Page 46 of Farlan (Immortal Highlander Clan McKeran #3)

Here are some brief definitions to help you navigate the medieval world of the Clan McKeran series.

abuela: Spanish for grandmother

abuelo: Spanish for grandfather

acoustic neuroma: a noncancerous tumor on the main nerve leading from the inner ear to the brain

addled: confused

afterlife: life after death

albatross: (used in the context of an unwanted encumbrance) a burden that causes persistent anxiety and resentment

all het up: a southern euphemism for becoming aroused

amigo: Spanish for male friend

amiss: not quite right, inappropriate or out of place

anchor stones: large, heavy stones used as bases for masonry constructions

antediluvian: of or belonging to a time before the flood in the Book of Genesis

Armagnac brandy: a type of alcohol distilled from wine and produced in the Armagnac region of France

armorer: a maker, supplier or repairer of weapons and/or armor

arse: ass

aviary: a large building, cage or enclosure to keep birds inside

awash: covered by or flooded with

Ay Dios Mio: Spanish equivalent to “Oh my God”

B rubble used to fill a space between two stone walls

bafflement: a state of being completely unable to understand or explain something

bailey: a courtyard between two walls of a medieval castle; in this series the land between the stronghold and the inner curtain wall

bairn: Scottish slang for baby or very young child

balooey: Texan slang for bullshit

bannocks: flat, unsweetened cakes or bread made from oatmea l

Baobhan Sith: female fairies in Scottish mythology who appear as beautiful human women in order to seduce their victims before attacking and killing them

bashful: shy

bastart: clanspeak for bastard

bawsack: Scottish slang for testicles

bee in your bonnet: southern slang for thinking obsessively about something

begrudge: to give reluctantly or resentfully

begunk: Scottish slang for someone who is a cheat and a trickster

belittle: make seem unimportant

benign: not harmful

beseech: ask fervently and urgently for someone to do something

besieging: surrounding an enemy’s position and cutting off their supplies in order to force them to surrender

betrothed: promised or engaged to be married

Big Hoss: Polly Carter’s nickname for Tasgall

blootered: Scottish slang for drunk

bo: Japanese wooden fighting staff

boak: Scots slang for vomit

bōjutsu: Japanese martial art using the bo

boon: a helpful gift or favor that adds greatly to someone’s happines s

bootstraps paradox: a type of time-travel loop created by a person or object that has no discernable origin

bowman: archer

brace: challenge, confront

brazier: a heat source consisting of a pan or a stand to hold hot coals

Breitheamh: early Gaelic lawmen

brethren: brothers, close associates

Briseadh: Scots Gaelic for breaker

Briseadh a 'gheasaidh: Scots Gaelic for “Break the spell”

Britannia: archaic name for England

brothels: a house of prostitution

bull pen: a room for a group of people to gather and work

buttery: a storeroom for liquor

cache: a collection of items stored in a hidden or hard to access place

cairngorm stones: a type of smoky quartz found exclusively in the Cairngorm Mountain Range in Scotland

canny: having or showing good judgment; someone shrewd

captioning: voiced audio that has been converted into text

cartel: an association of manufacturers or suppliers with the purpose of eliminating competition and maintaining high prices for their products, often used to refer to groups making, smuggling and distributing illegal drugs

catcalls: jeers or other sounds of disapproval and contempt

caul: part of the amniotic membrane that sometimes covers the body or face of a child at birth

caustic: burning, stinging, acidic

chachalaca: Spanish term for someone who talks a lot, a chatterbox

chafe: being irritated at or by something

chai: a type of spicy Indian tea

changeling: a Fae child swapped for a human child by the Fae

chatelaine: a medieval housekeeper

chattels: people who are considered property

chebs: Scottish slang for breasts

Chicana: a female Mexican-American

Chicano: a male Mexican-American

chilaquiles: a traditional Mexican breakfast dish made with tortillas, red or green salsa, pulled chicken, cheese, refried beans and scrambled eggs

chittering: making a chattering or twittering sound

chronicled: recorded in factual, detailed manner

clothes horse: a term used to describe people who are employed to wear clothing, like models

clout: a heavy blo w

cochino: Chicano slang for pig, used to describe someone disgusting

cochlear implant: an electronic device embedded in the skull of a deaf or hearing impaired person that gives them a representation of speech or sounds in the environment

