looks both forward and backward.)
Jettison : Abandon, discard, something no longer needed.
Kaxu : Basque. ‘Watch out!’ Pronounced ‘kashoo’.
Ken : Know.
Krasota : Russian. Beauty.
Labyrinth : The Labyrinth of the Minotaur, built at Knossos by Daedalus.
Lag : Person who has been to prison several times.
Law : The Tea Act of 1773 that would cause the Boston Tea Party in response shortly
after.
Libertalia : Semi-legendary colony created by pirates near Madagascar in the late
17th as a utopia. Mentioned in the work of Charles Johnson (possibly a
pseudonym for Daniel Defoe).
Les : French. ‘The’ for a plural noun (pronounced ‘lé’).
Liesse : French. Jubilation.
Lumière : French. 18th century philosophical movement placing reason at the center
of everything.
Marquise : French. Marchioness.
Marry : Mild oath.
Merci : French. Thank you.
Moineau : French. Here a last name. Literally in English, ‘Sparrow.’
Mouche : French. Fake beauty mark looking like a black dot (literally, ‘fly’ ;
pronounced ‘moosh’, whether singular or plural).
Muscadel : Muscatel. Wine made from muscat grapes.
Noddy : Foolish person.
Oaristys (O.a.ris.tys): French (from Greek). An idyll or amorous encounter.
Paix : French. Literally, ‘Peace’. Figuratively, ‘Shush’.
Pandemonium : Capital city of Hell.
Pangloss : Optimistic regardless of the circumstances.
Perfervid : Impassioned.
Petite mort (la) : French. Orgasm (literally, ‘the little death’).
Peu importe : French. ‘It matters not.’
Platypus : Technically, discovered by Europeans in 1798.
Prague : Strictly speaking, the current city didn’t exist before 1784, fourteen years
after the events described here – even though it was already called that.
Until then, it consisted of four neighboring municipalities : Mala Strana,
Hradcany, Old Town (Stare Mesto) and New Town (Nove Mesto).
Prithee : Please.
Pulchritude : Beauty.
Quacksalver : Fake doctor who sells ointments.
Quean : Promiscuous woman ; prostitute.
Quoth : Quoth I : ‘I say.’
Rapier : Thin and light sword.
Rara avis (pl. rarae aves) : Latin. Rare bird.
Rubcov : ‘c’ pronounced as ‘s’ not ‘k’.
Scruple : Old unit of count of 20 grains.
Scuzz : Something disgusting, disreputable.
Shonth : Ginger.
Sic : Also, sick. Set a dog on someone or something.
Singapore : “‘Tis impossible!” And for good reasons : the city wasn’t founded
until 1819.
Sirrah : Used to address a social inferior.
Taverne des Colonies Britanniques : French. Literally, ‘Tavern of the British
Colonies’.
Thrall : Slave.
Tidings : Collective noun for a group of magpies (just like is used a ‘swarm of bees’
or a ‘murder of crows’).
To : ‘I’ll to–’ can be used to express ‘I’ll go to…’
Tower : The Tower of London that served as a prison since the 12th century.
Trull : Prostitute.
Tudieu : French. Mild oath, like ‘golly’.
Varlet : Rogue, rascal.
Vizard : Mask.
Vltava (Vel-ta-va) : River that runs through Prague (German. Moldau).
Whet : Something that stimulates appetite or desire.
Wot : Know.
Would : Can be used in lieu of ‘wish’.
Yraigne : French. A sort of legendary fabric supposed to be as light and strong as a
spider’s web.
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