The Merry Wives of Windsor (33 page)

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Authors: William Shakespeare

BOOK: The Merry Wives of Windsor
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84
comfort … suit
encouragement in his courtship

85
fine-baited
tempting/alluring/skillfully baited

88
chariness
careful preservation

98
curtal
with a tail docked or cut off

99
affects
aims at/loves

103
gallimaufry
mixture (literally, stew made from a variety of odds and ends)

103
perpend
consider

105
liver
thought to be the seat of the passions

105
Prevent
i.e. act now to stop Falstaff

106
Actaeon
in Greek mythology, the goddess Diana turned Actaeon into a stag after he had seen her bathing; he was then killed by his own hounds

107
Ringwood
one of Actaeon’s hounds

107
thy
some editors emend to “his”

108
the name
i.e. of cuckold (Actaeon’s horns made him a symbol of cuckoldry)

111
foot
walk

112
cuckoo-birds
known for laying their eggs in other birds’ nests; they were associated with cuckolds because of their name, and their call was considered a warning to married men

113
Away
come away

117
should have borne
was to have carried

119
upon my necessity
when I need it

122
bread and cheese
i.e. basic rations (perhaps those received in the service of Falstaff)

124
quoth a
said he

125
his
its

127
affecting
affected

128
it
i.e. it to be true

129
Cataian
person from Cathay (China), used to mean “scoundrel”

129
though
even if

138
crotchets
whims/peculiar ideas

140
Have with you
I’ll come with you/let’s go

144
fit it
suit the part

156
offer
attempt

157
yoke
pair

161
lie
lodge

163
voyage
sexual advances

165
lie on my head
be my responsibility/fault (in his response, Ford plays on the idea of wearing a cuckold’s horns on one’s head)

166
misdoubt
mistrust/doubt

167
turn them
release them (language used of cattle)

169
ranting
jovial/boisterous/verbally extravagant

170
pate
head

174
Cavaliero
knight/courtly gentleman (from the Spanish
caballero
or the Italian
cavaliere
)

175
Good … twenty
good day, many times over

186
contrary
different/opposing

187
no jester
i.e. Evans is skilled at swordsmanship/Evans is deadly serious

189
my guest-cavalier
i.e. Falstaff, who is a
guest
at the Host’s inn

191
protest
declare

191
pottle
drinking vessel containing half a gallon (about four pints)

191
burned sack
mulled wine/wine containing burnt sugar

192
recourse
access

194
egress and regress
right of exit and entry (legal terms)

196
An-heires
of unclear meaning; possibly a partly Anglicized version of the Dutch
mynheers
(“gentlemen”) or a corruption of
ameers
or “emirs” (Arab princes or military commanders)

201
stand on distance
attach importance to the prescribed distance between the two duelists

201
passes, stoccadoes
thrusts (technical terms used in fencing)

202
heart
courage/spirit

203
long sword
heavier weapon (the lighter rapier was now more fashionable)

204
tall
brave/skillful with weapons

205
wag
go

206
scold
quarrel/wrangle

208
secure
overconfident

208
stands … frailty
relies so firmly on what is in fact his wife’s moral weakness

210
his
i.e. Falstaff’s

211
made
did

212
sound
sound the depth of/examine/make trial of

5
countenance to pawn
borrow money on the strength of being in my service

5
countenance
standing/reputation

5
grated upon
harassed with demands

6
coach-fellow
companion (literally, one of a pair of horses harnessed to a coach)

7
grate
prison bars (plays on
grated
)

7
gemini
pair

10
handle … fan
these were often made of precious material such as ivory or silver

10
took’t upon
swore by

12
share
have a share in it

13
Reason
with good reason

14
gratis
for nothing

14
hang … me
cease to be a burden to me (
hang
plays on the sense of “put to death”)

15
a … throng
i.e. go and find a crowd where you may cut people’s purse strings with a short knife

16
Picked-hatch
a brothel or a disreputable part of London (literally, the half-door surmounted by spikes that may have characterized a brothel)

18
unconfinable
limitless/infinite

19
precise
pure/scrupulously observed

20
on … hand
disregarded/to one side

21
fain … lurch
obliged to deceive, dodge, and cheat

22
ensconce
hide, as in a small fort (sconce)

22
cat-a-mountain
wildcat

23
red-lattice
alehouse (wooden lattices painted red characterized a tavern)

23
bold-beating
excessively presumptuous/repeatedly coarse

26
relent
yield

29
Give
God give

31
Not so
i.e. I am not a
wife

34
As … born
Quickly means “just as much of an innocent maid as I was when I was born, like my mother was before me,” but actually says “just as much of a virgin as my mother was in childbirth”

37
vouchsafe
permit (Quickly means something like “entreat”)

40
ways
way

42
on
go on

51
wanton
seducer/lewd person/unruly one

55
canaries
malapropism for “quandary”; a canary was either a dance or a wine

55
wonderful
astonishing

60
rushling
Quickly means “rustling”

61
alligant
Quickly means “elegant”;
alligant
was a form of “alicant,” a Spanish wine

64
eye-wink of
glance from

65
angels
i.e. as a bribe for her help from one of the suitors

66
sort
manner/way

69
pensioners
“poor knights of Windsor,” who prayed for the king in return for an annuity

71
she-Mercury
female Mercury, the messenger of the gods

75
notify
understand/take note

79
wot
know

82
frampold
sour-tempered

86
messenger
Quickly means “message”

88
fartuous
Quickly means “virtuous”

88
civil modest
decent and proper

89
miss you
miss (
you
is emphatic)

93
charms
magic spells

95
parts
personal qualities/physical features

100
grace
decency

101
of all loves
for the sake of love

102
infection to
Quickly means “affection for”

105
list
pleases

107
kind
plays on the sense of “sexually willing”

111
nay-word
code word

119
distracts
bewilders

120
punk
prostitute

120
carriers
messengers

121
Clap
put (promptly)

121
fights
screens used during a sea battle to protect the crew

122
prize
treasure/captured vessel

122
whelm
capsize/sink

123
Say’st … Jack?
i.e. is that how things are (Falstaff is talking to himself)

124
look after
look at (desirously)

126
grossly
clumsily/coarsely (puns on the sense of “fat”)

127
so
as long as

127
fairly
fully/well (puns on the sense of “handsome”)

129
fain
eagerly

135
encompassed
got hold of/got around (plays on the sense of “embraced”)

136
via
Italian exclamation of encouragement to action

139
make bold
am presumptuous

139
preparation
advance warning

141
Give us leave
leave us please

142
drawer
one who draws liquor/a tapster

147
sue
beg

147
charge
burden—i.e. with expense

148
plight
condition/health

150
unseasoned
unseasonable/ill-timed

152
on
go forward

155
carriage
carrying (of it)

163
discover
reveal

166
register
record

167
sith
since

174
observance
attentiveness/dutiful service

175
engrossed
gathered

175
fee’d
employed

177
largely
generously

178
would have given
would like to have given to her

181
means
methods/resources/wealth

181
meed
reward

184
flies
flees

184
substance
wealth/ body (as opposed to
shadow
)

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