The Steeple-Jack

The Steeple-Jack Glossary

quiver

a slight, vibrating motion

mewing

crying pitifully

azure

deep blue

guinea

a gold coin

fife

a small flute

foxglove

any of a genus (Digitalis) of erect herbs of the snapdragon family; especially: a common European biennial or perennial (D. purpurea) cultivated for its showy racemes of dotted white or purple tubular flowers. It has been used in herbal medicine, and can be toxic.

salpiglossis

any of a small genus (Salpiglossis) of Chilean herbs of the nightshade family with large funnel-shaped varicolored flowers often strikingly marked.

spiderwort

any of a genus (Tradescantia of the family Commelinaceae, the spiderwort family) of American monocotyledonous plants with ephemeral often blue or violet flowers.

bracts

leaves extending from floral axil (stem)

frangipani

any of a genus (Plumeria) of shrubs or small trees of the dogbane family that are native to the American tropics and widely cultivated as ornamentals

diffident

shy

bravado

swaggering bravery and boldness

slats

thin flat strips of wood as for building

portico

a colonnade or covered ambulatory especially in classical architecture and often at the entrance of a building.

gilding

a thin, applied layer of gold leaf.

spire

a church steepletower

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