primero a card game
primogeneity primogeniture, the inheritance rights of the oldest son
principal accomplice; corner- post of a house
principality one of the orders of angels
princox impertinent youth
Priscian Roman grammarian
pristine original, of old
prithee‘(I) pray thee’, please
private privacy; common subject; private communication
privilege sb. something that bestows a privilege; advantage; v. sanction, permit
prize sb. fight, bout; privilege; v. esteem, care for
prizer prizefighter
probal reasonable
probation proof; testing, trial
proceeders scholars
process sequence of events; relation, story; mandate, summons
procurator proxy, substitute
prodigious ominous; unnatural; Launce’s word for ‘prodigal’
proditor betrayer
proface an expression of welcome
profit sb. learning, advancement; v. learn, advance
progeny ancestry, lineage
Progne wife of Tereus and sister of Philomel (seePhilomel); after learning of Philomel’s rape she obtained revenge by serving Tereus the flesh of their son at dinner
prognostication prophecy; weather forecast
Proh Deum! Medius Fidius!‘By God! Holy Fidius (i.e. Jupiter) [help] me!’ (Lat.)
project sb. thought, anticipation; v. present
projection scale
prolixious time-wasting
prolong’d postponed
Promethean of Prometheus (seePrometheus)
Prometheus legendary figure who stole fire from the gods to give to man and was punished by being shackled to a mountain where an eagle pecked at his liver
promulgate make publicly known
prone prostrate; eager, headstrong
proof testing, trial; tried and tested armour; success
propend incline
propension propensity, desire
proper personal, own; decent, fine
property sb. individual quality; instrument; v. obtain; exploit, treat as an object
proportion fortune; number, magnitude; lay the proportions = estimate the numbers needed
propose sb. talk; v. hold forth, talk
propriety true nature or identity
propugnation protection
prorogue postpone, put off; prolong
prosecution pursuit, attack
Proserpina, Proserpine maiden abducted by Pluto while she gathered flowers and then imprisoned in the underworld
prosperous favourable, leading to a desirable outcome
Proteus mythological figure able to change his shape
protractive delaying
proud resplendent, luxurious
provand seeprovender
prove test, try out, put on trial; ascertain
provender food, fodder
provincial subject to provincial jurisdiction; Provincial rose = (Provençal) rose with many petals
prune preen
psaltery stringed musical instrument
publish proclaim; publicly represent
pudder seepother
pudding stuffed intestine, sausage
pudency modesty
pueritia boyhood (Lat.)
pugging thieving
puissance strength; troops
puissant strong, overpowering
puke-stocking (wearing) heavy dark woollen stockings
pumpion pumpkin
punk whore, slut
punto (in fencing) thrust (Ital.); punto reverso = back-handed thrust (Ital.)
purblind blind or weak-sighted
purchase plunder; marketable value of a property, equal to twelve years’ rent
purgation acquittal; confession and absolution
purl curl
purlieus vicinity of a forest
purpose talk; proposal
pursuivant herald’s attendant
pursy flabby, short of breath
purveyor one who travels ahead of a party on the move to prepare for its arrival
push sb. crisis; action; int.‘pish’; stand the push = stand up to, tolerate
push-pin a children’s game
pussel obsolete spelling of pucelle (Fr., virgin), but with a derogatory sense of ‘prostitute’
putter-off investor who is repaid five-fold upon returning from a foreign voyage
putter-on one who instigates or incites
puttock kite
puzzel slut
pyramid obelisk, pillar
quail sb. whore; v. overpower; slacken
quaint skilful; ingenious, artful; dainty, pretty
qualify pacify; moderate; dilute
quality nature; accomplishment; rank; profession; company
quare why (Lat.)
quarry game killed in hunting
quarter military location, watch; relations
quat pimple
quatch (?) plump
quean slut
queasy dangerous; easily upset; sickened
quench cool down
quern (?) handmill; (?) churn
quest sb. jury, inquest; search; v. bark
question sb. conversation; trial, examination, consideration; v. talk (to), discuss; in the loss of question = for the sake of argument; on the top of question = with the maximum of contention
questionable which invites questioning
questrist seeker
Qui me alit, me extinguit‘Who feeds me extinguishes me’ (Lat.)
quick living; pregnant; lively; fresh
quicken bring to life, fertilize; come to life, be conceived; make lively
quiddities quibbles
quietus clearing of accounts
quill, in the (?) in a body; (?) in order
quillets, quillities quibbles
quintain post for tilting practice
quis who (Lat.)
quit release from service; acquit; remit; pay; reward, requite
quite seequit
quiver nimble
Quo usque tandem‘How long?’ (Lat.), expression of impatience
quoif seecoif
quondam former (Lat.)
quoniam because (Lat.)
