Ms. Neville's Class Resources

Vocabulary List #1: Vocabulary from The Canterbury Tales

1.) pilgrimage (n.) – a journey of religious or spiritual significance

2.)  palmer (n.) – a specific kind of pilgrim a person who travels to the Holy Land and brings back palm fronds as a souvenir.

3.) engender (v.) – to bring about or make happen (think generate)

4.) sundry (adj.) – various, diverse, varied.

5.) yeoman (n.) – a person who’s job is to defend land or a specific person

6.) motley (n.) – a very colorful and loud material, often worn by jesters or other farcical characters

7.) friar (n.) – a man who works for the church by begging from door to door.

8.) accrue (v.) – to build up or acquire over time

9.) sanguine (adj.) – RED – red-faced in a happy, cheerful sort of way; bloodthirsty, etc.

10.) entreaty (n.) – serious, honest question (verb: to entreat)

11.) parley (v. or n.) – to have a talk or conference

12.) castigate (v.) – to harshly or severely punish

13.) crone (n.) – an old woman, esp. an unattractive or witch-like one

14.) temporal (adj.) – worldly (the opposite of spiritual) (temporary)

15.) rebuke (n. or v.) – to argue against and prove wrong

16.) superfluities (n. pl.) – extra unnecessary things (adj.: superfluous)

superfluity (n. sing.)

17.) bequeath (v.) – to leave something for posterity, esp. in a wil

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