated, reviled, and avoided
p. 165—taciturn
There she sat, staid and taciturn-looking, as usual, in her brown stuff gown, her check
apron, white handkerchief, and cap.
grouchy
p. 167—sago
"And the sago?"
?
p. 167&168—conflagration
I hardly heard Mrs. Fairfax's account of the curtain conflagration during dinner, so much
was I occupied in puzzling my brains over the enigmatical character of Grace Poole, and
still more in pondering the problem of her position at Thornfield; in questioning why she
had not been given into custody that morning, or, at the very least, dismissed from her
master's service.
fire
p. 172&173—arraigned
Arraigned at my own bar, Memory having given her evidence of the hopes, wishes,
sentiments I had been cherishing since last night—of the general state of mind in which I
had indulged for nearly a fortnight past; Reason having come forward and told, in her own
quiet way, a plain, unvarnished tale, showing how I had rejected the real and rabidly
devoured the ideal; I pronounced judgment to this effect: That a greater fool than Jane
Eyre had never breathed the breath of life; that a more fantastic idiot had never surfeited
herself on sweet lies, and swallowed poison as if it were nectar.
To call an accused person before a court to answer charges
p. 173—ignis-fatuus
It does good to no woman to be flattered by her superior, who cannot possibly intend to
marry her; and it is madness in all women to let a secret love kindle within them, which, if
unreturned and unknown, must devour the life that feeds it; and, if discovered and
responded to, must lead, ignis-fatuus-like, into miry wilds whence there is no extrication.
1.
1A phosphorescent light that hovers or flits over swampy ground at night,
possibly caused by spontaneous combustion of gases emitted by rotting
organic matter. Also called friar's lantern, jack-o'-lantern, will-o'-the-wisp,
wisp.
2.
Something that misleads or deludes; an illusion.
p. 176—furbish
She would have Sophie to look over all her "toilettes," as she called frocks; to furbish up any
that were “passées" and to air and arrange the new.
Polish, to make look clean and new again by fixing it up
p. 177—chimeras
During the intervening period I had no time to nurse chimeras; and I believe I was as
active and gay as anybody—Adèle excepted.
A mythical fire-breathing beast.
Now generally means “something that doesn’t exist”
p. 179—cavalcade
The cavalcade, following the sweep of the drive, quickly turned the angle of the house, and
I lost sight of it.
A procession of horses or carriages moving together
p. 180—crucibles
All in that region was fire and commotion; the soup and fish were in the last stage of
projection, and the cook hung over her crucibles in a frame of mind and body threatening
spontaneous combustion.
Really a crucible is the “mold” that super hot (liquefied) metal or lead is poured into (then
when it cools and hardens it will be in that shape. (Johnny Tremain made a crucible as the
mold for the tea pitcher that burned his hand
p. 180&181—victualage
I could not proceed to the school-room without passing some of their doors, and running
the risk of being surprised with my cargo of victualage; so I stood still at this end, which,
being windowless, was dark—quite dark now, for the sun was set and twilight gathering.
Food.
This is related to the “vittles” that the convict wanted Pip to get for him
p. 183—contumacy
If she objects, tell her it is my particular wish; and if she resists, say I shall come and fetch
her in case of contumacy.'"
Stubborn resistance to authority
p. 185—ottomans
Some of them threw themselves in half-reclining positions on the sofas and ottomans, some
bent over the tables and examined the flowers and books, the rest gathered in a group
round the fire; all talked in a low but clear tone which seemed habitual to them.
Large, fancy footrest you put in front of an easy chair and rest your legs/feet on
p. 186—satirical
She laughed continually; her laugh was satirical, and so was the habitual expression of her
arched and haughty lip.
Here it just means, joking and playful.
A satire is actually a kind of drama/story that
imitates another drama/story in such a way as to make you see what is ridiculous in the
original
p. 189—pith
What was the gallant grace of the Lynns, the languid elegance of Lord Ingram, even the
military distinction of Colonel Dent, contrasted with his look of native pith and genuine
power?
From “Pithy”—to expresss your meaning clearly, but in as few words as possible
p. 190—confabulate
The two proud dowagers, Lady Lynn and Lady Ingram, confabulate together.
chat
p. 191—incubi
Mary and I have had, I should think, a dozen at least in our day; half of them detestable
and the rest ridiculous, and all incubi—were they not, mamma?"
Plural of “incubus”, which was literally an evil spirit that would harass someone in their
sleep.
Here it means a bad dream or false fear
p. 191—tant pis
"Tant pis!" said her ladyship, "I hope it may do her good."
