Stephen King's the Dark Tower: The Complete Concordance Revised and Updated

by Robin Furth

  PARTI: A brand of cigarettes once smoked by the inhabitants of End-World. V:560

  PASEAR: To take a little pasear around town is to take a short tour of the town, or a short wander around the town. V:584

  **PASS-ON-BY COUNTRY: Ugly country. The land between Pricetown and Tull is pass-on-by country.

  PATH OF THE BEAR, WAY OF THE TURTLE: The section of the Bear-Turtle Beam which leads from Shardik’s portal to the Dark Tower. Once the Dark Tower is reached and you begin to travel toward Maturin’s portal, you’re on the Path of the Turtle, Way of the Bear. In the final book of the Dark Tower series, the Path of the Bear, Way of the Turtle is called Beam of the Bear, Way of the Turtle. VI:15, VII:295

  PATRONO: A term used in Hambry which means employer or boss. It is very similar to the Spanish word “patrón.” IV:237

  PEAK SEAT: The seat at the front of a BUCKA WAGGON, where the driver sits. V:655

  PEDDLER (PEDDLER’S MOON): The late-summer moon. When the moon is full, you can see the squint-and-grin of the Peddler upon its face. This moon is also called Old Cheap Rover Man’s moon. See also MID-WORLD MOONS, at the beginning of this Concordance. V:37, VII:165

  PEELED OFF: Turned off, or left the path. V:42

  PEEP: A peep is an eye. W:36

  PENNY FOR EM, DIMMY-DA: Penny for your thoughts. VII:316

  PENNY, POSY, JACK’S A NOSY! DO YA SAY SO? YES, I DO-SO! HE’S MY SNEAKY, PEEKING DARLING BAH-BO!: This bit of “cradle nonsense” was sung to children in Mid-World. Roland would have known it well. VII:171

  PERT: Impertinent or impertinently. (Mercy of River Crossing is blinded with a branding iron for looking “pert” at some harriers.) However, it can also mean smart, leaning toward “smart-ass.” Coming from the right person, however, it can be meant somewhat admiringly. Gasher refers to Jake as “pert,” implying that he has a smart mouth but is also quick-witted and gutsy. III:328, III:351, III:356–57, VI:104

  PETTIBONE: An alcoholic drink. IV:251

  PIG-BACK: Roland’s term for “piggyback.” III:57

  PLUG: A plug in a mine is a fresh deposit, one that can be dug out for profit. W:56–57, W:64

  POINTING TO THE CENTER OF YOUR FOREHEAD: See MID-WORLD GESTURES

  POINTS (WICKETS): A Mid-World game much like baseball. In Mid-World it was played with croquet balls. I:96, V:236

  POISONING, THE: See GREAT POISONING, above

  POISONTHORN: A poisonous bush that people avoid. A person can also behave like a poisonthorn. W:122

  POKE: A small bag for carrying meat, tobacco, or other substances. We use this term in our world as well. I:21

  **POKEBERRIES: Waxy-skinned berries that taste like sweet cranberries. Like corn, this is one of the crops grown between Tull and Pricetown. V:245, VI:102, VII:716

  POKIE: A wandering cowboy not signed to any particular ranch. W:70

  POOKY: A pooky is huge, reddish snake with a spade-shaped head as big as a cooking pot. It has amber eyes with black slit pupils, glittering fangs, and a ribbon-like tongue which is split into a fork. A pooky’s bite paralyzes its victim, but does not kill it. (Pookies like to eat their prey alive.) For more page references, see POOKY in the CHARACTERS section. W:151

  POPKIN: A sandwich. II:45, V:175, VII:42, VII:503

  POSSE: A strong force, a company of men. II:342, VI:51

  POUR DOWN LEAD: To shoot a lot of bullets. W:58

  POXY WHORE: Nasty term for anything female. W:44

  PRAYER AFTER A SUCCESSFUL HUNT: Roland recites this prayer after he and Susannah successfully hunt down deer. The prayer is addressed to the head of a dead deer.

