fact (noun) ‘actuality, datum of experience’ This word arrived in the language in the 16th century, and quickly developed a range of senses. The one which has survived is ‘actuality’, but in Early Modern English other senses were more dominant. The neutral idea of ‘something done’ gained both positive and negative associations: a noble thing […]

wag (verb) ‘move to and fro, especially with a quick, jerky motion’ The original sense of wag was simply ‘move, be in motion’, and this is found several times in Shakespeare, as when Titus says ‘the Empress never wags / But in her company there is a Moor (Titus Andronicus, V.ii.87) or Hamlet says he […]

quick (adjective) ‘rapid, swift’ The modern meaning was well established by Shakespeare’s time, but also common in the plays and poems are meanings which are now either obsolete or archaic. The sense of ’living, full of life’ is there when Anne rejects the thought of marrying Dr Caius: ‘I had rather be set quick i’th’earth, […]

garb (noun) ‘style of clothing’ This interesting word came into English from French probably when Shakespeare was in his twenties, and it was avidly seized upon by several writers. It always had the general sense of ‘manner, style, fashion’. Avoid the ‘clothing’ sense in Shakespeare, for that did not evolve until a decade after his […]

dear (adjective) ‘loved, highly regarded, esteemed’ This word has a range of positive meanings dating back to Old English, and all are found in Shakespeare, including some which are no longer current, such as ‘glorious’, ‘precious’, or ‘heartfelt’. But the major problem comes with the word in its negative meanings – ‘grievous’, ‘harsh’, ‘dire’ – […]

vexation (noun) ‘(a relatively mild level of) annoyance, irritation’ When this word first came into English, in the 15th century, it was as far away from ‘mild’ as it could be, referring to aggressive – even physical – harassment. The strength of feeling was still present in Shakespeare’s time. When Sicinius tells the Plebeians to […]

crazy (adjective) ‘very strange, mentally ill; mad with emotion’ The modern meanings were beginning to come into the language in the early 1600s, but in Shakespeare we find only the earliest sense. This was essentially physical in character. Something that was crazy was full of cracks and flaws (as in modern crazy paving), damaged, or […]

safe (adjective) ‘unharmed, secure, free from risk The modern senses of safe are very old, dating from the 13th century, and by Shakespeare’s time they had developed several other meanings, not all of which are used today. Some of these can be especially misleading. When Macbeth asks the First Murderer ‘But Banquo’s safe?’ (Macbeth, III.iv.24), […]