- mortaladjectiveChapter 1 →
Subject to death; certain to die at some point. Here the word is used to stress that humans not only die but can die suddenly and without warning.
“Yes, man is mortal, but that would be only half the trouble. The worst of it is that he's sometimes unexpectedly mortal — there's the trick!”
- procuratornounChapter 2 →
A senior Roman governor appointed to rule a province and administer justice on behalf of the emperor. In this novel it is Pilate's official title as the Roman ruler of Judea.
“You would not hang a man for saying that, would you, Procurator?”
- cobblestonesnounChapter 3 →
Small, rounded stones set into the ground to pave a road or path. They are the hard surface of the street where Berlioz meets his end.
“a round dark object was thrown up from under the wheels onto the cobblestones of the slope”
- Tolstoy blousenounChapter 6 →
A loose, belted Russian shirt with a side-fastening collar, named after the writer Leo Tolstoy who famously wore one. It signals a deliberately simple, old-fashioned style of dress.
“He was wearing a torn white Tolstoy blouse, one shoe, and had a paper icon pinned to his chest.”
- iconnounChapter 6 →
A small religious image of a saint or holy figure, traditionally painted on wood and used in Orthodox Christian worship. Ivan carries a paper one pinned to his chest during his chaotic chase.
“He was wearing a torn white Tolstoy blouse, one shoe, and had a paper icon pinned to his chest.”
- schizophrenianounChapter 6 →
A serious mental illness whose symptoms can include confused thinking, hallucinations, and losing touch with reality. The doctors use it as their official explanation for Ivan's wild claims about Woland.
“'Schizophrenia,' the professor said thoughtfully.”
- in full swingphraseChapter 6 →
Operating at its liveliest and most active level, with everything going on at full energy. Used here to describe the restaurant buzzing with noise, food, and celebration.
“The restaurant was in full swing.”
- unsanitaryadjectiveChapter 7 →
Dirty or unhygienic in a way that is likely to cause disease or health problems. Here it describes the officially reported filthy condition of a back staircase.
“The dollars were lying in the desk drawer, wrapped in a copy of Nikanor Ivanovich's own report on the unsanitary condition of the back staircase.”
- foreign currencynounChapter 7 →
Money issued by another country, which Soviet citizens were forbidden to possess. Holding it was treated as a serious crime in 1930s Moscow.
“In the ventilation shaft of his office they found a bundle of foreign currency—a hundred-dollar bill, and another, and another.”
- tenants' associationnounChapter 9 →
A Soviet-era committee of residents responsible for managing a shared apartment building, including housing rules and reporting on occupants. Its chairman held real local power.
“I am so delighted to make the acquaintance of the chairman of the tenants' association.”
- reedyadjectiveChapter 9 →
Describes a voice that is thin, high-pitched, and slightly unpleasant, like the sound of a reed instrument played badly. It signals that the speaker sounds weak or insincere.
“the long-faced one in the jockey's cap began in a reedy voice”
- compèrenounChapter 12 →
The host or master of ceremonies who introduces acts and keeps a stage show running. Here it refers to the theatrical announcer whom Woland exposes as a liar.
“'He lied three times in one evening. And that, you'll agree, is too much even for a compère.'”
- mass hypnosisnounChapter 12 →
The idea that a large crowd can be made to see or believe things that are not real through a single hypnotist's influence. Soviet officials use this term to explain away Woland's supernatural tricks as a scientific trick.
“'Citizens! You have just witnessed a case of so-called mass hypnosis. A purely scientific experiment, proving once and for all that there are no such things as miracles.'”
- séancenounChapter 9 →
A meeting at which someone claims to contact supernatural forces or spirits, often as a theatrical performance. Woland's show at the Variety Theatre is described in these terms.
- manuscriptnounChapter 13 →
A handwritten or typed text of a book before it has been published. The Master burns his novel in despair, but Woland restores it, declaring that manuscripts don't burn.
“Manuscripts don't burn.”
- psychiatric clinicnounChapter 8 →
A hospital or ward specifically for treating people with mental illness. Several characters in the novel are sent there after encounters with Woland, whether they are truly ill or simply inconvenient to the authorities.
- migrainenounChapter 2 →
A severe, recurring headache, often on one side of the head, that can cause intense pain and sensitivity to light. Pilate suffers from one throughout his interrogation of Yeshua.
- conjuredadjective
Produced by magic or illusion rather than by real means. The word describes the fashionable clothes and goods that Woland's show creates for the audience, which vanish when the spell ends.
- colonnadenounChapter 25 →
A row of evenly spaced columns supporting a roof or walkway, forming a sheltered outdoor corridor. Pilate meets his secret-service chief here for a private, guarded conversation.
- exposeverbChapter 14 →
To reveal someone's wrongdoing or hidden secret publicly, leaving them open to punishment or shame. Woland's assistants threaten to unmask audience members who are holding forbidden foreign money.
“'No one is to leave the theatre! Anyone found to be holding foreign currency will be exposed before this audience!'”
- crucifixionnounChapter 16 →
A method of execution used in the ancient Roman world in which a person is nailed or tied to a large wooden cross and left to die. It is the fate of Yeshua and the other condemned men in the Jerusalem chapters.
- centurynounChapter 16 →
In the ancient Roman army, a unit of roughly eighty soldiers commanded by a centurion. Here it refers to the armed escort that accompanies the condemned men to their execution.
- ventilation shaftnounChapter 9 →
A narrow passage built into a wall or floor to allow air to circulate through a building. It becomes a hiding place for the incriminating foreign banknotes planted on Bosoi.
“In the ventilation shaft of his office they found a bundle of foreign currency—a hundred-dollar bill, and another, and another.”
- despondentadjectiveChapter 19 →
Feeling a deep, hopeless sadness and loss of spirit, with no energy or desire to go on. Margarita is in this state after the Master's disappearance leaves her life empty.
- henchmannounChapter 20 →
A loyal follower who carries out the dirty or dangerous work of a more powerful person without question. Azazello acts as Woland's enforcer, delivering threats and magical gifts on his master's behalf.
The Master and MargaritaNovel by Mikhail Bulgakov