1. qaid (also caid) — local leader or judge in North Africa; Berber chief
But the qaid interrupted Deschamps at this point, and brought out the leather-bound edition of Cooper’s works we had presented to the chieftain, and Teddy and I knew then that our gift had been a prescient one indeed.
2. shrike — any of several species of songbird with strongly hooked and toothed bill, used by some species to impale or rend their prey
Also called the ‘butcherbird’ from its habit of leaving the bodies of the eaten prey hanging from thorns, the northern shrike is larger than its southern cousin, though the latter plays with the remains of dinner in the same fashion.
3. choad — [slang] short and squat penis; loser; perineum
“Okay, okay, you don’t have to be such a choad about it, we’ll try calling her one more time!”
4. carl — [archaic] churl, peasant
During the festival the roles were reversed, and a carl might sit at the very head of the table, hoping to be waited upon by a noble (which never seemed to happen, to be sure).
5. pap — bland food, porridge; nonsense, foolish word
I won’t be satisfied with the pap you give to the voters out on the stump.
6. pap — [archaic] teat, nipple
The maiden sat now silent in the corner, her twins feeding at her paps.
7. trudge — to walk laboriously or wearily
And so we go on, trudging down the road of life towards an uncertain future from a past that seems increasingly impossible in this bizarrely extended present.
8. squill — lily-like plant found in Europe; sea onion
The red squill is effective against rats though it is generally shunned by domesticated animals.
9. kedge — to warp a ship or boat by hauling on a cable attached to an anchor dropped at some distance from the vessel
In these shallows the sloop from time to time would ground but was always as quickly kedged off by our stout cabin boys, who seemed to enjoy the mundane task.
10. piles — hemorrhoids
“Sorry Travers can’t join us; he claims a distant cousin stopped by for a sudden visit, but I suspect his piles are bothering him again and he couldn’t face the prospect of sitting for three to four hours at the opera.”
Bonus Vocabulary
(decorative arts)
delft — tin-glazed pottery typically having white opaque glaze with decoration in blue, usu. Dutch or English
The delicate power of fine delft can be seen in the gorgeous enamel but especially in the beauteous decoration.