great expectations vocab stage 2

hackney-coachman

the driver of a horse-drawn coach for hire

hammercloth

cloth covering the driver’s box in a coach

equipage

a carriage used on formal occasions with horses, driver, and liveried servants

portmanteau

a stiff leather suitcase that opens into two compartments

magnanimous

generous in overlooking an injury or insult

Handel

George Frederick Handel (1685-1759), German-born English composer

perseverance

the quality of putting forth a continued, patient effort; persistence

asseverates

asserts

the City

the business, financial, and judicial district of London

venerated

deeply respected

abject

miserable; wretched

collation

a light meal

amiable

good-natured, friendly

Woolsack

the cushion on which the Lord Chancellor sits in the British House of Lords

mitre

an ornamental cap worn by a bishop

niggardly

miserly

**Brittania metal**

a base alloy used in making everyday tableware

freehold

real estate that can be passed on through inheritance

Macbeth

a famous tragedy by Shakespeare, noted for its scenes involving witches

morose

ill-tempered; gloomy

Roscian

pertaining to Roscius, a celebrated Roman comic actor

Telemachus

the son of the legendary Greek hero Odysseus;during the father’s twenty-two year absence, the boy was left in the care of Mentor, a name that has come to mean ‘wise teacher and loyal advisor’

labyrinth

a complicated maze

Denmark

the country that is the setting for Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet

Ophelia

a character in Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet who goes mad and drowns after Hamlet spurns her

Newgate

the principal prison of London from the thirteenth century until it was torn down in 1902. It was rebuilt after rioters burned it in 1780. Public executions were carried out in front of its gates from 1783 to 1867

facetious

joking, especially in an ironic way or at an inappropriate time

ostler

an innkeeper; a person who takes care of horses at an inn

Covent Garden

a market area of London famous for its many theaters and fashionable coffee houses

Lloyd’s

an association of merchants that specializes in insuring ships and publishing shipping information

‘Change

the Royal Exchange in London, where merchants meet to conduct business

exemplary

serving as a model

majority

the condition of having reached full legal age; twenty-one

injudicious

showing poor judgment

rubicund

reddish

The Temple

a large complex of buildings with apartments, on the Thames

inhospitably

in a manner that does not offer hospitality

abhorrence

disgust and loathing

repugnance

extreme dislike