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The Canterbury Tales

Page 175

by Geoffrey Chaucer


  369 corniculer assistant (n.)

  370 hente took ladde led

  371 weep wept

  372 loore teaching

  373 tormentoures executioners leve permission

  376 gonnen… to reve took away

  379 was woxen had become

  380 ifeere together

  383 leve beloved

  385 armeth yow arm yourselves

  386 ydoon performed

  394 conclusioun outcome

  395 nolde encense would not burn incense

  397 sad steadfast

  398 hevedes heads in the place on the spot

  400 say saw bitide happen

  403 cleernesse radiance

  404 wight person

  405 dide him… bete had him beaten

  406 whippe of leed whip with leaden balls attached to the thongs gan lete lost

  408 softely tenderly

  414 at by

  415 yaven gave

  417 withouten difference i.e. between God the Father and God the Son

  418 sentence opinion

  420 with o vois unanimously trowen believe sterve were to die

  421 doinge occurrence

  423 alderfirst first of all axinge question

  426 greve may displease

  428 han bigonne have begun folily foolishly

  429 conclude include

  430 lewedly stupidly

  431 similitude description

  433 freined asked

  434 Of from unfeined sincere

  437 to drede to be feared

  438–9 nis But is only

  440 blowe inflated

  441 leid ful lowe destroyed

  443 yet still perseveraunce continuation

  444 free noble

  446 han penaunce be punished

  447 But if unless withseye deny

  448 quit free

  449 nobleye nobles

  450 wood sentence mad judgement

  454 for because

  457 For as

  463 confus confused nicetee folly

  466 dissimuleth dissembles audience court hearing

  467 He restrains himself (outwardly) and mentally rages (n.)

  468 Unsely miserable

  475 side part

  476 dedly to the death

  479 maad a… lesing told a

  481 quike bring to life

  482 bireve take away

  483 leve permission

  486 naked weak

  487 Do wey stop

  489 recche care profre offer

  490 suffre endure

  493 nice foolish

  495 That I did not recognize your foolishness by it

  497 lewed ignorant vein justise worthless judge

  498 –9 Your outer eyes have all the characteristics of blindness

  502 rede advise

  503 taste feel

  507 woot know overal everywhere

  510 profite do good

  513 weex wrooth grew angry

  516 bad ordered

  517 gonne… shetten shut up

  518 under underneath betten kindled

  520 For al in spite of

  521 wo pain

  523 lete lose

  525 sonde messenger

  526 smoot struck

  527 tormentour executioner for no maner chaunce under no circumstances

  530 penaunce punishment

  531 ferthe fourth softe or soore gently or hard

  532 ne dorste did not dare

  533 ycorven cut

  536 shetes sheets yhent taken up

  539 fostred taught

  540 moebles movable property thing possessions

  541 bitook entrusted

  544 recommende commend

  545 do werche have made

  546 cherche church

  547 deknes deacons

  548 fette fetched

  551 halwed consecrated

  556 gan atake overtook

  558 surplis surplice (n.)

  559 hakeney horse pomely gris dappled grey

  560 swatte sweated

  561 priked galloped

  563 unnethe with difficulty

  564 peitrel straps going from the saddle round the horse’s chest foom sweat

  565 pie magpie

  566 male tweyfolde double bag croper crupper (strap attached to rear of saddle)

  567 array gear

  572 avised me reflected

  573 chanoun canon

  574 heeng hung laas cord

  575 moore than trot or paas faster than a trot or a walk

  576 lik as as if wood mad

  577 clote-leef burdock leaf

  578 swoot sweat

  580 stillatorye still, vessel used in distillation

  581 Were which was paritorye pellitory (a herb)

  583 joly lively

  588 morwe-tide morning

  590 warned told soverain superior

  591 fain eager

  592 desport amusement daliaunce sociable conversation

  593 good chaunce good luck

  595 deme believe

  596 jocunde entertaining leye bet

  597 oght at all

  598 glade may may entertain

  601 Nat but inogh quite enough

  602 And if

  605 emprise enterprise

  606 were would be

  607 but unless leere learn

  608 rit (= rideth) rides

  609 prow benefit

  610 forgoon lose

  611 leye in balaunce wager

  614 warne tell passing excellent

  620 kan knows subtilitee skill

  621 wite at learn from

  622 And yet I help his work to some extent

  625 clene completely

  632 worship good repute rekketh cares

  633 oversloppe cassock

  634 As in effect in fact

  635 baudy dirty to-tore torn

  636 sluttissh slovenly

  637 beye buy

  638 acorde with agrees with

  641 thee prosper

  642 avowe acknowledge

  645–6 overdoon carried to excess preve Aright turn out well

  647 lewed stupid nice foolish

  648 over-greet a wit too much intelligence

  652 no fors no matter

  653 konning skill woost know

  655 sly cunning

  656 if it to telle be if it can be told

  658 hernes out-of-the-way places blinde dark

  659 Whereas where by kinde customarily

  660 privee secret

  665 harde grace ill luck

  666 used accustomed

  668 wont accustomed prye gaze

  669 swinke soore labour hard multiplye practise alchemy (n.)

