|
Shakespeare's word |
Meaning (in the sample usage) |
# |
Reference(s) |
Sample usage |
|
lanthorn |
lantern (all but once in Mids) |
8 |
Mids 5.1 |
This lanthorn doth the horned moon present |
|
leman |
sweetheart |
3 |
TN 2.3 |
I sent thee sixpence for thy leman: hadst it? |
|
lime |
snare, trap (used 12 times in this sense) |
12 |
2 HVI 1.3 |
myself have limed a bush for her |
|
list |
listen
objective, goal; desire |
60 |
Lear 5.3
TN 3.1 MWW 2.2 |
List a brief tale;
she is the list of my voyage. go to bed when she list, rise when she list |
|
lour |
threaten darkly, scowl |
9 |
Rich III 1.1 Rich II 1.3 |
clouds that loured upon our house This louring tempest of your home-bred hate |
|
lym |
bloodhound |
1 |
Lear 3.6 |
Hound or spaniel, brach or lym, |
The
most comprehensive work on this topic is Alexander Schmidt's
Shakespeare Lexicon, a typical turn-of-the-century tome, carried out
with Teutonic thoroughness. I wonder how the pre-computer-era scholars
tackled projects like this; lots of index cards and infinite patience,
I suppose.
Incredibly, the book provides EVERY instance of EVERY word, in context, used by Shakespeare. In any event, for anyone who really enjoys Shakespeare, it's fun to pore over this "volume of forgotten lore," read all the occurrences of "housewife", for example, and ponder the subtle differences of meaning from one usage to the next.
You can order the Shakespeare Lexicon and Quotation Dictionary by Alexander Schmidt (a Dover re-print, 1985) from Amazon.com:
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