The Devil's Arithmetic Vocabulary

The Devil's Arithmetic Vocabulary

Seder

a ceremonial Jewish dinner that is held the night of Passover

Yiddish

a high German language with a mixture of vocabulary from Hebrew and Slavic languages

Haggadah

a book containing the liturgy for the seder service

Guttural

a voice or sound that seems to be produced deep in someone’s throat

Compensation

something given as equivalent for not having something

Droned

to make a dull, continuous monotonous sound

Mortified

extremely offended, ashamed, or embarrassed

Kosher

fit or allowed to be eaten or used in the Jewish customs

Wisp

a thin mass of hair, grass, smoke, mist, etc.

Embroidered

to decorate with ornamental needlework

Hypnotic

making you feel tired or unable to pay attention to anything else, especially because of a regularly repeated sound or movement

Conspiratorial

describes an expression, voice, or manner that suggests you are sharing a secret with

Solemn

very serious (and often not happy, for example because something bad has happened or because you are at an important occasion)

Muse

to think about something for a long time

Gabbling

to say something so quickly that people cannot hear you clearly or understand you properly

Dainty

small, pretty, and delicate

Privy

a toilet, especially one outside a house in a small separate building

Bodice

a fitted vest or girdle worn by women underneath a dress

Plaits

braids

Coax

to convince them to come

Goyish

a non Jewish person

Jostling

to bump, push, or shove

Abrupt

sudden

Jester

a person who is sent before a king to make him laugh

Undecipherable

unable to be understood

Hastily

acting quickly

Adamantly

unyielding in attitude

Assent

agreement

Billeted

put somewhere to live, usually temporarily (often used in the military to mean soldiers assigned to live somewhere, such as a barracks)

Periphery

the boundaries of an area

Protruding

sticking out

Tremulous

trembling with fear

Impudent

rude, brazen

Vehemence

passion, strength

Discernible

able to be seen by looking carefully

Shorn

cut (past tense of “shear”: often used to talk about hair, grass, or sheep’s wool)

Unadorned

simple, plain

Garish

very brightly coloured in a way that is unpleasant to look at

Affirmation

accepting to be true

Ingrate

ungrateful person

Ominous

making you feel that something bad is going to happen

Dissipating

to scatter and disintegrate

Bellowing

roaring

Arbitrary

decided or arranged without any reason or plan, often unfairly

Fervor

passion

Elusive

difficult to find or not often seen; difficult to achieve; difficult to describe or understand

Raucous

rowdy, loud

Valise

a small suitcase or bag

Luminous

bright

Burnished

polished

Cleft

a natural crack in something, especially the surface of rocks or the Earth

Thudding

pounding

Pocked

marked with pits

Superimposed

to set over something else

Rations

a fixed allowance for provisions of food

Emigrated

to leave one country and settle in another

Remnants

what is left