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Allusion test
1st6 weeks
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Absolom | noun - a son who brings heartache to his father From the 3rd son of David, King of Israel Biblical |
| Achilles heel | noun – a vulnerable point . As a baby Achilles’ mother dipped all but his heel into the river Styx to make him invulnerable to attack. Mythology |
| Adonic | adjective – very handsome or beautiful From Adonis who was a handsome youth |
| Amazonian | adj. – masculine like Mythical female warriors from Asia Minor Mythology |
| Ambrosia | adj. - something extremely pleasing to taste or smell . food of Greek/Roman gods Mythology |
| Aphrodisiac | adj. or noun – exciting desire; stimulating from Aphrodite’s beauty, grace, elegance Mythology |
| Arachnid | adj. or noun – any class of anthropods – spiders, scorpions, mites, or ticks . from Greek Arachne, meaning spider mythology |
| Argonaut | noun – an adventurer engaged in a quest one of a band of heroes sailing with the warrior Jason in quest of the Golden Fleece Mythology |
| Argus | noun – a watchful guardian a hundred-eyed monster only two of which were close together Mythology |
| Aristotelian | noun or adj. – practical thinking relating to Aristotle, Greek philosopher and student of Plato Historical |
| Armageddon | noun – evil; a vast, decisive conflict; a battle a final and conclusive battle between the forces of good and evil foretold in Revelation 16 Bibical |
| Attila | noun – barbarian; rough leader King of the Huns and the most successful of the barbarian invaders of the Roman Empire. Historical |
| Atlas | noun – one who bears a heavy burden a Titan (king) who supported the Titans against Zeus and was punished by having to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders Mythology |
| Auroral | a. adj. – dawn b. from Aurora – goddess of dawn c. Mythology |
| Babbitt | a. noun – a self-satisfied person concerned chiefly with business and middle-class ideals like material success a member of the American working class whose unthinking attachment to its business and social ideals is such to make him a model of narrow-mind |
| Babylon | a. noun – a place devoted to materialism and the pursuit of sensual pleasure b. a city in the Bible of great wealth and sensual pleasure c. Biblical |
| Bacchanalian | a. adj. or noun – a drunken feast, orgy b. a Roman festival of Bacchus celebrated with dancing, song, and revelry –named after Bacchus (Dionysus) Greek god of wine. c. Mythology |
| Cain | a. noun – murderer b. son of Adam and Eve and the jealous murderer of his own brother Able in Genesis, Chap. 4 c. Biblical |
| Calliope | a. noun – musical instrument – organ – whistle – steam, compressed air b. Muse of eloquence and epic poetry, Calliope. (One of nine Greek Muses.) She would tell of heroes and their deeds and could play any musical instrument. c. Mythology |
| Canaan | a. noun – place of rest or haven; paradise; Promised Land b. ancient region corresponding vaguely to Israel. God promised this ancient land to Abraham. c. Biblical |
| Centaur | a. noun - a double-natured person; wild, barbaric disorderly conduct. b. A race who was half man and half horse in the mts. of Greece; were shaped by Zeus to resemble Hera. They once went to a wedding uninvited, drunk and fighting occured. c. Mythology |
| Chauvinists | a. noun - excessive or blind patriotism; undue partiality or attachment to a male group or place. b. Nicolas Chauvin was a French soldier in 1815, who was very patriotic and especially devoted to Napoleon.(written play) c. Historical |
| Chimerical | a. adj. - imaginary, visionary. b. Chimera - imaginary she-monster; fire breathing daughter of Typha. She has three heads - head of glowering lion, head of snake, and head of goat (or head of lion, torso of goat, and hind of a serpent) c. Mythology |
| Cupidity | a. noun - strong desire, lust (inordinate or unreasonable desire) for wealth; avarice, greed. b. son of Roman god of love and passion Venus - and Mars. Cupid is depicted naked with wings and a bow and arrow. c. Mythology |
| Cynic | a. noun or adj. - a person who believes human conduct is motivated by self interest b. from ancient Greek School of Philosophers (4th cent.) who held that virtue is the only good and its essence is in self-control and independence. c. Historical |
| Delilah | a. noun - seductive, treacherous woman. b. Samson's mistress who betrayed him to Philistines; she tempted Samson and cut his hair so he would lose his strength. (Book of Judges, Ch. 16). c. Biblical |
| Elysian | a. adj. - blissful; delightful b. from Elysian Fields in the Lower World - home of the blessed or purified after death. c. Mythology |
| Epicurean | a noun, adj. - fond of luxuries and sensual pleasures. b. from Epicurus, Greek hedonistic philosopher, believed the chief good in life was pleasure. Believed in emotional calm, the highest good was intellectual pleasures, etc. c. Historical |
| Frankenstein | a. noun – anything that threatens or destroys its creator b. from the young scientist in Mary Shelly’s novel of this name, who created a monster that eventually destroys him c. Literary |
| Galahad | a. noun – a pure and noble man with limited ambition b. in the legends of King Arthur, the purest and most virtuous knight of the Round Table, the only knight to find the Holy Grail c. Literary |
| Gerrymander | a. noun, verb - to give unfair advantage to one political party; to manipulate unfairly. b. from Gov. of Mass. in 1812, Elbridge Gerry + salamander - the shape of his electoral district formed during his term as governor. c. Historical |
| Golgotha | a. noun - a place of unusual, intensive suffering, or sacrifice. b. Calvary, a place outside of Jerusalem where Christ was crucified. c. Biblical |
| Goliath | a. noun - a giant b. Champion of the Philistines - killed by young David with a slingshot and a rock. (I Samuel, Ch. 17) c. Biblical |
| Gordian Knot | a. adj. - a difficult problem; an intricate problem. b. Knot tied by Gordius, king of Phrygia, which was thought to be incapable of being untied only by future ruler of Asia. It was cut by Alexander the Great with his sword. c. Historical |
| Gorgon | a. noun - ugly woman. b. Gorgons were ugly sisters: Medusa, Sthena, Euryle. One glance from Medusa would turn the them into stone. Their hair were serpents, their hands were brass, scaley bodies, tusk teeth. Medusa was beheaded by Perseus. c. Mythology |
| Harpy | a. noun – a predatory person or nagging woman b. a foul creature that was part woman, part bird c. Mythology |
| Hackney | a. adj. or noun – to make something banal or trite by frequent use; a horse for ordinary riding or driving, a horse kept for hire b. from Hackney, the most common breed of heavy harness horses in the US c. Historical |
Created by:
ddeckard62
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