Chapter 36 - The Quarter-Deck — Vocabulary

Vocabulary Words from Chapter 36 - The Quarter-Deck

imprecations

Spoken curses or appeals for evil to befall someone.

inscrutable

Impossible to understand or interpret; mysterious.

blasphemous

Sacrilegious; showing contempt or disrespect for God or sacred things.

acquiescence

The reluctant acceptance of something without protest.

maledictions

Curses; utterances calling down evil or injury upon someone.

volition

The faculty or power of using one's will; a deliberate choice or decision.

razeed

Cut down or reduced in height; originally a naval term for removing the upper deck of a ship to make it lighter.

binnacle

A stand or housing on a ship's deck for the compass and a light.

top-maul

A heavy hammer used aboard ships, typically for driving bolts or nails.

parmacetty

A dialectal or colloquial form of "spermaceti," referring to a sperm whale.

capstan

A broad revolving cylinder on a ship's deck, used for winding a rope or cable.

quailed

Shrank back in fear; showed signs of faltering or losing resolve.

presaging

Serving as a sign or warning that something (typically bad) will happen; foreboding.

bigotry

Here used in an older sense meaning obstinate devotion to a belief or purpose, rather than the modern sense of intolerance.

cordage

Ropes or cords collectively, especially the rigging of a ship.

condescension

The act of lowering oneself to do something considered beneath one's dignity; here used positively to mean gracious humility.