  We thank you for what we are about to receive.

  (Father, we thank thee.)

  Guide our hands and guide our hearts as we take life from death.

  (VII:636–37)

  PRIM: The magical soup of creation from which all life arose. It is sometimes called the Greater Discordia or the OVER. See also entry in CHARACTERS

  PRINK-A-DEE: A trinket. V:661

  PRODDIE: A proddie is a cowboy, or hired hand, assigned to a particular ranch. At the Jefferson Ranch, when a man signed on, he put his mark on the wall. W:70

  PROVING HONESTY: A physical exam used to verify physical and spiritual purity. The examiner checks virginity and looks for suck marks (left by demons). IV:132

  PUBES: A Pube is a young person. In Lud, which our KA-TET had to pass through during their Waste Lands journeys, the Pubes were the descendants of the city’s original inhabitants. Originally, the term Pube had been short for “pubescent”; however, by the time Roland and his ka-tet arrived in the city, the original Pubes had grown older than GAN and had marched to the CLEARING AT THE END OF THE PATH. Like their enemies the Grays, the descendants of the Pubes were riddled with diseases and were half-mad. They also played a game of chance in which the winner was lynched to please the demonic GOD-DRUMS. For more information about the Pubes, See entry in CHARACTERS. VII:84

  PULER: A young man. Cort uses this term to address Roland. We hear it again in Hambry. I:163

  PULING: Crying, moaning, and making a fuss. II:155, III:173

  PULL A COSY: To tell a half-truth, or to trick. Very similar to “pull a fast one.” W:86

  PRAY FOR RAIN ALL YOU LIKE, BUT DIG A WELL WHILE YOU DO IT: This was one of Big Jack Ross’s sayings. Basically, hope for the best but prepare for the worst. W:172

  PURSE: Roland’s scuffed swag-bag. V:45

  PUT ON YOUR THINKING CAP: As in our world, people in Mid-World tell puzzled children to put on their thinking caps. The story stems from the belief that the Guardians each carried an extra brain on the outside of their heads. They kept these brains in a hat. Actually, the “hats” were radar dishes. III:40

  QUESA: A dance similar to a simple reel. IV:209

  QUICKENED: A child quickens in the womb when it begins to move. V:480

  QUICKPIT: Pit of quicksand. III:251

  QUIRT: A whip. W:185

  RAIN, HEALTH, EXPANSION TO THE SPIRIT: This is a blessing used by Brown, the Border Dweller. I:19

  RAISED TO THE GUN: Gunslingers are raised to the gun, or trained to be fighters. W:36

  RANCHER’S DINNER: A big dinner, which is meant to fill you up for your chores. V:134

  REAP: Reap is both the season and the festival of harvest. In the days of Arthur Eld it was celebrated with human sacrifice, but by the time Roland was born, STUFFY-GUYS were thrown onto Reap bonfires instead of people. During the season of Reap, people decorate their houses, and their stuffy-guys, with Reap charms. Reap charms can also be painted on the body or worn like pendants. Although it is followed by the Year’s End festival, Reap is the true closing of the year. See STUFFY-GUYS, in CHARACTERS, MID-WORLD HOLIDAYS, in APPENDIX IV, and GILEAD FAIR-DAYS, at the beginning of this Concordance. V:13

  REAP CRACKERS: REAPTIDE firecrackers. V:226

  REAP MOON: The Reap Moon is the DEMON MOON. VII:229

  REAPTIDE: The time of REAP. V:202

  RED DEATH: The Red Death can be found in Edgar Allan Poe’s famous tale “Masque of the Red Death.” In Poe’s story we learn the symptoms of this awful plague. First, the sufferer complains of sharp pains, then of a sudden dizziness, and finally he or she begins to bleed profusely from all pores. The entire seizure—from first symptom until death—takes one-half hour. The people of Fedic were decimated by this terrible disease. VI:105, VI:243, VI:244

