The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Vocabulary

Apocryphal

(adjective): of doubtful authenticity

“I took the liberty of pointing out to my gentleman that the whole business looked apocryphal, and that a man does not, in real life, walk into a cellar door at four in the morning and come out with another man's cheque for close upon a hundred pounds.”

Austere

(adjective): morally strict; simple or undecorated

“He was austere with himself; drank gin when he was alone, to mortify a taste for vintages; and though he enjoyed the theater, had not crossed the doors of one for twenty years.”

Conflagration

(noun): a large, disastrous fire

“…there would be a glow of a rich, lurid brown, like the light of some strange conflagration.”

Coquetry

(noun): a flirtatious act or attitude

“…their way led them down a by-street in a busy quarter of London. The street was small and what is called quiet, but it drove a thriving trade on the weekdays. The inhabitants were all doing well, it seemed and all emulously hoping to do better still, and laying out the surplus of their grains in coquetry.”

Disquietude

(noun): anxiety or agitation

“The lawyer stood awhile when Mr. Hyde had left him, the picture of disquietude. Then he began slowly to mount the street, pausing every step or two and putting his hand to his brow…”

Eddy

(noun): whirlpool

“…he could not help a certain apprehension lest the good name of another should be sucked down in the eddy of the scandal.”

Enigma

(noun): something hard to understand or explain

“‘Sir,’ said I, affecting a coolness that I was far from truly possessing, ‘you speak enigmas, and you will perhaps not wonder that I hear you with no very strong impression of belief.’”

Estrange

(verb): to cause someone to be no longer close or affectionate; to alienate

“‘Such unscientific balderdash,’ added the doctor, flushing suddenly purple, ‘would have estranged Damon and Pythias.’”
* Damon and Pythias are characters in Greek mythology, representing trust and loyalty in true friendship

Florid

(adj): very flowery in style; elaborately decorated

“Even on Sunday, when it veiled its more florid charms and lay comparatively empty of passage, the street shone out in contrast to its dingy neighbourhood, like a fire in a forest.”

Heresy

(adj): a deviation from a dominant theory, opinion, or practice

“‘I incline to Cain's heresy,’ he used to say quaintly: ‘I let my brother go to the devil in his own way.’”

Mien

(noun): demeanor or expressive appearance

“The middle one of the three windows was half-way open; and sitting close beside it, taking the air with an infinite sadness of mien, like some disconsolate prisoner, Utterson saw Dr. Jekyll.”

Odious

(adj): appalling; awful; distasteful

A flash of odious joy appeared upon the woman's face. "Ah!" said she, "he is in trouble! What has he done?”

Pedantically

(adverb): in the manner of one who flaunts useless knowledge

“If you have been inexact in any point you had better correct it."
"I think you might have warned me,” returned the other with a touch of sullenness. "But I have been pedantically exact, as you call it.

Peevishly

(adverb): ill-tempered; prone to whining

“What, what? Are you all here?" said the lawyer peevishly. "Very irregular, very unseemly; your master would be far from pleased."

Protege

(noun): one whose career is furthered by a person of experience or influence

“Did you ever come across one protégé of his––one Hyde?” he asked.

Repugnance

(noun): a strong dislike or distaste

“And yet when I looked upon that ugly idol in the glass, I was conscious of no repugnance, rather of a leap of welcome.”

Sedulous

(adj): diligent; careful; persevering

"One moment. I thank you, sir;" and the clerk laid the two sheets of paper alongside and sedulously compared their contents. "Thank you, sir," he said at last, returning both; "it's a very interesting autograph."

Sordid

(adj): arousing moral distaste or contempt

“It was two storeys high; showed no window, nothing but a door on the lower storey and a blind forehead of discoloured wall on the upper; and bore in every feature, the marks of prolonged and sordid negligence.”

Stringent

(adj): strict or severe, especially in regard to rules

“A great curiosity came on the trustee, to disregard the prohibition and dive at once to the bottom of these mysteries; but professional honour and faith to his dead friend were stringent obligations.”

Turpitude

(noun): wickedness; vileness

“As for the moral turpitude that man unveiled to me, even with tears of penitence, I can not, even in memory, dwell on it without a start of horror.”