1. luthier — maker of stringed instruments
In addition to being a talented songwriter in her own right, Shelsea is also a trained luthier, having learned the craft from her uncle who crafted guitars and mandolins for the greats of the Grand Ol’ Opry.
2. nard — scented balsam derived from the Himalayan spikenard
In the cramped room the aromas of cedar and nard lifted the young apprentice’s spirits, seeming to take him away from Pinchbeck Alley to distant cities of the east and far markets of mysterious spices and unknown fruits.
3. prank — to dress up, to bedeck
She so pranked herself with flowers and ribbons that the other passengers hardly recognized the timid maid who had first appeared before them in homespun dresses.
4. justle — variant of jostle
Here you can behold the various clerks justling for a place closest to the teller window, hoping to have their actions entered in the record first, and thus gaining credit with their respective houses.
5. deciduous tooth — mammalian tooth later replaced by a permanent tooth, milk tooth
After appearance the deciduous teeth continue to change, losing their roots and becoming thin and small until their bottom becomes only a point.
6. pard — [archaic] leopard
He moved with the dark feline grace of the pard on the hunt, with an economy of movement that gave no sign of the tense strength bound within his loins.
7. diegetic — of a narration or narrative, told by a narrator; of events or objects within the world of a story
You have to remember that every time dad revealed to me these fascinating stories of his youth, he was compelled to interrupt them with diegetic criticism of his own stupidity and callow foolishness at each juncture of what to me was a miraculously interesting life.
8. duppy — malevolent spirit
All of the bedclothes and clothes of the dearly departed were burned outside the house, so that a returning duppy would not feel welcome in his former abode.
9. hyphema — accumulation of blood within the front of the eyeball
After the fight he suffered a serious hyphema in his left eye and the doctor prescribed complete bed rest for a week.
10. percept — object of perception; mental ‘thing’ resulting from perception
You can argue that I experience the percept ‘orange’ when looking at that fruit, but I am only convinced I want to taste it instead of just looking at it.
Bonus Vocabulary
(Irish)
make a hames of — to spoil or ruin through clumsiness, make a mess of
If you forget the keys tomorrow you’ll make a hames of the whole job, so see that you don’t.