  RED PLAGUE: The Red Plague is probably the same as the RED DEATH. VII:429

  REDEYE: A strong intoxicating liquor. Also a tavern or bar. W:119

  REMEMBER THE FACE OF YOR FATHER. HE WATCHES YOU FROM THE CLEARING: Remain honorable because your ancestors are watching you. W:285

  REMUDA: A remuda is a corral. V:321, V:336, W:85

  RHEUMATIZ: Rheumatoid arthritis. See also DRY TWIST, above. V:240

  RHODITE: Big Jack Ross wore a lucky rhodite coin, or rhodite double, around his neck. However, knuckles of rhodite can be used as money. W:133

  RICE SONG: See RICE SON
G and COMMALA, both in CALLA BRYN STURGIS DIALECT

  RIDE THE HANDSOME: To Ride the Handsome is a Lud euphemism for dying. III:300

  RIDING DROGUE: Riding behind. V:128

  RITUAL OF RENUNCIATION: I CURSE THEE WITH THE ASHES! I CURSE THEE TO DARKNESS! YE LOST AND RENOUNCED!: Cordelia Delgado performs this ancient ritual when she utters these words and smears her niece Susan with ashes. It is meant to dishonor Susan and brand her as an outcast. IV:497

  ROCK-CATS: See entry in CALLA BRYN STURGIS DIALECT

  RODERICK, CHILDREN OF: See CHILDREN OF RODERICK, above

  ROLL IN (WHERE DID YOU ROLL IN?): Where did you sleep? W:82

  ROLLERS AND CHOCKER-TWISTS: Mid-World candy. The chocker-twists are chocolate twists. W:100

  ROOST ON (TO JUST ROOST ON): To remain in place. It implies pointless waiting and a sense of futility. V:172

  ROPE-SWINGERS: Cowboys. W:46

  ROSILLO: Susan Delgado calls her horse Pylon a rosillo. IV:239

  ROT, THE: A disease which often affects the Border Dwellers of the Mohaine Desert. It sounds a bit like leprosy. People suffering from this disease are called “rotters.” I:18

  RUN YOUR GUMS: To run at the mouth. To talk endlessly and uselessly. W:272

  RUSSEL: A slang term that means to take a woman by force. II:46

  RUSTIES (BARN RUSTIES): A large Mid-World blackbird. The bird’s name derives from its harsh squalling cry, a call slightly shriller than that of a crow. V:7, V:154, V:162, VI:23, VII:193 (barn rusties), VII:793

  RUSTIE WALKED OVER MY GRAVE (A RUSTIE HAD JUST WALKED OVER HIS GRAVE): “A cat stepped on my grave.” These kinds of phrases describe the deep chill or shiver we feel when someone’s statement (or something we experience) resonates with a deep, internal foreboding. V:103

  SADDLE BRIGHTWORK: The metal pieces on a saddle that catch the sun. W:58

  SAI: See entry in HIGH SPEECH

  SALIG: A salig looks like a crocodile or alligator and lives in the swamps of Mid-World. IV:70

  SALLY: Humorous reply, a riposte. W:54

  SALT-HOUSES: In Debaria, this is the term people use for the caverns in the cliff faces of the Salt Rocks or Salt Hills. In the past whole families lived in these places. The tunnels that went down into the earth from the backs of these caverns led to the salt mines. W:56, W:58.

