Miscellaneous Vocabulary

I managed to find a few books where there were only a couple of words that I didn't know so I lumped them all together here.

Alan Quartermain’s Wife by H. Rider Haggard

Assegai: the slender javelin or spear of the Bantu-speaking people of southern Africa

Laager: a camp or encampment, esp. within a protective circle of wagons

Kaross: a simple garment or rug of skins used especially by native tribesmen of southern Africa

Donga: (in an ice shelf) a small ravine with steep sides
(in South Africa) an eroded ravine; a dry watercourse

Inspan: to yoke or harness

Kloof: a deep glen


The Strain by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

Elegiac: of, relating to, or involving elegy or mourning or expressing sorrow for that which is irrecoverably past

Mezuzah: a small copy of the Hebrew text of Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21 in a container marked with the word Shaddai, a name of God, and affixed by Jews on their door frames in conformity with Jewish law and as a sign of their faith

Kreplach: small packets of noodle dough filled with ground meat or cheese usually boiled and served in soup

Agonal: associated with or relating to great pain, especially the agony of death

Effulgent: shining brilliantly; resplendent


Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall

Biro: a pen that has a small metal ball as the point of transfer of ink to paper
(Apparently this is just a ball point pen. How did I not know that?)


Captain Freedom by G. Xavier Robillard

Palliative: relieving or soothing the symptoms of a disease or disorder without effecting a cure

Scofflaw: one who habitually violates the law or fails to answer court summonses

Cannula: a flexible tube that is inserted into a body cavity, duct, or vessel to drain fluid or administer a substance