The Canterbury Tales: The Cook's Prologue and Tale

Anna
This famous collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the late 14th century, depicts a group of pilgrims journeying to the shrine of Thomas Becket in Canterbury. Each pilgrim tells a tale, showcasing a diverse range of characters and narratives that offer insights into medieval English society. Its significance lies in its portrayal of social commentary, religious themes, and the evolution of the English language, making it a cornerstone of English literature and a timeless work that continues to captivate readers centuries later. These were translated into Modern English by Nevill Coghill.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. jest
    a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter
    May the Lord send me misery and care
    If ever, since they called me Hodge of Ware,
    I heard a miller scored off so completely!
    That jest of malice in the dark came neatly.
  2. condescend
    do something that one considers to be below one's dignity
    But God forbid that we should stop at that,
    So if you’ll condescend to hear my chat,
    I’ll tell a tale, though only a poor man;
    But I will do the very best I can
  3. sparse
    not dense or plentiful
    Many a pilgrim’s cursed you more than sparsely
    When suffering the effects of your stale parsley
  4. gallant
    having or displaying great dignity or nobility
    There was a prentice living in our town
    Worked in the victualling trade, and he was brown,
    Brown as a berry; spruce and short he stood,
    As gallant as a goldfinch in the wood.
  5. fetching
    very attractive; capturing interest
    Black were his locks and combed with fetching skill
  6. revel
    celebrate noisily or engage in uproarious festivities
    He danced so merrily, with such a will,
    That he was known as Revelling Peterkin.
  7. procession
    the action of a group moving ahead in regular formation
    Whenever any pageant or procession
    Came down Cheapside, goodbye to his profession!
  8. convertible
    capable of being exchanged for something of equal value
    Riot and theft can interchange and are
    Convertible by fiddle and guitar.
  9. hoard
    a secret store of valuables or money
    But in the end his master, taking thought
    While casting up what he had sold and bought,
    Hit on a proverb, as he sat and pored:
    ‘Throw out a rotten apple from the hoard
    Or it will rot the others’: thus it ran.
  10. riotous
    characterized by unrest or disorder or insubordination
    So with a riotous servant; sack the man,
    Or he’ll corrupt all others in the place
Created on Wed Mar 30 16:27:42 EDT 2022 (updated Wed Mar 30 16:44:55 EDT 2022)

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