Vocabulary in Hamlet

The physical human body, seen here as heavy, earthly matter that traps the soul — Hamlet wishes it could simply dissolve away rather than continue existing in a corrupt world.

To dissolve or break down completely into something else — here, the body melting away into liquid, vanishing entirely rather than remaining solid.

A name for God, emphasizing His eternal existence — used here to refer to the divine authority whose law forbids suicide.

A law or commandment, especially one issued by God or the Church — here, the divine prohibition against taking one's own life.

The act of killing oneself; suicide — an archaic compound word used to name the act that God's law forbids.

A snake — used here as a metaphor for a treacherous murderer, echoing the biblical image of the serpent as a symbol of deceit and evil.

To kill by injecting venom — here used figuratively for the act of poisoning King Hamlet, as though the murderer were a venomous snake.

A deliberate lie used as a lure to draw out the truth — Polonius means that spreading a small false rumour will trick someone into revealing what is actually happening.

A large freshwater fish — used here as a metaphor for a valuable truth that is caught by dangling a false rumour as bait.

A natural power or ability of the mind or body — here used in the plural to praise the seemingly limitless mental and physical capacities of human beings.

The purest, most concentrated essence of something — used ironically here: mankind, for all its glory, is ultimately just the finest possible example of mere dust and mortality.

Painful attacks or misfortunes that life hurls at a person — drawn from weapons of war, the phrase describes the suffering and bad luck that fortune inflicts on us.

Cruel, violent bad luck — 'outrageous' here means shockingly harsh and unjust, not merely surprising, describing the brutal way fate treats human beings.

Declares or vows something so insistently and excessively that the very over-emphasis makes the declaration unbelievable — to 'protest' here means to swear or assert, not to object.

At exactly the right moment; perfectly timed — Hamlet means this instant is ideally suited for killing Claudius, since he has caught him alone.

Carefully examined or thought through — Hamlet means the idea of killing Claudius at prayer needs to be looked at more closely before he acts on it.

At a slant or diagonal angle, leaning over — here describing a willow tree whose branches hang out sideways over the surface of a brook.

White or grey in colour, like frost — here describing the pale silvery undersides of willow leaves that are reflected in the water below.

Wildly imaginative wreaths of flowers and weeds woven together — 'fantastic' means strange and fanciful rather than wonderful, suggesting Ophelia's disordered, mad state of mind.

Individual scouts sent ahead one at a time — used as a metaphor for troubles that arrive alone at first, before overwhelming numbers follow.

Large bodies of soldiers advancing together — used here as a metaphor for the way misfortunes pile up and attack all at once rather than one by one.

A joke or playful wit — here used to describe Yorick's talent for humour and entertaining others, which made him beloved at court.

Creative imagination or inventive playfulness — here praising Yorick's gift for imaginative, lively entertainment that delighted everyone around him.

The belief that God personally oversees and controls every event, no matter how small — Hamlet uses it to argue that even a sparrow's death is part of a divine plan, so he should not fear his own.

Being mentally and spiritually prepared for death at any moment is the only thing that truly matters — Hamlet's conclusion that one cannot control when death comes, only one's own state of mind when it does.