“so much the worse!” “Too bad!”
p. 192—lachrymose
Miss Wilson was a poor sickly thing, lachrymose and low-spirited—not worth the trouble
of vanquishing, in short; and Mrs. Grey was coarse and insensible; no blow took effect on
her.
Weepy—causing to cry.
p. 192—charivari
Like moaning myrtle, perhaps.
I see her yet in her raging passions, when we had driven her to extremities—spilt our tea,
crumbled our bread and butter, tossed our books up to the ceiling, and played a charivari
with the ruler and desk, the fender and fire-irons.
?
p. 193—liaisons
There are a thousand reasons why liaisons between governesses and tutors should never be
tolerated a moment in any well-regulated house; firstly—"
Friendship, Relationship, Parnership
p. 194—fillip
I grant an ugly woman is a blot on the face of creation; but as to the gentlemen, let them
be solicitous to possess only strength and valor: let their motto be—Hunt, shoot, and fight;
the rest is not worth a fillip.
A snap (now we say “not worth a snap” or “don’t care a snap”)
p. 199—sordid
Amid this sordid scene sat a man with his clinched hands resting on his knees, and his eyes
bent on the ground.
Unpleasant because about something immoral. (Usually used in expression “sordid details”
p. 201—contumelious
Too often she betrayed this by the undue vent she gave to a spiteful antipathy she had
conceived against little Adele; pushing her way with some contumelious epithet if she
happened to approach her; sometimes ordering her from the room, and always treating her
with coldness and acrimony.
FORGET THIS ONE! CHECK “CONTUMELY” FROM EARLIER
p. 201—epithet
Too often she betrayed this by the undue vent she gave to a spiteful antipathy she had
conceived against little Adele; pushing her way with some contumelious epithet if she
happened to approach her; sometimes ordering her from the room, and always treating her
with coldness and acrimony.
ANGRY WORDS, CURSE (IN THIS CASE)
p. 202—multitudinous
If she did, she need not coin her smiles so lavishly, flash her glances so unremittingly,
manufacture airs so elaborate graces so multitudinous.
MANY
p. 203—condiments
The sarcasm that had repelled, the harshness that had startled me once, were only like keen
condiments in a choice dish; their presence was pungent, but their absence would be felt as
comparatively insipid.
STUFF LIKE KETCHUP THAT IS KEPT ON THE TABLE TO ADD TO FOOD
p. 203—insipid
The sarcasm that had repelled, the harshness that had startled me once, were only like keen
condiments in a choice dish; their presence was pungent, but their absence would be felt as
comparatively insipid.
SO BORING AND BLAND AS TO BE HATEFUL
p. 206—aquiline
For a handsome and not an unamiable-looking man, he repelled me exceedingly; there was
no power in that smooth-skinned face of a full oval shape; no firmness in that aquiline
nose, and small cherry mouth; there was no thought on the low, even forehead; no
command in that blank brown eye.
NARROW. ALMOST ALWAYS USED TO DESCRIBE A THIN NOSE
p. 207—adage
A curious friendship theirs must have been; a pointed illustration, indeed, of the old adage
that "extremes meet."
A SAYING “HASTE MAKES WASTE”, FOR EXAMPLE
p. 215—diablerie
"You have—have you?" thought I; "there is diablerie in the business after all, then!
I THINK THIS IS FRENCH FOR “DIABOLICAL”—MEANING DEVILISH
p. 218—jargon
She began muttering: "The flame flickers in the eye; the eye shines like dew; it looks soft
and full of feeling; it smiles at my jargon; it is susceptible; impression follows impression
through its clear sphere; where it ceases to smile, it is sad; an unconscious lassitude weighs
on the lid: that signifies melancholy resulting from loneliness.
SPECIFIC VOCABULARY OF A GROUP (MEDICAL JARGON, FOR EXAMPLE)
p. 249—contour
The thin and pallid elder daughter had her parent's Cairngorm eye; the blooming and
luxuriant younger girl had her contour of jaw and chin—perhaps a little softened, but still
imparting an indescribable hardness to the countenance, otherwise so voluptuous and
buxom.
THE SHAPE (DETERMINED BY THE EDGES OF SOMETHING)
p. 249—voluptuous
The thin and pallid elder daughter had her parent's Cairngorm eye; the blooming and
luxuriant younger girl had her contour of jaw and chin—perhaps a little softened, but still
imparting an indescribable hardness to the countenance, otherwise so voluptuous and
buxom.
ROUND AND ATTRACTIVE.
USUALLY USED TO DESCRIBE A
WOMAN’S FIGURE
p. 265&266—ostler
I proposed to walk the distance quietly by myself; and very quietly, after leaving my box in
the ostler's care, did I slip away from the George Inn, about six o'clock of a June evening,
and take the old road to Thornfield—a road which lay chiefly through fields, and was now
little frequented.
