Vocabulary

1. Vocabulary Unit 13

2. Abstruse (adj.) • Extremely difficult to understand • The physicist tried to explain her abstruse research in the field of quantum mechanics. • Syn: esoteric, arcane, recondite, occult • Ant: simple, straightforward

3. Because “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” is not written in modern English, the language can seem abstruse at first, but with further study, it can be a fun story to read.

4. Affront (n.) • An open or intentional insult; a slight • The prisoner felt that being referred to by number rather than name was an affront to her dignity. • Syn: offense • Ant: compliment, praise

5. The Green Knight affronted King Arthur and his men when he suggested that none of them was brave enough to face his challenge.

6. Affront (v) • To insult to one’s face; to face in defiance, confront • In the nineteenth century, Irish immigrants to the United States were affronted by signs reading: No Irish Need Apply. • Syn: offend • Ant: compliment, praise

7. Canard (n) • A false rumor, fabricated story • The tabloid journalist was responsible for spreading the canard about the candidate’s mental health. • Syn: hoax

8. The Green Knight thinks that the rumors about the bravery of Arthur’s court must be some kind of canard or fabricated story; the men do not seem brave to him.

9. Captious (adj) • Excessively ready to find fault; given to petty criticism; intended to trap, confuse, or show up • She is an invariably captious critic. • Syn: faultfinding, nit-picking, carping • Ant: uncritical

10. The Green Knight is very captious in his attitude towards Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. He finds fault with everything about them—how they dress, what they eat, how they react to him, etc…

11. Cognizant (adj) • Aware, knowledgeable, informed; having jurisdiction • Police officers must make sure that crime suspects are made cognizant of their rights before they are questioned. • Syn: conscious, acquainted • Ant: unaware, unconscious, oblivious

12. Even though the Green Knight spends his three days hunting in the woods, he seems very cognizant of what is going on in his home (his wife tempting Gawain and giving Gawain the green girdle).

13. Contrite (adj) • Regretful for some misdeed or sin; plagued by a sense of guilt; thoroughly penitent • The convicted felon had the look of someone who was truly contrite and ready to pay for his crimes. • Syn: remorseful, rueful • Ant: unrepentant

14. Gawain was very contrite when he was caught lying to the Green Knight about receiving the green girdle from his wife. He only lied to save his life, but still, Gawain considered it dishonorable, and he was deeply embarrassed that he showed such weakness.

15. Cynosure (n) • The center of attraction, attention, or interest; something that serves to guide or direct • For over a century, the Statue of Liberty has been the cynosure for millions of immigrants entering New York Harbor. • Syn: focus

16. One can see why the Green Knight would be the cynosure of attention at any gathering; he really is an imposing figure.

17. Decorous (adj) • Well behaved, dignified, socially proper • On formal occasions, like weddings and graduations, participants are expected to behave in a decorous manner. • Syn: seemly, becoming, tasteful • Ant: unseemly, unbecoming, improper, tasteless

18. All of the characters in “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” are dressed decorously. Look at the details in this picture—the shield, the helmet. Even the horse is dressed in a decorous manner.

19. Deign (v) • To think it appropriate or suitable to one’s dignity to do something; to condescend • The enlisted men were surprised that the four-star general deigned to speak to them as he toured the camp. • Syn: deem, stoop

20. In “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” King Arthur would not deign to accept the challenge of the Green Knight who so rudely intruded on his meal and began making demands; instead, on of the knights, Sir Gawain, steps up to accept the challenge.

21. Desiccated (adj) • Thoroughly dried out; divested of spirit or vitality; arid and uninteresting • The cornfield was desiccated by the scorching sun after the long, hot summer without rain. • Syn: dehydrated, shriveled, parched • Ant: sodden, soggy, waterlogged, drenched

22. When Gawain realizes that he is expected to be still while the Green Knight swings at his bare neck with a sharp axe, his spirits shrink and he is completely desiccated.

