'a: he
Anon: soon/ wait a minute
Aught: Anything
Art: Are
Avaunt: Be gone
Clown: Peasant. They called clowns jesters, and peasants clowns.
Dost: does
Knave: Servant/ peasant/ fool
Honest: Typically has to do with virtue. If you're honest, you're a virgin. But when applied to men, it can just mean you're a good man.
Maid/ Maiden: Virgin (female)
Mark: Mark me/ pay attention
Marry: Indeed
Naught: Nothing
Pray you: Please
Prithee: please/ if you don't mind
Thee, thine, and thou. In other languages, French for example, they have formal and informal ways of addressing people. In French, if you're talking to someone you're close to, you address them as "tu"(you). But if you are speaking to a stranger, it is respectful to use "vous" (still means you). The English language had the same thing. The "thee, thine, and thou" is the informal way of addressing people. The "tu." "You," in our language is the "vous," the formal address. Eventually, we dropped the informal addresses and the formal became the norm.
Troth:honest/ loyalty
Saucy: Insolent
Sith: since
Sottish: Stupid
Want: lack (ps, this is still what it means. Over time it became associated with desire)
Werefore: why
If you think of any other words you need me to clarify, message me or comment and I'll add it to this chapter. Please vote! I appreciate feedback!
YOU ARE READING
Understanding Shakespeare
NonfiksiHave trouble reading Shakespeare? Here's a few thing you might not know that will help you better understand. I explain a few things about Shakespeare's plays, hopefully helping you to better understand them and maybe even appreciate them! If you co...