HOTEL KEEPER
p. 267—cognizant
I suppose I do come on, though in what fashion I know not, being scarcely cognizant of
my movements, and solicitous only to appear calm, and, above all, to control the working
muscles of my face, which I feel rebel insolently against my will, and struggle to express
what I had resolved to conceal.
AWARE
p. 268—acumen
Mr. Rochester had sometimes read my unspoken thoughts with an acumen to me
incomprehensible.
MENTAL ABILITY (Bill gates has great business acumen)
p. 277—farce
"You play a farce, which I merely laugh at."
A ridiculous comedy play
p. 280—misconstrue
Still, when I reached my chamber, I felt a pang at the idea that she should even
temporarily misconstrue what she had seen.
MISUNDERSTAND, MISTAKE SOMETHING AS MEANING SOMETHING
DIFFERENT (He misconstrued my surprise for anger)
p. 283—harlequin
"And then you won't know me, sir; and I shall not be your Jane Eyre any longer, but an
ape in a harlequin's jacket—a jay in borrowed plumes.
CLOWN
p. 284—effervesce
I suppose your love will effervesce in six months, or less.
BUBBLE UP
p. 291—bairn
Do you really wish the bairn to go?
?
p. 293—badinage
Whereupon I told her not to mind his badinage; and she, on her part, evinced a fund of
genuine French skepticism: denominating Mr. Rochester "un vrai menteur," and assuring
him that she had made no account whatever of his "Contes de fee," and that "du reste, il n'y
avait pas de fees, et quand meme il y en avait," she was sure they would never appear to
him, nor ever give him rings, or offer to live with him in the moon.
CHAT, BACK AND FORTH PLAYFUL ARGUMENT
p. 294—seraglio
I would not exchange this one little English girl for the grand Turk's whole seraglio;
gazelle eyes, houri forms and all!"
HAREM
p. 294—houri
I would not exchange this one little English girl for the grand Turk's whole seraglio;
gazelle eyes, houri forms and all!"
?
p. 295—stipulate
You will stipulate, I see, for peculiar terms—what will they be?"
MAKE A FORMAL REQUIREMENT AS PART OF A DEAL
p. 297—hied
I hied me to the window-recess; and while I sat there and looked out on the still trees and
dim lawn, to a sweet air was sung, in mellow tones, the following strain:
THIS IS AN OLD TERM MEANING TO MOVE YOURSELF (GO) USUALLY
USED IN THE FRASE “TO HIE ME HITHER”
p. 299—bathos
I like you more than I can say; but I'll not sink into a bathos of sentiment; and with this
needle of repartee I'll keep you from the edge of the gulf too; and, moreover, maintain by its
pungent aid that distance between you and myself most conducive to our real mutual
advantage."
EXTREME SENTIMENTALISM
p. 300—dudgeon
From less to more, I worked him up to considerable irritation; then, after he had retired, in
dudgeon, quite to the other end of the room, I got up, and saying, "I wish you good-night,
sir," in my natural and wonted respectful manner, I slipped out by the side door and got
away.
IN A TEMPER, ANGRY BECAUSE YOU FEEL OFFENDED—ALMOST
ALWAYS IN PHRASE “HIGH DUDGEON
p. 302&303—idyls
"I think, scathed as you look, and charred and scorched, there must be a little sense of life
in you yet, rising out of that adhesion at the faithful, honest roots; you will never have
green leaves more—never more see birds making nests and singing idyls in your boughs.
IN PERFECT PEACE AND CONTENTMENT, CAREFREE INTERLUDE
p. 303—puerile
A puerile tear dimmed my eye while I looked—a tear of disappointment and impatience;
ashamed of it, I wiped it away.
STUPID AND CHILDISH
p. 304—hypochondriac
"I wish he would come! I wish he would come!" I exclaimed, seized with hypochondriac
foreboding.
1. IN THE OLD DAYS THIS MEANT “DEPRESSED”
2. NOW IT MEANS SOMEONE WHO IS ALWAYS CONVINCED THEY ARE
SICK AND NEED MEDICINE, WHEN REALLY THEY ARE FINE
p. 309—cornice
I wandered, on a moonlight night, through the grass-grown inclosure within: here I
stumbled over a marble hearth, and there over a fallen fragment of cornice.
THIS IS PART OF ARCHITECTURE, THE HIGH PART OF THE MOLDING ON
A WALL OR A BUILDING
p. 319—bigamy
Mr. Rochester continued, hardly and recklessly: "Bigamy is an ugly word!
THE CRIME OF HAVING TWO WIVES
p. 330—upas
"Concealing the mad woman's neighborhood from you, however, was something like
covering a child with a cloak, and laying it down near a upas-tree; that demon's vincinage
is poisoned, and always was.
