ACT IV - Scene IV — Vocabulary

Vocabulary Words from ACT IV - Scene IV

cot-quean (noun)

A man who busies himself with household tasks traditionally managed by women; used as a teasing insult.

mouse-hunt (noun)

Elizabethan slang for a man who prowls after women, much as a cat hunts mice.

loggerhead (noun)

A blockhead or fool; also literally a heavy wooden block, creating a pun with log-carrying.

watching (noun (gerund))

Staying awake through the night; keeping a vigil rather than sleeping.

baked meats (noun)

Pies, pastries, and other dishes baked in an oven; a standard part of Elizabethan feast preparation.

pastry (noun)

The room in a large household where pastry and baked goods were prepared; not the food itself.

whoreson (noun/adjective)

Literally "son of a whore"; used colloquially in Elizabethan English as a casual, often affectionate, term meaning rascal or fellow.

curfew bell (noun)

A bell rung at a fixed hour in the evening or early morning to signal the time; originally a signal to cover fires and go indoors.

trim (verb)

To dress, adorn, or make ready in appearance; here meaning to prepare Juliet for her wedding.

jealous hood (noun)

A jealous person; "hood" was used as a suffix suggesting a type of person or a head-covering, implying someone whose jealousy is their defining trait.