Breakfast at Tiffany's Study Guide

Glossary of Terms

"21"

A popular restaurant in midtown Manhattan.

"4711"

A unisex cologne first introduced in the 18th century.

"bully for him"

Mid-century slang used when someone has said something undeserving of attention or admiration.

"Cartier-formal"

Pierre Cartier was a jeweler whose name was synonymous with wealth and elegance for most of the 20th century. "Cartier-formal" thus suggests an exaggerated, "Cartier-like" formality.

"hop-head"

drug addict

"planning a powder"

planning on disappearing

"preem"

premiere

"razz"

abbreviation of "razzamatazz", meaning a showman's routine

"smoke the pipe"

"make peace"

"the absolute finito"

"the absolute end"; ultimate or ideal

"Waltzing Matilda"

An Australian song written in 1895 by poet Banjo Paterson.

anarchist

One who believes in the absolute abolishment of all forms of government. In the early decades of the 20th century, foreign anarchists were often accused of plotting terrorist activity against the United States.

Andes

An extensive mountain range in South America

angst

A profound feeling of anxiety and apprehension

argyles

Knit socks containing a pattern of diamond shapes in various colors.

baritoning

singing in a low key

Bergdorf

a luxury department store in Midtown Manhattan

Berlitz

Berlitz Language School, a popular institution for adults who wish to learn foreign languages, with hundreds of franchises worldwide.

Blackhand

Mafia

Blue Mountains

The Blue Ridge mountains, comprising part of the famous Appalachian mountain range that stretches across the Eastern U.S. from the Carolinas to New York State.

bobcat

A large wild cat related to the American housecat

bon voyage

French phrase meaning "good journey".

bouche fermez

French phrase for "close your mouth".

Braille

A linguistic system named after its inventor, Louis Braille in 1829, which provided an encoded tactile version of written language, thus enabling the blind to read and write.

brazen

bold

brownstone

A type of building characterized by the reddish-brown facing on the exterior. A common type of residence in New York that has come to be closely associated with the city.

bull-dykes

lesbians; "masculine" lesbians

buoyancy

lightness

Calamity Jane

19th century American frontierswoman renowned for her military skills and expertise on horseback.

calico

A bright, coarsely printed cloth

capitulation

The act of surrendering

carouse

To drink liquor in excess

caroused

roamed

censoriously

critically

citronella

An essential oil often used to treat sunburn

Cole Porter

An American composer who was very popular in the 1930s and 1940s.

coloratura

A soprano specializing in ornate vocal music.

complacently

In a self-satisfied manner.

consumptive

sick with consumption, a form of tuberculosis

conventional

Conforming to standard; not unusual or extreme.

coony

derogatory slur for African-American

crise

French word for "crisis"

David O. Selznick

A Hollywood producer, famous for his blockbuster Gone with the Wind.

degenerate

depraved or corrupt

dovetailed

Fit skillfully together.

Dry Tortugas

A small group of islands located at the end of the Florida Keys.

dykes

lesbians

esoteric

obscure

et pourquois pas

French phrase meaning "and why not?"

exhibitionist

A person who achieves sexual gratification by engaging in sexual behavior in public. More figuratively, an exhibitionist is someone who enjoys publicizing the details of his or her private life.

Fado

A type of Portuguese folk music characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics about the lives of seafarers and the poor.

Father Divine

An African-American spiritual leader who founded the International Peace Mission movement. Father Divine was the subject of public scandal when he declared he was God.

fedora

A soft, felt hat with a lengthwise crease down the center of the crown. While popular with many men in the early decades of the 20th century, the fedora was most often associated with mafia gangsters and private detectives.

Fifth Avenue

A major thoroughfare in the center of the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx in New York City. A common symbol for American capitalist wealth.

finger-talk

Sign language

Garbo

Greta Garbo, a Swedish actress who became one of Hollywood's most popular and highly-paid stars in the first half of the 20th century.

Gilbert and Sullivan

W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, a team who wrote and produced several highly popular operettas or "comic operas" in Victorian England.

gladiola

A type of flower.

governess

nanny

hausfrau

German word for "housewife".

head-shrinker

psychiatrist

heir

The inheritor of an estate of a deceased person. Holly calls her unborn child "the heir" since he will inherit Jose's sizable estate.

Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway, one of the 20th century's most celebrated American authors.

hideola

ugly

hither and yonning

here and there

honorarium

payment

hope chest

A chest in which young women store clothing and household goods in anticipation of marriage. Once a common tradition in Europe and North America, hope chests have fallen out of fashion.

implausible

Unbelievable; difficult to believe or imagine.

impressionistic

subjective; without concrete detail

inclement

severe or cruel

Indian summer

A period of warm, summer-like weather in the autumn season.

inertia

lack of motion; boredom

invalid

sickly

iota

A very small amount.

joss sticks

Incense sticks often used in Chinese religious ceremonies.

Kurt Weill

A German composer of musical theatre and concert works who was very popular with U.S. audiences from the 1920s to the 1950s.

la merde

French word for "shit".

la negre

French slang meaning "African" or "black"

lacquer

nail polish

lark

A carefree or spirited adventure.

Lexington Avenue

The site of Joe Bell's bar, presumably near 70th street in New York City.

liason

go-between or messenger

Linguaphone

A company that produced popular records teaching Americans to speak foreign languages.

liniment

medicinal ointment

Luise Rainer

A European-Jewish actress who escaped to the U.S. during the holocaust.

Mainbocher

An expensive clothing line from the early 1900s which introduced the strapless evening gown.

manhattans

cocktail drinks named after the New York borough, consisting of vermouth, whiskey and an optional dash of bitters.

Margaret Sullavan

An American Broadway and film actress who was popular in the 1930s.

Maria Ouspenskaya

A popular Russian actress who achieved fame in Hollywood toward the end of her career.

Maude

A slang term meaning "homosexual" or "male prostitute".

Melba toast

A type of thin, dry cracker that is often served with cottage cheese.

Metropolitan Museum

One of the world's largest and most important art museums, located in Manhattan, New York.

Mille tendresse

French endearment meaning "a thousand tendernesses".

minarets

tall, slender towers attached to a mosque, often containing balconies for prayer

misconstrued

Misinterpreted.

Modern Library

A division of Randolph House Publishers, founded in 1917. It's slogan was "The Modern Library of the World's Best Books."

mosque

temple for Muslim relgious services

Nancy's Landing

A fictional town created by Capote, perhaps as an allusion to a gay resort or pick-up spot ("nancy" being a slang term for a submissive homosexual).

Nehru

Jawaharlal Nehru, an important leader of the Indian Independence Movement and the Indian National Congress. Nehru was the first Prime Minister of India after the country's independence from Britain in 1947.

Nero

The fifth and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty of Rome. Nero was notorious for his decadent lifestyle and dissolute, untrustworthy nature.

nigger-lip

Phrase meaning "to slobber"; plays on the derogatory attitude toward African-Americans in mid-century America

Oklahoma

A western musical by Rodgers & Hammerstein.

One Touch of Venus

A popular musical written by Kurt Weill which ran on Broadway between 1943 and 1945.

oompahpah

A rhythmic bass accompaniment to brass band music.

Ossining

A town in New York that contains Sing Sing prison

Our Gal Sunday

A radio soap opera that aired on CBS from 1937 to 1939.

outre

French word for unconventional or bizarre.

Parke-Bernet

The United States' largest fine-arts auction house. Parke-Bernet was purchased by Sotheby's in 1964.

phonograph

antiquated term for record player

Picayunes

A brand of cigarettes produced in New Orleans until the 1960s. The Spanish word translates to "something of little value; a trifle."

pig-English

An abbreviation of "pidgin-English". Pidgin is a hybridization of two languages that occurs when both languages share close geographic proximity.

pincer

A maneuver in which a target is attacked from two or more sides simultaneously.

pious

religious

Plaintive

Expressive of suffering or woe.

