1. telson — terminal segment or appendage in abdomen of many arthropods and some embryonic insects
Melisande gasped as the foul black telson of the monstrous scorpion hovered over her body, a drop of noxious ichor hanging from its sharp point.
2. Whitsunday — Sunday seven weeks after Easter, Holy Day celebrating descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; Pentecost
Hartland finds in his examinations of fairy tales a connection to the otherwise singular story of Lady Godiva in an account of a similar price paid for a yearly gift to the poor, supposedly given every Whitsunday in the parish of St. Briavels.
3. quiddity — thingness, thatness, quality of a thing making it what it is
But if I were to go on about all the oddnesses and quiddities of our family life in that strange and inward-looking home, your patience would fail long before my tales were done.
4. mumble — to chew near uselessly, as with toothless gums
Slowly the old codger mumbled the red berries, the bright juice dripping from the side of his turtle-like mouth.
5. bilharzia — schistosomiasis, disease endemic to Africa and South Africa
Unfortunately, too many of these villagers will cease taking the medicine when the overt symptoms of bilharzia disappear, though this only ensures that the parasitic worm will remain in the host, perhaps causing further problems down the road.
6. reefer — short-waisted close-fitting thick jacket; midshipman charged with reefing the sails
Cedric habitually carried several kola nuts in the pockets of his reefer, a holdover from his days trading in the South Seas.
7. moulinet — circular cut in fencing; circling an opponent’s blade with your own
The lieutenant began to execute a moulinet but drew up short when I kicked him in the balls.
8. sutler — merchant selling wares to soldiers in the field
Both the sutler and his wife protested that they had not violated the general’s order forbidding the sale of spiritous liquor, but their wagons and horses were seized nonetheless.
9. unsavory — without taste, insipid; distasteful; morally or socially disagreeable
Not that his unsavory reputation was undeserved—if anything, the gossips underestimated his terrible manners and actions—but the man himself was so charming in person, so uninhibitedly full of life, so engaging and interested in each and every member of his company, that I could not help but fall under his trashy spell.
10. cruse — pot or jar of earthenware
Within the deer hide satchel we found a cruse of some foul oil, destined for who knows what evil ritual of the mad witch doctor.
Bonus Vocabulary
(British slang)
blag — to obtain through wheedling or cajolery
We found him just where Noel had promised us he’d be, blagging drinks from a slightly pop-eyed barmaid at The Broken Badger, as dreary a pub as I’ve ever seen.