Shakespearian Glossary

Some people have trouble reading Shakespeare because many of the words are different
than words we use today. However, if you can understand many of the commonly used
words from his time it gets much easier. Use the list below as you read to help you
translate the speech of Shakespeares time to the speech of our time. Once you are
familiar with these words, you may find Shakespeare easier to understand. KEEP THIS IN
YOUR NOTEBOOK! It will come in handy.

An
Anon
Art
Ay
Doth
Ere
Hath
Nay
Nought
Shall
Thee
Thou
Thy
Tis
Twas

If
Soon
Are
Yes
Do? (questioning)
Before
Has
No
Nothing
Should/Will
You
You
Your
It is
It was

For practice, you will write a story in which you will use each of these words. Each word
must be used correctly two times and highlighted within the story. There is no
length requirement, but you should attempt to make it interesting or entertaining. You
will be given points for the following:

Using each required word correctly and used appropriately (15 words @ 1 point
each=15 points)

Use at least 3 of the dramatic terms . If you were unfamiliar with any terms, I
suggest using those. (5 points)
Effort and overall quality of the story. This is a finished product and should be
well thought out and neatly presented. It should also be obvious that you put effort
into the story and that you attempted to make it interesting. (5 points)

This is due Thursday, January 19th. You can write a story about Shakespeare, about your
friends, or about almost anything; use your best judgement to keep it appropriate.

Other Useful Terms

Soliloquy

A speech that a character makes while alone on stage or when no one on

stage is supposed to be listening. Basically, when a character is thinking
aloud. Soliloquies are basically the authors chance to let the audience
inside a characters thoughts. And while we might not be able to trust
what characters say to other people, as a general rule anything they say
in a soliloquy are true, honest thoughts. (These will not be labeled in the
script.)
Aside
A remark that a character says in an undertone to the audience or to
another character but that everyone else on stage is not supposed to
hear. It might give some real insight into what they really think about the
other person speaking onstage, or it may be a joke at the expense of that
character. The stage directions will indicate when a statement is an aside.
Stage
Stage directions are usually in brackets and help to show the reader what
Directions
would be happening on stage if they were watching a play; they show
actors how to act the scene. Remember, Shakespeare wrote his plays to
be acted, not read, so there is no description, as in a book or modern play,
to show what actors are doing, or what they look like. You wont see many
stage directions in Shakespeares plays, but those present are helpful.
Enter
This is a stage direction that lets the reader know when a character has
come on stage. These can be important because, even though they may
not be speaking, they could be there, onstage, which means they will
know what happened in that scene. Think about what an actor might be
doing if they are onstage but not speaking.
Exeunt &
This is a stage direction that lets the reader know when one person or a
Exit
group of characters has left the stage. Exit shows that only one character
has left; exeunt means all present vacate the stage.
Chorus
This actor who serves as a narrator. The chorus enters from the back of
the stage and introduces and explains the theme of the play. The chorus
may also come out at the beginning of an act to summarize what has
happened so far. He or she may also foreshadow, or give hints, to
upcoming events. (Example: The chorus appears in at the beginning of
acts I & II in Romeo and Juliet.)
Act, Scene, All of Shakespeares plays are broken down into 5 acts. Within these acts
Line
are scenes and within these scenes are lines. There is no set number of
scenes in each act or lines in a scene, but there are always five acts per
play. You can refer to line numbers when you are discussing the play (and
when you are documenting them in essays). The act will always be
written in capital roman numerals, the scene in lower case roman
numerals, and the line in regular numbers. For example III, ii, 23 would
refer to act three, scene two, line twenty-three.

Annotation
s

Annotations appear on the sides of the page. If a text is described as

being annotated, it means that there are side notes that will help
explain the text. Annotations define words and put them in terms that are
easier to read and also explain terms that we may be unfamiliar with
because they are not used any more. Different versions of the play have
differing levels of annotations. These are very helpful and often essential
for a modern audience to understand Shakespeares references and
vocabulary. (Words and references change a lot in 500 years!) USE
THEM!

For example, you would have one of the characters speak in an aside, or a
soliloquy. You can put in stage directions, or show when a character has
entered or left the stage. Ask me for help if you need it. Be sure to use the
term correctly for full credit.