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Shakespearean Glossary

William Shakespeare wrote in Old English, which makes it kinda hard to read.
William Shakespeare

Let's face it, no matter how many times your English teacher rambles on about how cool Shakespeare is, his stuff isn't too easy to read. We're not talking about a few funny words, like in Doctor Seuss - we're talking Old English, which may as well be a different language. To help you get to the actual story behind those baffling words, Kidzworld's put together a cheat sheet for reading Shakespeare. Check it out!

Shakespeare's Vocab A - Z

  • Alas
  • An exclamation of sadness or regret.
  • Barn
    No, it's not the thing that cows live in. In Shakespeare's time this was a child.
  • Abate
    This is a multi-purpose word meaning either to shorten, to throw down or to dull the edge of.
  • Aim
    A guess.
  • Bob
    This isn't just a dude's name, Shakespeare used it to mean to strike something, or to insult someone or to get something from someone by insulting them.
  • Century
    One hundred of anything.
  • Coil
    What we would now call turmoil or a disturbance.
  • Cross
    A piece of money or a coin.
  • Dig-You-Good-Den
  • Literally this means "give you good evening" but it really just means goodnight.
  • Don
    To put on.
  • Enseamed
    Fat, gross and smelly. Not a nice thing to call your friends.
  • Fang
    To bite something or to grab it with your teeth.
  • Forsooth
    In truth, or in fact.
  • Forbode
    Forbidden or not allowed.
  • Guard
    A decoration or to decorate something.
  • For more words from Shakespeare, click here
  • !

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    Comments

    lms85

    lms85 wrote:

    Shakespeare did not write in Old English; that was Beowulf, which was written a thousan...
    commented: Mon Jun 18, 2012

    Put*The*Sweet*In*SweetTart
    oh i put that on there last niteee
    commented: Sun Nov 13, 2011

    meg1x

    meg1x wrote:

    whatdoes doth mean?? :asleep
    commented: Thu Oct 13, 2011

    there are 3 more comments

    Please login or register to add comments

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    Julia Stiles' Shakespearean Flicks?

    • Julia Stiles has been in the movie version of Othello, Hamlet and The Taming of the Shrew.
    • Julia Stiles was in MacBeth and Romeo and Juliet.
    • She was in A Midsummer Night's Dream.
    • Julia Stiles has never been in a Shakespearean movie.

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