quote note; observe; set down
quotidian daily fever; quotidian tertian = (?) Quickly’s confusion of two types of fever; (?) a severe fever of more than one strain
R letter meant to sound like the growling of a dog
rabbit-sucker baby rabbit
race hereditary nature; course; (of horses) stud; (of ginger) seeraze (sb.)
rack sb. cloud or bank of clouds; v. stretch, as on a rack; tax at an extortionate rate
racker torturer (cf.rack)
rage sb. poetic inspiration (cf. fury); v. enrage
raging-wood crazy with anger
raisins o’th’ sun grapes dried naturally in the open air
ramp slut
rampallian rogue
ramping as heraldic ‘rampant’, rearing up in an aggressive stance
rampir’d barricaded or protected by ramparts
rangers gamekeepers
rank sb. journey; adj. excessively grown or swollen, bloated; sexually excited; v. tier
rankle make sore, aggravate
rankness excessive growth or swelling
ransack’d stolen, taken as plunder
rap possess, overcome
rapture violent seizure; paroxysm
rascal sb. young, skinny deer; adj. common
rash adj. sudden, hasty, violent; adv. hastily
rate sb. estimation, value; manner, style; v. berate, revile; estimate, evaluate; be valued at; give (a share)
rather, the all the sooner, all the more so
ratified brought into ‘rate’ or proportion
raught reached
ravel tangle; untangle
raven seeravin (v.)
ravin adj.
ravenous; v. gulp, swallow eagerly
ravin’d (?) ravenous; (?) having gorged itself
ravish violate; seize, tear; enthrall
ravished seized from
rawness unprotected condition
rayed soiled
raze sb.(of ginger) root; v. scrape, cut
razure erasure, destruction
reach range of understanding
read lecture, tutor
re-answer repay
reason sb. something reasonable; talk, discourse; way of thinking; just cause; v. talk; ask, plead; argue rationally about; explain; no reason = nothing for it
reasonable of reason
reave deprive
rebate dampen
rebato type of stiff collar or ruff
rebeck an early ancestor of the violin
receipt something received; receptacle; volume; recipe
receiving apprehension, perception
recheat call on a hunting horn
reck care, take account of
reckless thoughtless, having no care for
reclaim overcome; domesticate (an animal)
recognizance bond acknowledging a debt; badge
recoil fall back, give way
recollect collect
recomforted comforted, reassured
recommend commend, entrust; report to
record sing
recordation record, memorial
Recorder civil magistrate of a city
recourse access; repeated flowing
recover revive, restore; obtain, reach; recover the wind = allow the hunted quarry to smell the hunt on the wind (cf.wind)
recoverable able to be recovered or retraced
recreation repast, refreshment
rector priest; ruler
rectorship sovereignty
recure cure, heal, repair
rede guidance, instruction
Redime te captum quam queas minimo ‘Ransom yourself from captivity as cheaply as you can’ (Lat.)
red-lattice an alternative to glass windows found in taverns
reduce bring or lead back
reechy grimy with smoke or grease
reed voice breaking, adolescent voice
re-edify rebuild
reek sb. smoke, fumes; v. be exhaled in the form of smoke or fumes
refel reject
reflect shine; look; rebound, throw back
refuge sb.(last) resort; v. screen, comfort
regard sb. face, expression, look; sight; consideration; heed; v. respect, pay attention to; tend
regiment authority
region stratum of the atmosphere, sky
regreet sb. greeting; reciprocal greeting; v. greet again
reguerdon sb. reward; v. reward
rehearsal account, repetition
rehearse tell, repeat
reins kidneys
rejoicer (?) encourager
rejoindure union; reunion
rejourn postpone
relation report
relative cogent, material
religion dutifulness, keen attention; superstition
religious dutiful, conscientious, assiduous
relinquish dismiss, abandon
relish sb. taste, quality; v. taste; flavour; please; sing elaborately
relume reignite
remainder someone remaining; money yet to be paid
remediate acting as a remedy
remember commemorate; remind; mention
remission pardon for an offence, hence desire or power to pardon; release from an obligation
remit give up
remonstrance manifestation
remorse compassion, sensitivity; (?) obligation
remorseful sensitive, compassionate
remotion relocation
remove raising of a siege
removedness withdrawal, absence
remover person who changes or withdraws
render sb. surrender; confession; (?) due service; v. surrender; report
rendezvous meeting place; home, refuge
renege deny; abandon
renew renew a battle
repair sb. act of making one’s way; v. make one’s way
repairing resilient
repasture food
repeal sb. recall (from exile); v. recall (from exile)
repetition utterance, narration; repetitive talk; talk of former events
repine fretting, vexation
repining grudging
replenished total, consummate
replication reply; repetition for the purposes of elaboration or illustration
reprisal booty
reprobance damnation
reprobate sinful
reproof condemnation; disproof
reprove deny, disprove
repugn repel, reject
repugnancy fighting back
repugnant recalcitrant, rebellious
repured refined
repute judge, hold; make a reputation (of), broadcast
requiring stern commands
requit requited
reremice bats
rescue forcible retrieval of a person or goods from custody
resemblance seeming
resist (?) repel, disgust
resolution certainty
resolve dissolve; solve, provide an answer; satisfy
resolvedly with clarification
respect sb. consideration; respectablity, worth; v. consider; value; without respect = absolutely
respective respectful; careful; equivalent, parallel
respectively respectfully
respice finem‘think on your end’ (Lat.)
