The Duchess of Malfi: Act 5

by John Webster
Money, power, and love destroy a noble family in this semi-historical tragedy by John Webster. Learn these words that first shook The Globe Theater in 1614. Read the full text here.

Here are links to our lists for the play: Act 1, Act 2, Act 3, Act 4, Act 5
35 words 10 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. frenzy
    state of violent mental agitation
    Prince Ferdinand's come to Milan,
    Sick, as they give out, of an apoplexy;
    But some say 'tis a frenzy
  2. malice
    the quality of threatening evil
    This night I mean to venture all my fortune,
    Which is no more than a poor ling'ring life,
    To the cardinal's worst of malice.
  3. pestilent
    likely to spread and cause an epidemic disease
    A very pestilent disease, my lord,
    They call lycanthropia.
  4. possess
    enter into and control, as of emotions or ideas
    In those that are possess'd with 't there o'erflows
    Such melancholy humour they imagine
    Themselves to be transformed into wolves;
    Steal forth to church-yards in the dead of night,
    And dig dead bodies up
  5. sacrifice
    the act of killing in order to appease a deity
    Hence, hence! you are all of you like beasts for sacrifice.
  6. lechery
    unrestrained indulgence in sexual activity
    There's nothing left of you but tongue and belly, flattery and lechery.
  7. lurk
    lie in wait or behave in a sneaky and secretive manner
    Antonio lurks here in Milan:
    Inquire him out, and kill him.
  8. treachery
    an act of deliberate betrayal
    Now, sir, I will make you confess your treachery.
  9. longing
    prolonged unfulfilled desire or need
    Why should I fall in love with such a face else?
    I have already suffer'd for thee so much pain,
    The only remedy to do me good
    Is to kill my longing.
  10. amiss
    in an improper or mistaken manner
    Why, ignorance
    In courtship cannot make you do amiss,
    If you have a heart to do well.
  11. amorous
    inclined toward or displaying love
    Let us grow most amorously familiar:
    If the great cardinal now should see me thus,
    Would he not count me a villain?
  12. purloin
    make off with belongings of others
    No; he might count me a wanton,
    Not lay a scruple of offence on you;
    For if I see and steal a diamond,
    The fault is not i' th' stone, but in me the thief
    That purloins it.
  13. melancholy
    characterized by or causing or expressing sadness
    The cardinal is grown wondrous melancholy;
    Demand the cause, let him not put you off
    With feign'd excuse; discover the main ground on 't.
  14. frailty
    moral weakness
    Examine thine own frailty; 'tis more easy
    To tie knots than unloose them.
  15. linger
    take one's time; proceed slowly
    'Tis a secret
    That, like a ling'ring poison, may chance lie
    Spread in thy veins, and kill thee seven year hence.
  16. bound
    confined by bonds
    Now you shall never utter it; thy curiosity
    Hath undone thee; thou'rt poison'd with that book.
    Because I knew thou couldst not keep my counsel,
    I have bound thee to 't by death.
  17. betray
    give away information about somebody
    For I betray'd your counsel to that fellow.
    He over-heard it; that was the cause I said
    It lay not in me to conceal it.
  18. hew
    strike with an axe; cut down, strike
    I'll have thee hew'd in pieces.
  19. pilgrimage
    a journey to a sacred place
    Shall I go sue to Fortune any longer?
    'Tis the fool's pilgrimage.
  20. inquiry
    an instance of questioning
    I'll give out
    She died o' th' plague; 'twill breed the less inquiry
    After her death.
  21. scrutiny
    the act of examining something closely, as for mistakes
    Make scrutiny through the passages
    Of your own life, you'll find it impossible
    To fly your fate.
  22. mockery
    humorous or satirical mimicry
    For to live thus is not indeed to live;
    It is a mockery and abuse of life.
    I will not henceforth save myself by halves;
    Lose all, or nothing.
  23. consequence
    the outcome of an event
    My death is plotted; here's the consequence of murder.
    We value not desert nor Christian breath,
    When we know black deeds must be cur'd with death.
  24. quest
    the act of searching for something
    In all our quest of greatness,
    Like wanton boys whose pastime is their care,
    We follow after bubbles blown in th' air.
    Pleasure of life, what is 't?
  25. ghastly
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
    Thou look'st ghastly;
    There sits in thy face some great determination
    Mix'd with some fear.
  26. revenue
    the entire amount of income before any deductions are made
    Hold; and I will faithfully divide
    Revenues with thee.
  27. assault
    attack someone physically or emotionally
    Here's a plot upon me; I am assaulted! I am lost,
    Unless some rescue!
  28. pursue
    follow in an effort to capture
    What cause hast thou to pursue my life?
  29. justice
    judgment involved in the assignment of reward and punishment
    When thou kill'd'st thy sister,
    Thou took'st from Justice her most equal balance,
    And left her naught but her sword.
  30. calamity
    an event resulting in great loss and misfortune
    Now it seems thy greatness was only outward;
    For thou fall'st faster of thyself than calamity
    Can drive thee.
  31. sorrow
    an emotion of great sadness associated with loss
    Sorrow is held the eldest child of sin.
  32. ample
    fairly large
    I do glory
    That thou, which stood'st like a huge pyramid
    Begun upon a large and ample base,
    Shalt end in a little point, a kind of nothing.
  33. stagger
    astound or overwhelm, as with shock
    Let worthy minds ne'er stagger in distrust
    To suffer death or shame for what is just
  34. eminent
    having an illustrious reputation; respected
    These wretched eminent things
    Leave no more fame behind 'em, than should one
    Fall in a frost, and leave his print in snow;
    As soon as the sun shines, it ever melts,
    Both form and matter.
  35. integrity
    moral soundness
    Nature doth nothing so great for great men
    As when she's pleas'd to make them lords of truth:
    Integrity of life is fame's best friend,
    Which nobly, beyond death, shall crown the end.
Created on Mon Apr 10 15:45:00 EDT 2017 (updated Tue Apr 09 13:14:31 EDT 2019)

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