  SALT-MOLE: A saltie, or salt miner. W:276

  SALTIE: one of the salt miners in Debaria. W:64

  SANDAY: In Mejis, this is the traditional cowboys’ day of rest. IV:282, IV:287

  SANDITCH: Roland’s pronunciation of sandwich. VII:42

  SAWBONES’ BAG: A doctor’s bag. VII:468

  SAWGRASS: A type of grass that grows in the Fagonard swamp. The blades are so sharp that they will cut you if you grab them. W:195

  SAWSEE: This is Roland’s confused term for “seesaw.” III:38

  SCREW YOU AND THE HORSE YOU RODE IN ON: This is another one of Zoltan’s favorite sayings. I:16

  SCRIP: Scrip has several definitions. 1. A lawyer. (VI:186). 2. Scrip is payment, but payment that isn’t in hard coin. If you’re paid in scrip, you’re essentially paid in a voucher for a certain shop, for example a company store or town mercantile. W:277

  SECRET CODE: This code is used by gunslingers when they communicate by carrier pigeon. The phrase below means “Farson moves east . . . Forces split, one big, one small. Do you see anything unusual.” IV:262

  SEE ME! SEE ME VERY WELL: Look at me. See also I SEE YOU VERY WELL, earlier in this section, and I SEE YOU VERY WELL in MID-WORLD GESTURES. V:172, VII:115

  SEE THE TURTLE OF ENORMOUS GIRTH: This is the first line of a well-known and well-loved Mid-World poem which invokes the spirit of the Turtle Guardian. Although there are many variations, Rosalita Munoz’s version goes like this:

  See the Turtle of enormous girth!

  On his shell he holds the earth,

  His thought is slow but always kind;

  He holds us all within his mind.

  On his back the truth is carried,

  And there are love and duty married.

  He loves the earth and loves the sea,

  And even loves a child like me. (VI:15)

  For more information and for page references, see GUARDIANS OF THE BEAM, in CHARACTERS

  SEEN THE BOAT SHE CAME IN: See entry in CALLA BRYN STURGIS DIALECT

  SELLIAN DIALECTS: Roland used to speak the Sellian dialects, but he has forgotten all but the curses. III:259

  SEND YOU WEST WITH THE BROKEN ONES WHO HAVE FORGOTTEN THE FACES OF THEIR FATHERS (TO SEND YOU WEST): In In-World-that-was, failed gunslingers were sent west in disgrace. Hence, this saying arose. V:568

  ’SENERS: Keroseners, or kerosene lights. V:438, V:506, V:561, VI:14

  SEPPE-SAI: See entry in HIGH SPEECH

  SERAPE: Worn in Mejis and New Canaan by both men and women. It is a bit like a poncho or cape. IV:282, IV:365

  SET MY WATCH AND WARRANT ON IT: You bet. I know it’s true. V:214

  SEVEN DIALS OF MAGIC: Vannay, Roland’s tutor, taught him about the Seven Dials of Magic. We have not, as yet, found out what they are. V:79

  SHADDIE: A bit of canvas used by cowboys in Debaria when they sleep under the stars. It won’t keep off the rain, but it will keep the cowboy from getting damp after dewfall. W:81

  SHAKING HIS KNEE: Pulling someone’s leg, teasing them, joking with them or lying to them. W:41

  SHANNIES: The pink-fleshed fish that live in the RIVER WHYE. (They are very tasty.) W:9

  SHARPROOT: This is one of Mid-World’s crops. V:1, V:151

  SHAVELING: A young man. W:97

  SHEEVIN (SH’VEEN): Literally speaking, sheevin means “quiet little woman.” In practice it means side-wife or mistress. IV:207, V:120

  SHEPPIE: A shepherd. W:105

  SHINNARO: In the alternative America where Eddie Dean is actually Eddie Toren, Shinnaro cameras are popular. VII:728

  SHIPMATE’S DISEASE: This malady is caused by nutritional deficiencies brought on by a lack of fruit and greens. In The Drawing of the Three, Roland and Eddie begin to suffer from this even though they are on dry land. II:268

