Томас Майн Рид - Лучшие романы Томаса Майна Рида / The Best of Thomas Mayne Reid

Proteus – in Greek mythology, the prophet of the sea who knew past, present and future, but disliked to share what he knew with people

Adonis – in Greek mythology, a remarkably beautiful youth, the favourite of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty

jack-a box – a toy with something inside which springs when the box is opened

penn– a grazing farm

barbacoa – a grating of green wood for cooking or drying meat over a slow fire; the word barbecue originated from the Arawak Indian term barbacoa

vis-à-vis – facing one another

calabash – a container for water or grain made of hard skin or shell of fruit or vegetables

Abraham – the first of Hebrew patriarchs, a figure equally revered by Judaism, Christianity and Islam

gladiator – in ancient Rome, a man who took part in public shows fighting with wild animals or other men in an arena

ceiba – a tropical plant with long and strong fibres from which bombax cotton is made

chou de palmiste– palm cabbage ( French )

Canarian – related to the Canarian Islands, an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean; the Canaries belong to Spain

débris– scraps, remains ( French )

coup de grâce– the last (often fatal) blow ( French )

the Land of Eire – Ireland

bounty – reward or payment for smth

Batabano – the Gulf of Batabano, a part of the Caribbean Sea near southwestern Cuba

braggadocio – boastfulness ( Spanish )

Caspita! – Oh, devil! (an exclamation of unpleasant surprise) ( Italian )

Cuarito – a small coin, ¼ of a peso ( Spanish )

caçadores= hunters ( Spanish )

bandan(n)a – a brightly coloured kerchief

chaussure– shoes; a shoe, a boot ( French )

Lincoln green – bright green

Sherwood Forest – a former royal hunting place in Nottinghamshire, England; the forest is well known for the events described in medieval English ballads

Robin – Robin Hood, a legendary outlaw and rebel, the main character of the 14 thcentury English ballads

redivivus– revived ( Latin )

Little John – Robin Hood’s friend and associate, a giant man of great strength

Sèvres – a town in central France famous for the porcelain manufactured at the royal factory from 1756

al fresco– in a fresco ( Spanish )

protégé – someone under smb’s protection or patronage ( French )

posse comitatus – a group of armed men gathered by the sheriff to protect public order ( Latin )

gaucherie– clumsiness, awkwardness ( French )

Trelawny – Edward Trelawny (1699–1754), governor of Jamaica in 1738–1752; he put an end to a long war between the white planters and the Maroons in 1739

valet de chamber– valet ( French )

à la matelot– as a sailor ( French )

costume de bal– ball dress ( French )

claret – Bordeaux wine from the region of the city of Bordeaux in France; the word claret is not used nowadays

eau de vie– vodka ( French )

non esset inventus—here: was not found ( Latin )

Facilus descensus Averni, sed revocare gradum.– here: It is easy to descend to hell but it is difficult to come back. ( Latin )

cavatina – a small lyrical opera aria

débonnaire– good-natured, generous ( French )

Carthaginian – related to Carthage , a great ancient city in northern Africa on the Mediterranean coast, founded in 814 BC by the Phoenicians

Veni, vidi, vici!( Latin ) – Julius Caesar’s famous words ‘I came, I saw, I conquered!’

muscovado – raw cane-sugar

fêtes= holidays, festivals ( French )

pit-a-pat – beating, palpitation

tableau– picture, view ( French )

the Rhone – the river in France and Switzerland, one of the largest rivers in Europe; it flows to the Mediterranean Sea

dos-y-dos– two and two ( Spanish )

sine die– for an uncertain period of time ( French )

monde– the world, society, environment, humanity ( French )

Anthony – Mark Anthony (83 BC–30 BC), Roman general; he was defeated by Octavian (the future emperor) and committed suicide

Cleopatra(70 BC–30 BC) – the Egyptian queen, wife of Mark Anthony; she committed suicide together with her husband

vanessa – one of the butterfly species

apropos – appropriate, timely

cynosure – the centre of attention

on the qui vive – on the alert, on the look-out

duppy– here: devil

tillandsia – a grassy tropical or subtropical American plant