PM

The popular acronym for Picture Magazine, a left-wing daily newspaper in New York City that ran from 1940 to 1948, when it was replaced by the New York Star.

poignant

deeply affecting one's feelings or emotions

Pomeranian

A breed of "toy" dog with a soft, dense coat and an excitable personality.

powder-room

restroom

pressure cooker

a pot that uses steam under high pressure to cook food quickly

purl

a kind of stitch used in knitting

Purple Heart

A U.S. military decoration awarded to those who have been wounded or killed while serving in or with the U.S. military after April 5, 1917.

regimentation

to populate with military troops

rhapsodic

emotional and extravagant.

Rockefeller Plaza

A central New York location owned by the wealthy Rockfeller family, in which an enormous Christmas tree is erected and decorated each year for the enjoyment of the city.

Santa Anita

A racetrack in Arcadia, California

Saroyan

William Saroyan, an Armenian-American writer of plays and short stories that documented his life in an impoverished Armenian family.

schluffen

German word for "sleep".

Seconals

A barbituate drug used to treat epilepsy and insomnia. Because of its sedative properties, it was popular as a method of suicide.

shingle

lawyer

shyster

A lawyer or politician who is professionally unscrupulous.

Simenon

Georges Simenon, a Belgian author famous for his prolific output of naturalistic, psychologically objective novels.

Sing Sing

A maximum-security prison in Ossing, New York.

slap dash

In a reckless and haphazard manner.

Spanish Harlem

A neighbourhood in northeastern Manhattan that has been populated by Hispanic-Americans for most of the 20th century.

squall

A brief and sudden windstorm, often accompanied by rain or snow.

St. Christopher

The patron saint of protection against lightning and pestilence. St Christopher is also considered the protector of archers, automobile drivers, and bachelors.

sun helmets

Light-weight hats, worn often in tropical countries as protection from the sun.

tangible

solid, earthy or bodily

tapioca

a type of grain often used in desserts

TB

Abbreviation for tuberculosis, a highly infectious lung disease whose severity is variable. A major cause of illness and death before the 1940s.

teletype

An electro-mechanical typewriter used to transmit messages across two locations via an electrial channel. Also known as a TTY, a teletypwriter, and a teleprinter.

tenement

an apartment building, often low-rent

terrapin

A reptile turtle native to the U.S. that can live both in the water and on land.

The Story of Dr. Wassell

A 1944 film about WWII starring Gary Cooper and Cecil B. DeMille.

Tiffany's

A jewelry company named after its founder, Charles Lewis Tiffany. Popular since its opening in 1837, Tiffany's is widely considered the finest jewelry store in the world and has locations in most major cities.

tonnage

weight in tonnes

totter

To wobble or rock unsteadily.

tres fou

French phrase for "completely insane".

tumbler

A glass cup typically used for serving alcohol.

Tums

A popular antacid tablet.

two bits

Mid-century slang for "one quarter".

Unity Mitford

An English supporter of fascism and Adolf Hitler's National Socialist Party during the 1930s. She attempted suicide when Britain declared war against Germany in 1939, and died shortly later of complications.

vestibule

A passageway or room located between the outer door and the interior of a building.

voluptuous

full

W. Somerset Maugham

A British playwright, novelist, and short story writer. The highest paid writer of the 1930s.

Waring mixer

A mixing machine made by Waring, the leading manufacturer of small appliances for home and industry in the U.S.

Weimaraner dogs

A silver-grey sporting dog originally developed for hunting.

Wendell Willkie

A Republican candidate who ran against Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1940 U.S. presidential election.

William Randolph Hearst

American newspaper magnate who is credited with inventing "yellow journalism" in the late 19th century and was a leader of the democratic wing of the Democratic party from 1896 to 1935.

Winchell

Walter Winchell, radio personality and the first gossip columnist. The narrator here is referring to Winchell's popular column, which he wrote for the New York Daily Mirror for over 30 years.

Woolworth's

A chain of five-and-ten-cent discount stores popular across the U.S. in the 20th century.

Wuthering Heights

A novel published in 1847 by Emily Bronte, widely considered one of the greatest masterpieces of literature. It was adapted for the screen in 1939 by director William Wyler.

Yiddish

A Germanic language spoken mostly by European Jews.

Yorkville

A neighbourhood in Upper East Side New York. During the 1930s it was the site of violent street battles between Nazi sympathizers and anti-Nazi demonstrators.