  670 blondren act in the dark pouren in gaze into

  671 faille of fail to achieve

  672 conclusioun successful result

  673 doon illusioun deceive

  676 wenen believe

  679 after it we grope we search for it

  680 so fer us biforn so far ahead of us

  682 slit (= slideth) awey slips away

  685 drough him drew

  689 Thinks that everything is being spoken about him, for sure

  691 sawe speech

  694 abye pay for

  696 that that which

  697 whatso bitide whatever happens

  698 threting threatening rekke nat a mite don’t care a farthing

  701 privetee secrets

  703 game fun

  704 kan know

  705 quelle kill

  707 bihete promise

  711 whatso whatever

  712 smerte pain

  713 meschief misfortune

  716 longeth belongs

  718 spare hold back

  721 neer nearer

  724 Ther whereas

  725 array accoutrements

  726 were an hose see n.

  728 wan livid leden leaden

  729 soore bit
terly rewe regret

  730 swink labour

  731 which what an multiplye see n. to CY 669

  732 slidinge slippery

  733 fare go

  734 endetted in debt

  736 quite repay

  737 be war by take warning from

  738 casteth him therto applies himself to it

  739 thrift ydo prosperity done for

  741 make his wittes thinne wear out his brains

  743 jupartye taking risks

  745 lese hir good lose their wealth

  746 shrewes villains

  747 disese hardship

  749 no charge no matter

  750 ff. see n. for technical terms in lines

  750–853 thereas where

  751 elvisshe magical

  752 clergial learned queinte esoteric

  753 feinte becomes exhausted

  758 bisye me exert myself

  759 orpiment trisulphide of arsenic brent burned iren squames iron flakes

  760 smal fine

  762 papeer pepper

  764 lampe lamp-shaped vessel

  766 enluting process of sealing with clay

  768 esy fir slow fire smerte hot

  769 care trouble

  770 subliming sublimation

  771 amalgaming blending calcening calcination

  772 yclept called

  773 sleightes tricks conclude succeed

  774 sublimed sublimated

  775 litarge lead monoxide porfurye porphyry slab

  776 certein a certain quantity

  778 spirites see n. ascencioun vaporization

  779 fix stable, not volatile

  782 a twenty devel weye in the devil’s name

  785 apertening belonging

  786 reherce repeat

  787 lewed uneducated

  789 sette hem in hir kinde classify them according to their nature

  790 bole armoniak Armenian bole (a red clay) vertgrees verdigris boras borax

  792 descensories retorts for distillation by condensation

  793 Violes phials crosletz crucibles sublimatories vessels used for sublimation

  794 Cucurbites gourd-shaped vessels used for distillation alembikes still-heads

  795 deere inogh a leek not worth a leek

  797 rubifying reddening boles bull’s

  798 Arsenik arsenic compounds sal armoniak ammonium chloride brimstoon sulphur (see n. to CY 820–24)

  800 egremoine agrimony lunarye ?moonwort

  801 me liste it pleased me

  802 lampes vessels

  804 fourneis furnace

  805 albificacioun whitening

  806 Unslekked lim unslaked lime gleire of an ey white of an egg

  807 donge dung

  808 Cered poketz waxed bags sal peter saltpeter

  809 cole charcoal

  810 Sal tartre salt of tartar, potassium carbonate alkali an alkaline substance obtained from the calcined ashes of plants sal preparat prepared salt

  811 combust burnt coagulat coagulated

  813 alum glas potash alum berm yeast wort unfermented beer argoile crude potassium bitartrate

  814 Resalgar realgar, disulphide of arsenic embibing moistening

  815 encorporing process of forming a compound

  816 citrinacioun the process of turning metal yellow

  817 cementing process for testing metal

  818 testes vessels used in assaying gold or silver

  820 spirites see n.

  821 nevene name

  826 Sol the sun Luna the moon threpe call

  832 theraboute on it

  833 lese lose

  834 outen display

  837–8 see n.

