Hamlet Vocabulary | 10 Essential Words | William Shakespeare

Hamlet Vocabulary | 10 Essential Words | William Shakespeare
CRAMBOOKNOTES Vocab Series

Essential Vocabulary

Hamlet by William Shakespeare

AP Literature Grades 10-12 10 Key Words Shakespearean Tragedy
Need a full summary? Check out our Hamlet - 5-Minute Cram Notes
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Word List

Word Part of Speech Definition Example from the Book
Soliloquy noun A speech in which a character alone on stage reveals private thoughts to the audience "Hamlet delivers his most famous soliloquy, asking whether it is nobler to suffer life's hardships or to end them by death"
Corruption noun Moral decay caused by power; dishonest behavior in those who hold authority "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark - the corruption begins with Claudius's secret murder of his own brother"
Ambiguity noun Uncertainty of meaning; open to more than one interpretation "Shakespeare leaves Ophelia's death in ambiguity - it is never made clear whether she fell or let herself drown"
Revenge noun The act of harming someone in return for a wrong they have committed "The ghost demands revenge, sending Hamlet on a quest to punish Claudius for his father's murder"
Feign verb To pretend or fake a feeling, illness, or condition "Hamlet decides to feign madness so he can investigate his uncle's guilt without raising suspicion"
Mortality noun The state of being subject to death; awareness that life will end "Holding Yorick's skull in the graveyard forces Hamlet to confront his own mortality directly"
Treachery noun Betrayal of trust; deceitful action against someone who trusts you "Claudius's treachery against his own brother is the original crime that poisons the entire Danish court"
Procrastination noun Delaying or postponing an action that needs to be done "Hamlet's procrastination keeps him from killing Claudius even when he finds his uncle alone and unguarded"
Usurpation noun The wrongful or illegal seizure of power or a position "Claudius's usurpation of the throne combines with murder and marriage to steal everything that was Hamlet's father's"
Existential adjective Concerned with the meaning, value, and purpose of human existence "Hamlet's existential questioning reaches its peak in the to be or not to be soliloquy about the nature of life and death"

Vocabulary Video

Watch - Essential Vocabulary from Hamlet

Practice Quiz

Hamlet - Vocabulary Quiz

Question 1 of 10

In his most famous __________, Hamlet debates whether it is nobler to endure life's suffering or to end it.

Question 2 of 10

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark - the __________ that begins with Claudius's secret murder spreads through the whole royal court.

Question 3 of 10

Shakespeare leaves Ophelia's death shrouded in __________ - readers can never be sure if she fell by accident or let herself sink.

Question 4 of 10

The ghost of King Hamlet demands __________ against Claudius for the murder that stole both his crown and his queen.

Question 5 of 10

Hamlet decides to __________ madness so he can investigate his uncle's guilt without raising suspicion.

Question 6 of 10

Holding Yorick's skull in the graveyard forces Hamlet to confront his own __________ face to face.

Question 7 of 10

Claudius's __________ against his own brother, poisoning him in the garden, sets the entire tragedy into motion.

Question 8 of 10

Hamlet's __________ keeps him from killing Claudius even when he catches him alone and unguarded.

Question 9 of 10

Claudius's __________ of the Danish throne is the original crime - one act of murder that poisons everything that follows.

Question 10 of 10

Hamlet's __________ questioning reaches its peak in the to be or not to be soliloquy, as he weighs the meaning of life and death itself.

out of 10 correct

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