| Term | Definition |
|---|
| "Five husbands . . . at the church door" | In Chaucer's time, a wedding was performed at the church door and not inside the church or chapel. |
| Abominable | hateful; horrid; awful |
| Acquiesce | to agree; to consent |
| Acquittal | the act of freeing from a charge or accusation |
| Amiss | wrong; awry |
| Arbitrate | to act as judge, to decide disputes |
| Argus . . . pull his beard | a mythological giant with a hundred eyes whose duty was to guard a mortal (Io) whom Zeus loved. By Chaucer's time the word referred to any observant, vigilant person or guardian. |
| Array | splendid attire; finery; dress |
| Arrears | an unpaid, overdue debt |
| Avail | usefulness |
| Avarice | greed; a passion for wealth |
| Avicenna | an Arabian physician (980-1037) who wrote a work on medicines that includes a chapter on poisons. |
| Avouches | to declare the provable truth or validity of; affirm |
| Benefice | a church office endowed with fixed capital assets that provide a living |
| Benign | of a kind and gentle disposition |
| Bequeath | to leave material goods in a will |
| Beseech | to make an earnest request |
| Blithely | lightheartedly; festively; merrily |
| Buffoon | a person given to clowning and joking |
| Burgess | a citizen of an Engligh borough (town) |
| Caprices | whims |
| Carouses | to behave riotously; to revel |
| Cheapside and Fish Streets | streets in London that were known for the sale of strong spirits. |
| Chide | to criticize for a fault or offense |
| Chivalry | the medieval system, principles, and customs of knighthood |
| Constancy | faithfulness; fidelity |
| Contrive | to plan |
| Conundrum | a mystery; a puzzle |
| Coy | reserved, shy or modest |
| Dais | a raised platform |
| Daunted | deprived of courage as a result of fear, anxiety, or disgust |
| Deferred | postponed; delayed |
| Demure | reserved in manner; shy; modest |
| Derision | mockery; ridicule |
| Diligence | steady attention and effort |
| Dirk | a dagger |
| Discreet | having or showing careful judgment in speech and action; prudent; tactful |
| Disdain | the act of treating with contempt or scorn |
| Dunmow Fliatcah | a prize awarded to the married couple in Essex who had no quarrels, no regrets, and, if the opportunity presented itself, would remarry each other. The Wife is still establishing the right of more than one marriage. |
| Duress | constraint by threat |
| Ecclesiasticus | Ecclesiaste,See xxv: 29. |
| Eminent | of high rank, distinguished |
| Engendering | the process of bringing into existence |
| Enthralled | enchanted; fascinated |
| Eschew | to stay away from |
| Estimable | deserving of esteem; admirable |
| Excommunication | the act of depriving one of the right of church membership by ecclesiastical authority |
| Exhortation | speech that incites |
| Extort | to obtain from another by intimidation or blackmail |
| Feigned | artificial; counterfeited; faked |
| Felicity | great happiness; bliss |
| Flinch | to betray pain with an involuntary gesture |
| Frugal | thrifty |
| Frugality | thriftiness (the act of being thrifty) |
| Glib | performed with a natural, offhand ease |
| Gluttony | the vice of continually overeating |
| Inciting | stirring to action |
| Insinuations | innuendoes; indirect hints; implications |
| Ire | anger |
| Jousted | a combat between two mounted knights using lances |
| King Demetrius | The book that relates this and the previous incident is the Policraticus of twelfth-century writer John of Salisbury. |
| Languishing | lacking energy or strength |
| Lemuel | See Proverbs 31:4-7. |
| Lepe | a town in Spain noted for its strong wines. |
| Lot | Lot's daughters got their father drunk and then seduced him (from the Book of Genesis in the Bible); the Pardoner's point is that Lot never would have committed incest if he had not been drunk. |
| Malady | an illness; a trouble |
| Mantle | a loose, sleeveless coat worn over outer garments, a cloak |
| Mark can tell | The miracle of the loaves and fishes and the barley bread is actually John, not Mark (see John VI:9), but this is a slight error for a woman of the Middle Ages to make. |
| Mercenary | one who serves or works merely for money |
| Obscure | not readily noticed or seen; unknown |
| Obstinate | difficult to manage or control |
| Palfrey | a woman's saddle horse |
| Pallor | extreme paleness |
| Pelf | loot; goods seized unlawfully |
| Prating | chattering, jabbering |
| Predestination | belief that one's fate is already decided |
| Prelate | a high-ranking member of the clergy |
| Prevarication | the act of evading the truth; lying |
| Prodigious | of extraordinary size and/or power |
| Proffering | to put before another for acceptance |
| Ptolemy . . . almagest | Ptolemy was a second century A.D. astronomer whose chief work was the Almagest. The Wife of Bath's quote shows that she is familiar with such a famous person. |
| Quoniam | a vulgar designation for the female pudendum, or vulva. |
| Radix malorum est cupiditas | Greed is the root of evil |
| Redressed | to get revenge for |
| Relics | objects esteemed and venerated because of association with a saint or martyr; here, the Pardoner's relics are false. |
| Render | to give what is due or owed |
| Renown | widespread acclaim; fame |
| Repined | complained |
| Repletion | full to or beyond satisfaction |
| Reprehensible | deserving condemnation; despicable |
| Requite | to repay |
| Retinue | group of attendants or followers |
| Samson | the biblical "strong man." He revealed the secret of his strength to Solome, who then betrayed him to his enemies. |
| Sanguine | of a healthy, reddish color |
| Scurrility | vulgar or abusive language |
| Sedately | dignified in character or manner |
| Shrive | absolve from sins |
| Shriving | the act of obtaining absolution for sins |
| Solicitous | expressing care or concern |
| St. Helen | the mother of Constantine the Great, believed to have found the True Cross. |
| Subtle | not immediately obvious, operating in a hidden way |
| Sundry | various; miscellaneous |
| Superfluities | things that are not necessary |
| Supple | easily bent; pliant |
| Three Misfortunes | Thinges Three,reference to Proverbs xxx, 21-23. |
| Trenchant | sharp |
| Unanimously | being in complete harmony or accord |
| Usury | the act or practice of lending money and charging outrageously high interest |
| Valerie and Theofraste | a work attributed to Walter Map, a minor satirist who disparaged marriage. All the writers the Wife of Bath quotes have written something either antifeminist, satiric, or unpleasant about marriage. |
| Valerius | writers who espoused that gentility comes from within and not from outward appearances. |
| Valiantly | bravely |
| Venerien . . . Marcien | astrological terms. |
| Verily | even; indeed |
| Verity | the quality of being true, factual, or real |
| Victuals | food fit for human consumption |
| Wanton | unrestrainedly excessive; luxuriant; frolicsome; playful |
| Wimpled | wrinkled |
| Woe | a cause of suffering or harm |
Combine with other sets
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