23. Efficacy (n.) • The power to produce a desired result • The pharmaceutical company has done extensive research to prove the efficacy of the new drug they are marketing. • Syn: effectiveness, potency, reliability • Ant: ineffectiveness, impotence

24. The green girdle gifted to Gawain by the Green Knight’s wife had the efficacy of protecting Gawain’s neck from being severed.

25. Engender (v.) • To bring into existence, give rise to, to produce; to come into existence, assume form • The university has made an appealing videotape in order to engender student interest in studying abroad. • Syn: beget, generate, cause, form • Ant: stop, deter

26. It doesn’t seem to matter how much energy I put into teaching “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight;” I can never seem to engender an interest in Medieval Literature and manuscripts in my students 

27. Ethereal (adj.) • Light, airy, delicate; highly refined; suggesting what is heavenly (rather than earthbound) • The Renaissance painter Fra Angelico captured the ethereal beauty of angels in his famous frescoes. • Syn: heavenly, celestial, gossamer • Ant: infernal, hellish, thick, heavy

28. There is a light, airy, and ethereal quality to this picture that makes it seem almost more ghost-like than real.

29. Façade (n.) • The front or face of a building; a surface appearance (as opposed to what may lie behind) • After years of neglect, the sooty façade of the cathedral is finally getting a much needed cleaning. • Syn: exterior, surface, mask, pretense • Ant: interior

30. In “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight,” the character of the Green Knight is just a façade. He is really the Lord of the Green castle. The thing that makes him different is that he possesses the magic green girdle.

31. Ghoulish (adj) • Revolting in an unnatural or morbid way; suggestive of someone who robs graves or otherwise preys on the dead • The ghoulish practice of grave robbing is sometimes motivated by the desire to find and sell valuables. • Syn: fiendish, barbarous, monstrous

32. The idea of the Green Knight is ghoulish and revolting. Equally ghoulish is his challenge. Can you imagine being at the banquet that day and watching his severed head roll around on the ground still talking? I bet Gawain almost fainted when the Knight picked up his head and rode away with it under his arm.

33. Incongruous (adj.) • Not in keeping, unsuitable, incompatible • Abraham Lincoln, the backwoods lawyer, and Mary Todd, the rich socialite, seemed an incongruous couple. • Syn: discordant, jarring • Ant: compatible, harmonious, consistent

34. This picture is incongruous with my mental image of The Green Knight. I’m thinking of someone fierce and terrifying, so seeing this hat of fruit and flower really doesn’t match up with what is in my brain.

35. Machination (n.) • A crafty, scheming, or underhanded action designed to accomplish some (usually evil) end • Shakespeare’s Othello was the victim not only of Iago’s evil machinations but also his own jealous nature. • Syn: plot, scheme, maneuver

36. Many people accuse the Green Knight of using crafty, scheming, evil machinations to draw Gawain into his plot. The knight knew he was cheating by using magic that Gawain didn’t have.

37. Mesmerize (v.) • To hypnotize, entrance; to fascinate, enthrall, bewitch • The magician was able to mesmerize the audience with his fast-moving hands and distracting chatter.

38. The whole idea of the Medieval time period and castle life is mesmerizing to some people. They can just fantasize about what their lives would have been like if they lived back then.

39. Opprobrium (n.) • Disgrace arising from shameful conduct; contempt, reproach • Despite the passage of centuries, opprobrium is still attached to the name of the traitor Benedict Arnold. • Syn: infamy, dishonor, odium, shame • Ant: acclaim, honor, glory, renown

40. After betraying his own moral values, Gawain goes home with opprobrium. In this picture, even his horse is hanging its head in shame.

41. Putative (adj.) • Generally regarded as such; reputed; hypothesized, inferred • Ancient Celtic rituals and ceremonies are the putative origins of some of our modern Halloween customs. • Syn: supposed, presumed • Ant: known, corroborated, confirmed

42. The ancient “Sir Gawain” text is the putative original on which many translations and adaptations have been based.