coddling: pampering

cognac: a type of French brandy

colossal: giant

commotion: noisy and chaotic disturbance

compatriot: someone who belongs to the same group or organization

compote: fruit cooked or preserved in syrup

contrary: opposite or opposing in nature

concubines: women who are intimate with but not married to the man they live with

conscript: force someone to enlist in the military

copious: abundant

coroner: an official who investigates sudden, suspicious or violent human deaths

corpulent: fat

coshing: hitting

coven: a group of individuals who share a common connection, interest or activity

dais: a raised platform on one end of a hall

dance attendance on: to obsessively and constantly wait on someone else in order to fulfill their every whim and desire

darkling: devoid of light or brightness (used in the series as a double entendre for someone evil and stupid)

deference: show of humbleness and respect

deposed: removed from office suddenly and forcefully

deprivation: the lack or denial of something considered a necessity

discourse essays: essays written with underlying meanings

draoithe: Irish word for druid

dovetail: fit together neatly

dreòlan: Scots Gaelic for wren

Dunfermline: the de facto capital of the Kingdom of Scotland between the 11 th and 15 th centuries

Dumnonii: ancient tribe of Cornwall

Dun Talamh:

eejit: clanspeak for idiot

ells: a medieval Scottish unit of measurement roughly equal to 45”

Elphyne: the otherworld where the Light and Dark courts preside over all Fae

Epcot: An acronym for a Disney World theme park that stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorro w

ether: a substance once believed by archaic people to occupy all space, including the spaces between particles of matter

exhume: dig up something out of the ground, especially a corpse

exposé: a report of facts that reveals something scandalous or shocking

factor: an estate manager who supervised tenants, collected rents and oversaw the use of the estate’s land

falsehood: lie

fashed: confused, puzzled

Fear-Faire: the name of Harper Ensley’s video channel, also Scots Gaelic for watchman

feign: to pretend or fake

feverfew: a flowering plant in the daisy family used topically to treat pain

filching: stealing

fodder: food for livestock

foray: a sudden attack or incursion into enemy territory

Francia: a medieval name for France

fret: worry, fuss

friends with benefits: friends who are sexually intimate

gabacho: a Chicano term for people who are not Spanish and/or from the United State s

gauntlets: armored gloves worn by medieval warriors

gaydar: a combination of the words “gay” and “radar,” the ability to easily identify other people’s sexual orientation

ghosted: the practice of ending a relationship by abruptly cutting off all contact with a person without providing any explanation as to why

golach: Scottish term for a small beetle or other arthropod insect

golden oriole: a small Eurasian bird with yellow and black (male) or green, brown and speckled white (female) plumage

Goliath: from the Bible, a Philistine giant killed by David in the Book of Samuel

gracias: Spanish for “thank you”

granary: room or building for the purpose of storing grain

grayling: silver-gray freshwater fish with horizontal violet stripes and a long, high dorsal fin

Guédelon : a building site currently under construction near Treigny. France that is an experimental archaeological project to build in twenty-five years a medieval castle using 13 th century materials and techniques

guise: an external appearance, form, or manner of presentation which usually conceals the true nature of something

haggis: a traditional Scottish dish made of oatmeal, seasonings, sheep’s organs and entrails, and suet, the mixture of which is boiled in the sheep’s stomach.

halfling: someone who is half Fae and half mortal, or conceived by two different types of Fae

hog-tying: tying together the hands and feet of an animal or person

harem: a group of sexual partners for one person

harlot: a prostitute

Heathrow: the main international airport serving London UK

Hibernians: an ancient name for Irish people

hissy fit: a southern term for an angry outburst or temper tantrum

hogwash: nonsense

homeboy: a young acquaintance from one’s own town, neighborhood or social circle

hoopla: excitement around an event or situation, especially when considered excessive or unnecessary

hoor: a whore

horde: a large group of people

horsehair pallet: a thin mattress stuffed with straw with a layer of wool and horsehair to provide support and warmth

hospice: a program or facility that provides end-of-life care for terminally ill people

HR: acronym for Human Resource s

hypersexual: obsessed with sexual behaviors, thoughts or urges

hypothermic: a physical state in which there has been a significant and potentially dangerous drop in body temperature

impassioned: filled with or showing great passion

indebt: cause to owe money, a favor or an obligation

ingratiated: to have brought oneself into favor with someone else by fawning over, flattering or doing favors