?
p. 351—syncope
The light that long ago had struck me into syncope, recalled in this vision, seemed glidingly
to mount the wall, and tremblingly to pause in the center of the obscured ceiling.
?
p. 382—remuneration
"I need it, and I seek it; so far, sir, that some true philanthropist will put me in the way of
getting work which I can do, and the remuneration for which will keep me: if but in the
barest necessaries of life."
PAYMENT
p. 388—elysium
I was sure St. John Rivers—pure-lived, conscientious, zealous as he was—had not yet
found that peace of God which passeth all understanding; he had no more found it, I
thought, than had I; with my concealed and racking regrets for my broken idol and lost
elysium—regrets to which I have lately avoided referring; but which possessed me and
tyrannized over me ruthlessly.
FROM GREEK MYTHOLOGY (ELYSEUM FIELDS)==PLACE OF IDEAL
HAPPINESS
p. 390—arid
I hold that the more arid and unreclaimed the soil where the Christian laborer's task of
tillage is appointed him—the scantier the meed his toil brings—the higher the honor.
VERY DRY CLIMATE
p. 393—morass
I am sure you cannot long be content to pass your leisure in solitude, and to devote your
working hours to a monotonous labor wholly void of stimulus, any more than I can be
content," he added, with emphasis, "to live here buried in morass, pent in with
mountain—my nature, that God gave me, contravened; my faculties, heaven-bestowed,
paralyzed—made useless.
WET SWAMPY GROUND
A BIG MESS YOU CAN’T ESCAPE FROM/GET OUT OF
p. 399—votary
I burned for the more active life of the world—for the more exciting toils of a literary
career—for the destiny of an artist, author, orator; anything rather than that of a priest:
yes, the heart of a politician, of a soldier, of a votary of glory, a lover of renown, a luster
after power, beat under my curate's surplice.
A FAITHFUL FOLLOWER—USUALLY ONE WHO HAS TAKEN A VOW TO
CONTINUE DOING SOMETHNG FAITHFULLY, LIKE FOLLOWING THEIR
RELIGION (MONK)
p. 399—curate
I burned for the more active life of the world—for the more exciting toils of a literary
career—for the destiny of an artist, author, orator; anything rather than that of a priest:
yes, the heart of a politician, of a soldier, of a votary of glory, a lover of renown, a luster
after power, beat under my curate's surplice.
THE MINISTER IN CHARGE OF A CHAPEL OR CHURCH
p. 407—lusus naturœ
I was a lusus naturœ, she affirmed, as a village school-mistress: she was sure my previous
history, if known, would make a delightful romance.
?
p. 416—donjon
Day sat on Norham's castled steep,
And Tweed's fair river, broad and deep,
And Cheviot mountains lone;
The massive towers, the donjon keep,
The flanking walls that round them sweep,
In yellow luster shone.
THE FORTIFIED MAIN TOWER OF A CASTLE
p. 420—fraudulent
"I am ignorant of all concerning Mr. Rochester; the letter never mentions him but to
narrate the fraudulent and illegal attempt I have adverted to.
FAKED SO AS TO TRICK PEOPLE (OUT OF MONEY, FOR EXAMPLE)—A
FRAUDULENT CONTRACT (a FRAUD CAN MEAN A FAKE, OR THE PERSON
WHO “FAKES”—THE WIZARD OF OZ WAS A FRAUD, HE COULDN’T
REALLY DO MAGIC
p. 420—opiate
And what opiate for his severe sufferings—what object for his strong passions—had he
sought there?
A DRUG MADE FROM THE POPPY PLANT. THESE ARE ADDICTIVE, AND
TEND TO MAKE PEOPLE SLEEP AND DREAM
p. 429—ebullition
Good fortune opens the hand as well as the heart wonderfully; and to give somewhat when
we have largely received is but to afford a vent to the unusual ebullition of the sensations.
I DON’T KNOW THIS FORM, BUT NOW THE COMMON FORM IS
“EBULLIENT” WHICH MEANS REALLY EXCITED AND ENERGETIC TO DO
SOMETHING
p. 449—coadjutor
To do so, you must have a coadjutor—not a brother; that is a loose tie; but a husband.
AN ASSISTANT
p. 451&452—hierophant
I have a woman's heart; but not where you are concerned; for you I have only a comrade's
constancy; a fellow-soldier's frankness, fidelity, fraternity, if you like; a neophyte's respect
and submission to his hierophant; nothing more—don't fear."
ONE WHO EXPLAINS MYSTERIES
p. 485—redd-up
"There, sir, you are redd-up and made decent.
?