"The Law of Life" vocabulary

Abode

(v.) to dwell; to reside

Though his sight had long since faded, his hearing was still acute, and the slightest

sound penetrated to the glimmering intelligence which yet abode behind the withered forehead, but which no longer

Abstraction

(n.) the act of considering something as a general quality or characteristic, apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances

“This was the deepest abstraction old Koskoosh's barbaric mind was capable of.”

Acute

(adj.) Having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions

“Though his sight had long since faded, his hearing was still acute…”

Anathematize(verb) to curse or declare to be evil or anathema or

threaten with divine punishment

“Ah! That was Sit-cum-to-ha, shrilly anathematizing the dogs…”

Assailant

(noun) Someone who attacks“Twice had he been dragged down, as the snow attested, and twice had he shaken his assailants clear…”

Blear (adj.) Tried to the point of exhaustion

“Her limbs dragged and shuffled, her eyes dimmed and bleared….”

Caribou(n.) arctic deer with large antlers in both sexes;

called ‘reindeer’ in Eurasia and ‘caribou’ in North America

In the summer salmon run had failed, and the tribe looked forward to winter and the coming of

caribou

Croon

(v.) to sing“A child whimpered, and a woman soothed it with soft, crooning gutturals.”

Exemplify

(verb) be characteristic of, clarify by giving an example of

“He saw it exemplified in all life.”

Faggot( noun ) –a bundle of sticks and branches

bound together.

“His hand shot into the fire and dragged out a burning faggot.”

Fertile

(adj.) Capable of reproducing

“…times when they let the game go unkilled, and the women were fertile…”

Flank

(Noun) The side of an animal or person between the ribs and hip

“the old bull moose -- the torn flanks and bloody sides, the riddled mane, and the great branching

horns, down low.”

Forlorn(adj) desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in

feeling, condition, or appearance.

“Sit-cum-to-ha was his daughter's daughter, but she was too busy to waste a thought upon her broken

grandfather, sitting alone there in the snow, forlorn and helpless.”

Fretful (adj.) Nervous and unable to relax.

“Little Koo-tee, the old man thought, a fretful child, and not overstrong.”

Guttural(adj.) Relating to or articulated in the throat

“A child whimpered, and a woman soothed it with soft, crooning gutturals.”

Harried

(v.) troubled persistently especially with petty annoyances.

“while their brothers harried the kill…”

Haunch

(noun) the hindquarter of a human or animal, around the hip

“Now one wormed his chest forward, dragging his haunches after…”

Hereditary

(adj.) inherited from ancestors

“Overcome for the nonce by his hereditary fear of man…”

Inexorable

(adj.) Impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason.

“He saw the inexorable circle close in till it became a dark point in the

midst of the stamped snow.”

Linger

(verb) Remain present although waning or gradually dying

“The long trail waited while the day refused to linger”

Loll(v.) to hang loosely or laxly; be lazy

or idle“He saw the flashing forms of gray, the gleaming eyes, the lolling tongues…”

Madden

(verb) cause to go crazy; cause to lose one’s mind

“One wolf had been caught in the wild lunge of the maddened victim and trampled to death.”

Mangy

(adj.) Having many worn or threadbare spots in the nap

“His hand returned to the shelter of his mangy furs…”

Nonce

(Noun) The present occasion.

“Overcome for the nonce by his hereditary fear of man, the brute retreated, raising a prolonged

call to his brothers…”

Palsied

(adj.) Affected with palsy or uncontrollable tremor

“the thought made the old man panicky for the moment, and he stretched forth a palsied hand

which wandered tremblingly…”

Perpetuate

(verb) cause to continue or prevail

“To perpetuate was the task of life, its law was death”

Replenish

(Verb) Fill something that had been previously empty

“It was the seventh year, and the rabbits had not replenished….”

Shaman (noun) one acting as a medium between the visible

and spirit worlds; practices sorcery for the healing or divination

“The shaman would see signs and wonder in this when they told him.”

Slaver(Verb) Let saliva drivel from the mouth

“gleaming eyes, the lolling tongues, the slavered fangs”

Slovenly

(adj.) negligent of neatness especially in dress and person; habitually dirty and unkempt

“… the clean stride of the great beast had grown short and slovenly.”

Soothe

(Verb) To give moral or emotional strength to

“a child whimpered, and a women soothed it, with soft, crooning gutturals”

Splay(adj.) turned outward in an ungainly manner

In the midst were the deep impressions of the splay hoofed game, and all about, everywhere,

were the lighter footmarks of the wolves

Stalwart

Adj. strongly and stoutly built; sturdy and robust

“The chief was his son, stalwart and strong.”

Thong

(Noun) A leather strip that forms part of a whip

“Oh, the men lashing the sleds and drawing tight the thongs….”

Tragedy (n.) an event resulting in great loss and misfortune.

Hot were they on the heels of the chase, reading the grim tragedy, fresh-written, at every step.

Tundra (noun) A vast treeless plain in the Arctic regions where the subsoil is permanently

frozen.

“ … soon, perhaps, and they would burn a hole through the frozen tundra and… “

Unversed

(adj.) Not having extensive practice

“Eager-footed, they took the trail, and even he, Koskoosh, slow of sight and an unversed tracker, could have followed it blind….”

Void

(noun) an empty area or space

“The familiar, long-drawn howl broke the void, and it was close at

hand.”