respite end of a period of respite
responsive appropriate, matching
’rest arrest
rest sb. stay, sojourn; v. remain; above the rest = above all; in rest = under arrest, detained; set up one’s rest = resolve, stake all (from a card game)
resting changeless
restrain restrict, withold
restrained tightly drawn
resty lethargic, idle
retention detention; record, notebook; holding capacity
retentive restraining, detaining
retire sb. retreat; v. retreat; withdraw; make retire = withdraw
retort reject, throw back
retrograde (of a planet) moving backwards, hence contrary
return sb. reply; v. reply
reverb sound as a reverberation
reverberate reverberating, echoing
reverse‘punto reverso’ (see punto)
reversion inheritance or restoration of property to an original owner viewed as a future event
re-view, review see once more
revolt change or transfer (of allegiance); disgust; rebel
revolution turn, as of Fortune’s or Time’s wheel; turning of the thoughts
revolve consider, dwell on
rhapsody confused heap
Rhenish Rhine wine
rheum catarrhal or lachrymal discharge, seen in chronic cases as a morbid condition and sometimes linked with venereal disease
ribaudred (?) ribald (licentious); (?) ‘ribald-rid’ (ridden by a ribald man); (?) knackered with ribaldry
riggish licentious
right adv. straight; correctly; justly; in right of = in the name of
right-hand file aristocracy
rigol circle
rim peritoneum, abdominal membrane
ring, cracked within the see crack
ring-carrier bawd
ringlet fairy ring; fairy dance
riot revelling, partying
ripe adj. ready; urgent; of marriageable age; v. ripen
rivage shore
rival sb. fellow, colleague; v. compete
rivality equality
rive burst, crack
rivelled wrinkled
rivo a cheer at drinking (Sp.)
road raid, inroad; leg of a journey; anchorage, harbour
robust
ious turbulent
rogue vagrant
roguing roving, vagrant
roguish vagabond’s
roisting wild, boisterous
Roman (of handwriting) italic
rondure circle, sphere (cf.roundure)
ronyon mangy animal; term of abuse for a woman
rook crouch
ropery lewd jesting
Roscius great Roman actor
roted acquired or learnt by rote
round sb. earth; ring-dance; circular journey; rung; adj. direct; adv. thoroughly; v. surround; grow round; whisper mysteriously
roundel ring-dance
roundly without fuss or ceremony, directly; fluently; completely
roundure ring, circle (cf.rondure)
rouse sb. drink or drinking session; v.(in hunting) drive from cover
rowell spur
royal sb. coin worth ten shillings; royal merchant = successful merchant
royalty right granted to a subject by the king; crown
roynish scabby, dirty
rub sb.(in bowls) something that impedes or deflects the bowl from its course; v. sidetrack; rub on = roll on
rubious ruby-red
ruddock robin
rude rough, unskilled, unsophisticated
rudeness roughness, lack of skill or sophistication
rudesby ruffian
rue pity
ruffle sb. hectic activity and quarrels; v. brag; handle roughly; fight; ruffle up = enrage
rugged bristling
rug-headed having long, wild hair
ruinous in ruins, damaged
rummage busy activity, as on a ship
rumour confused din; rumoured character
rump-fed (?) fed on choice cuts; (?) having fat buttocks
runagate renegade, apostate
runnion see ronyon
russet reddish-brown, the colour of a coarse cloth worn by peasants
ruth repentance; pity
Saba the Queen of Sheba
sable sb. blackness; adj. black
sables magnificent dark furs
sack white wine, often sherry
sackbut brass instrument resembling the trombone
Sackerson a famous bear from the London bear-baiting scene
sacring bell small bell used in Protestant times to summon parishoners to prayers
sad serious, solemn; dark- coloured
sadly seriously, soberly
sadness seriousness; in sadness = in earnest, truly
safe adj. well, sound; adv. with regard to security; v. make safe
safety custody
saffron a dye used in both clothing and food
Sagittary a centaur that fought against the Greeks in the Trojan war
sail fleet
sain said
salad days youth
salamander species of lizard supposedly able to live in fire
sale-work ready-made goods
Salic law French law blocking females and their descendants from succession to the crown
The Arden Shakespeare Complete Works Page 586
