Chapter 34 - The Cabin-Table — Vocabulary
Moby-Dick; or, The Whale by Herman Melville — key words and definitions
Vocabulary Words from Chapter 34 - The Cabin-Table
- menial
- A domestic servant or person of low social status; also used as an adjective meaning servile or lowly.
- deferential
- Showing respectful submission or courteous regard for another's wishes.
- deprecatory
- Expressing disapproval or a wish to belittle oneself; apologetic and self-effacing.
- circumspection
- The quality of being wary and unwilling to take risks; careful consideration of consequences.
- tantamount
- Equivalent in seriousness, effect, or value to something else.
- subaltern
- A person of lower rank or status; in military usage, an officer below the rank of captain.
- residuary legatees
- Persons who receive the remainder of an estate after all other specific bequests have been made.
- abstemious
- Not self-indulgent, especially with regard to eating and drinking; moderate and restrained.
- ostentatiously
- In a way designed to attract attention and impress others; showily.
- sedentary
- Tending to spend much time seated; characterized by much sitting and little physical activity.
- binnacle
- A stand or housing for a ship's compass, typically located near the helm.
- carlines
- Short timbers running fore and aft between the deck beams of a ship; ceiling supports in the cabin.
- scimetars
- An archaic spelling of scimitars — short, curved swords associated with Middle Eastern and Asian warriors.
- dexterous
- Showing skill and cleverness, especially with the hands; nimble and adroit.
- pallid
- Pale, especially because of poor health or fear; lacking intensity of color or vitality.