  **SHOOT-UP MONEY: Money gained from the gun. It can be money earned by a hired gunman.

  SHOOTING-IRON: A gun. V:20, V:319, VII:47

  SHOR’BOOTS: Short boots. W:230

  SHORT BEER: See entry in CALLA BRYN STURGIS DIALECT

  SHORTS: Half-sized smokes. VII:310

  SHUCKIES: Corn shucks used to roll smokes. VI:299

  **SHUT YOUR QUACK: Shut up.

  SIDE LINE OF DESCENT: Descended from a jilly. The line of Deschain is a side line of descent. In other words, Roland’s ancestor was born to one of Arthur Eld’s side-wives. IV:184

  SIGHE: The sighe are Mid-World’s fairyfolk. They are tiny people with green skin and wings. They are beautiful but treacherous. W:164, W:170, W:182–83

  SIGUL: A sigul is a sign, symbol, or insignia which is secret but full of meaning. It often has religious, political, or magical significance. John Farson’s sigul is the same as that of the Crimson King—a staring red eye. III:353, VI:14, VI:65, VI:327, VII:26

  **SILFLAY: To graze. This term comes from the novel Watership Down.

  SILK-ARSE GENNELMAN: This is a crass Lud-term for somebody who is well-bred. III:354

  SILVA COMPASS: This is a kind of compass used in Roland’s world. In The Gunslinger, one of the Border Dwellers gives Roland a stainless-steel Silva compass and bids him give it to Jesus. I:15

  SILVER METAL: What you paint on warts to make them go away. V:479

  SIMOOM: A kind of windstorm that blows over Debaria during the simoom season. PRODDIES and POKES hate them, because if they’re out on the range they have to sleep rough and can’t light a fire since the flames could easily spread. W:83, W:100

  SINGLETS: In our world, a singlet is an undershirt or vest worn under other clothes. Cort wears a singlet when he battles the apprentices. I:167, V:403

  **SISSA: Sister.

  SKIDDUMS: T
hese are the shacks in Little Debaria where some of the miners sleep. The skiddums aren’t much, but at least they aren’t underground. W:275

  SKIN-MAN: Skin-men are shapeshifters, or beings that can change from human to animal form. They are also shapechangers, or creatures that can assume multiple forms. Although skin-men were thought to be legendary creatures, the out-world town of Debaria was stalked by one. Hence Steven Deschain sent Roland and his friend Jamie DeCurry to hunt it down. The skin-man turned out to be a SALTIE who had been exposed to one of the Old People’s ARTYFAX. In his myriad bestial forms, the skin-man had a taste for human flesh and human brains. See also SKIN-MAN in the CHARACTERS section. W:40

  SKIN-TURNER: A skin-man, or shapechanger. W:274

  SKIT: To skit in the wind is to become skittish. Some mules skit in the wind. W:88

  SKÖLDPADDA: A turtle. See GUARDIANS OF THE BEAM: TURTLE GUARDIAN, in CHARACTERS

  SLEWFEET: Roland’s term for noisy trackers. V:44

  SLINKUM: A strap-style undershirt. VII:518. W:6

  SLIP THE SILK (TO SLIP THE SILK or TO SLIP THE ROPE): To marry. W:116

  SLO-TRANS ENGINES: Mid-World’s technology was one of unipolar circuits, dipolar circuits, and slo-trans technology. Blaine’s engines are slo-trans engines. Slo-trans technology was supposed to be immune to malfunction, but this is obviously not the case, since Blaine himself admits that he is going mad. IV:14, V:72, V:371

  SLOW MUTANTS: Slow Mutants are creatures damaged by radiation poisoning. They were the result of the Old Ones’ disastrous wars. See MUTANTS: SLOW MUTANTS, in CHARACTERS

  SLOWKINS FROM THE EYBROWS UP: If you’re called a slowkins from the eyebrows up, someone is implying that you are slow or a bit thick. (Not very nice.): W:288

  SLUGGARDLY: Slow. W:126

  SLUMGULLION: This is a derogatory term for a man. III:249

  SLUT OF THE WINDS: Roland’s term for the female spirits who have sex (consensual or not) with traveling men. Often, these demonic sluts are deadly. VI:370

  SMA’: Small. W:64