  839 al be he whether he is

  842 nice silly

  844 lewed lay subtiltee lore

  846 And whether he is literate or not

  849 multiplicacioun art of alchemy

  850 Ilike equally

  852 maken rehersaille enumerate

  853 corosif corrosive limaille metal filings

  854 mollificacioun softening

  855 induracioun hardening

  856 abluciouns cleansing processes (n.) fusible fusible, susceptible of being melted

  857 bible book, treatise

  858 owher anywhere

  861 reise summon up rowe rough, savage

  863 Elixir see n. sechen faste seek diligently

  864 him it siker inow quite sure

  867 sleighte ingenuity he it

  869 wexen wood go mad

  871 soore smerte suffer severely

  873 supposing assumption

  874 to seken evere always to be sought for

  875 temps time dissevere part

  877 sadde satiated

  881 brat cloak of coarse cloth

  883 stinte leave off

  887 rammissh rank

  889 savour smell

  892 prively privately

  893 unthriftily shabbily

  894 rownen whisper

  895 espied detected

  896 slee kill

  899 ydo placed

  901 tempreth blends

  904 Algate at any rate name reputation

  905 renneth in incurs

  906 wite ye do you know

  907 to-breketh breaks in pieces

  909 mowe may

  910 But if unless

  911 percen pierce

  913 bitimes straightway

  917 shrewe rascal

  921 Everyone grumbles and considers himself discontent

  922 long on on account of

  924 fered afraid

  925 lewed stupid nice foolish

  929 so thee’ch as I may prosper

  930 wheron it was long what it was on account of

  933 war eftsoone wiser next time

  934 right siker very sure crased cracked

  935 However it may be, do not be dismayed at all

  936 as swithe without delay

  937 Plukke pluck

  938 mullok rubbish ysweped swept

  939 ycast thrown canevas piece of canvas

  940 sive sieve ythrowe thrown

  941 ypiked picked over many a throwe many times

  946 We have to put our wealth at risk

  950 sauf safe

  951 fonde try

  952 plite condition

  953 wite blame

  955 over-hoot too hot

  957 That we always end badly

  962 as like

  964 at eye to the eye

  965 clappe jabber

  968 preef test

  971 By that by the time that

  974 greet large Ninivee Nineveh

  975 Alisaundre Alexandria

  979 falshede deceitfulness nis his peer there is none equal to him

  980 termes jargon

  981 sly wily

  983 doten become a fool

  984 But it a feend be unless it is a fiend

  989 governaunce behaviour

  990 audience a hearing

  993 desclaundre slander

  995 shrewe rascal

  997 rewe do penance for o singuler one individual

  998 nothing not at all

  999 that is mis what is wrong

  1001 othere mo others

  1005 By concerning

  1006 herkne listen to

  1007 covent (religious) house

  1008 Remove him promptly, I advise you

  1010 nothing not at all

  1012 preest annueleer priest who is retained to celebrate memorial masses for the dead

  1014 plesaunt agreeable servisable attentive

  1015 at table at board

  1016 suffre allow

  1017 wente he nevere so gaye however finely dressed he was

  1018 spending-silver pocket money right inow in plenty

  1019 no fors no matter

  1024 lene lend a certein a certain quantity

  1025 quite… agein pay back

  1026 marke sum of money equivalent t
o £ but only

  1029 do hange me have me hanged hals neck

  1030 took gave as swithe at once

  1031 ofte sithe many times

  1035 Wherof at which fain pleased

  1036 nothing anoyeth me it is no trouble to me

  1037 noble gold coin (g.)

  1040 breke… his day fail to pay punctually

  1043 thing yfallen occurrence al of newe for the first time

  1046 ellis God forbede God forbid that it should be otherwise

  1047 siker surely Crede Creed

  1048 in good time at a propitious moment (n.)

  1049 ivele apaid dissatisfied

  1052 privetee private affairs

  1053 goodlich kind

  1054 And shown me such great kindness

  1055 quite with repay

  1056 yow list to lere it pleases you to learn

  1058 philosophye alchemy

  1059 seen at eye see with (your own) eyes

  1060 maistrye tour de force

  1061 Ye yes

  1065 bede offer

  1066 profred volunteered

  1068 verifye prove true

  1071 impresse are fixed

  1072 meschief misfortune

  1073 dissimulinge dissembling

  1074 Noght wiste did not know delte was dealing

  1076 sely simple

  1077 blent blinded

  1078 gracelees unwary conceit mind, understanding

  1080 yshapen planned

  1081 wrenches tricks flee escape

  1083 refereth to concerns confusioun destruction

  1084 Unhappy unfortunate me hie hasten

  1085 unwit stupidity

  1087 konning ability

  1088 wene think

  1091 kan knows

  1093 dulleth distresses

  1096 Algates at any rate

  1097 reednesse redness

  1098 fumes vapours

  1099 reherce list

  1103 quiksilver mercury anoon without delay

  1105 as faste immediately

  1106 sey saw

  1110 anon again straight back

  1112 took gave

  1113 faire carefully

  1114 coles coals

  1116 yfet fetched

  1117 crosselet crucible

  1122 philosofre alchemist

  1126 mortifye harden (see n. to CY 1431–40)

  1131 And otherwise consider me false and unfit

  1134 Shal which shall

 

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