Howards End Study Guide

Glossary of Terms

adjudicate

to settle as a judge

adriot

skillful under pressure

adumbrate

to disclose partially; to obscure

alder

a type of tree

Andante

a relatively slow part of a piece of music

anodyne

something soothing

antimacassar

a cover for a chair or sofa

apposite

relevant

asceticism

extreme self-denial

asperity

severity

balustrade

a railing with posts

banns

marriage announcement

brougham

closed carriage

bunkum

empty talk

cant

hypocritical language

celandine

an herb with yellow flowers

charnel-house

a place for the dead

charwoman

a woman hired to clean

chiffonier

a tall and thin chest of drawers

claret

a kind of red wine from Bordeaux

conclave

a meeting, often of family members

consternation

paralyzing dismay

contretemps

unforeseen disruption

coppice

a grove of small trees

cur

coward

daughtier

braver

denizen

inhabitant

descant

to comment extensively

disquietude

anxiety

draper

one who sells clothing or dry goods

dyspeptic

having disturbed digestion or a gloomy disposition

ferrule

a metal ring placed around a pole in order to reinforce it

gamboge

of reddish-yellow color

golliwog

a doll made to look like a caricature of an African-American male

gorse

a kind of shrub with yellow flowers

greengage

a type of plum

guelder-rose

a plant with white flowers and a red fruit

hansom

a covered carriage with two wheels

haycock

a British term meaning a mound of hay

hoarfrost

a kind of white frost

hump

British term meaning a feeling of depression

idee fixe

French term meaning a fixed idea

insolvency

the state of being bankrupt

insular

isolated

lees

sediment

lump

tolerate

lych-gate

a churchyard gateway with a roof

majolica

elaborate earthenware often produced in Italy

mater

a term for "mother" used by the British

maunder

to talk aimlessly

mawkish

absurdly sentimental

Mercia

a kingdom in England dating back to the Anglo-Saxon reign

mews

a group of residential apartments that once were private stables

milksop

a man with no bravery

morass

an area of low soggy ground

navvy

British term for a construction worker

nettled

annoyed

obdurate

stubborn

offscouring

an outcast

orris-root

a root, usually of the Iris, that is very fragrant

parapet

a low protective wall

pater

British term for father

perambulator

a baby carriage

percolate

to pass through

persiflage

banter

petulance

irritability

pince-nez

eyeglasses worn on the bridge of the nose

plinth

base or platform

pollard

to cut back tree branches

poste restante

a situation where letters are kept at the post office until the recipient comes to fetch them rather than being delivered straight to a private address

prevaricate

to evade the truth

quixotic

impulsive

rancour

British spelling of rancor, meaning deep resentment

repartee

witty conversation

repine

to complain

reticent

reserved, unwilling

reticule

a purse

rotter

British term for scoundrel

rum

British term for strange or odd

scurf

a loose crust

scythe

to cut using a long blade used for mowing

sedulous

trying relentlessly

serried

put together in rows

sine qua non

Latin term meaning an essential element

spate

a sudden outpouring

sultana

a type of green seedless grape

superannuate

to regard as old fashioned

termini

plural of terminus, meaning an end point on a transportation line

Teutonic

German

thane

lord or baron

thew

virtue

treacle

British term for molasses

trenchant

clear-cut

trundle

to push forward on wheels

tumuli

plural of tumulus, meaning a burial mound

vapid

dull

veldt

open areas for grazing in the southern part of Africa

vinaigrette

a small bottle that holds something such as smelling salts

vivify

to make someting come alive

vociferation

vehemence

warp and woof

foundation

wastrel

one who is idle or lazy

welter

turmoil

wych-elm

Eurasian elm usually planted to provide shade

yellowhammer

a bird with yellow accents