Romeo and Juliet: Acts 3–5 Vocabulary and Key Concepts

Vocabulary terms, literary devices, and historical context definitions derived from the Romeo and Juliet Acts 3-5 lecture notes and quiz.

Calamity

A great misfortune or disaster; Friar Lawrence tells Romeo he is "wedded to calamity" in Act 3.3.

Abhor

To regard with extreme repugnance or hatred; Juliet says her heart "abhors" to hear Romeo's name in Act 3.5.

Beguile

To influence by trickery or flattery; to mislead. Paris laments being "beguiled" by Juliet’s death in Act 4.5.

Fester

To rot or decay; Juliet fears Tybalt will be "fest’ring in his shroud" in Act 4.3.

Apothecary

A person who prepared and sold medicines and drugs; Romeo seeks a "caitiff wretch" apothecary in Act 5.1 for illegal poison.

Paramour

An illicit lover; Romeo asks if death keeps Juliet in the dark to be his "paramour" in Act 5.3.

Vile submission

Mercutio's term for Romeo's refusal to fight Tybalt in Act 3.1.

Twain

Meaning "separated"; Juliet becomes this from her Nurse at the end of Act 3 when support fails.

42-hour sleeping potion

The specific duration of the "desperate execution" potion the Friar proposes to Juliet in Act 4.

Infectious pestilence

The historical context (Bubonic Plague) that leads to Friar John's quarantine and the failed delivery of the letter to Romeo.

Glooming peace

The state of reconciliation between the Capulets and Montagues following the protagonists' deaths in Act 5.3.

Double entendre

A literary device used by Juliet in Act 4.1 to speak the truth about Romeo without Paris understanding her meaning.

Desperate pilot

A metaphor Romeo uses for himself in Act 5.3, describing his suicide as crashing into rocks in defiance of "inauspicious stars."

Mad blood

A phrase used by Benvolio in Act 3.1 describing the mood of the "hot day" that leads to tragedy.

Oxymoron

A literary device Juliet uses (e.g., "beautiful tyrant", "fiend angelical") to reflect her internal conflict after Romeo kills Tybalt.