Vocabulary in The Turn of the Screw

A ghost or supernatural figure that appears suddenly and unexpectedly; in this text, the unsettling visible forms of the dead former servants that the governess believes she sees.

Remarkably great in extent or degree; used here to convey something impressively large or intense, often with an unsettling quality.

A woman employed in a private household to educate and care for the children; the unnamed narrator of the main story who takes charge of the children at Bly.

Giving a strong sense that something bad or significant is about to happen; ominous and full of foreboding.

Expressed clearly and easy to understand; also used to mean mentally clear and rational, as opposed to confused or deluded.

Remarkably strange or unusual; out of the ordinary in a way that draws attention and unease.

Having a pale, ashen, or bluish color, as if drained of blood; used to describe a face marked by shock or supernatural wrongness.

A person who takes part in a dialogue or conversation; in the prologue, the person who questions Douglas and draws out the story.

A person who held a position or role before the current one; here referring to the governess who held the post at Bly before the narrator.

Made sacred or devoted entirely to a particular purpose; used to suggest a solemn, almost religious dedication to a course of action.

Communication or dealings between people; in this Victorian text it means social exchange or conversation, not a sexual act.

A feeling of doubt or hesitation about whether an action is morally right; a nagging moral reservation that prevents one from acting freely.

Persistently pressing or demanding in a way that is difficult to ignore or refuse; annoyingly urgent.

To draw out or provoke a response, fact, or reaction from someone, especially through careful questioning or pressure.

So intense or obvious that it seems almost physically present and can almost be touched or felt in the air.

To protest or object firmly to someone about their actions or words; to argue against something with earnest disapproval.

Understood or implied without being openly stated; an unspoken agreement or acknowledgment between people.

A state of eternal spiritual ruin or damnation; used to convey the sense that the children's souls are in mortal danger.

A deep, seemingly bottomless pit; used figuratively to describe an overwhelming depth of horror, moral corruption, or despair.

To drive out an evil spirit from a person or place by means of prayer or ritual; here used broadly to mean freeing the children from the influence of the ghosts.

To attribute a fault, quality, or action to someone; to assign blame or responsibility to a particular person.

To cause someone to feel surprised and confused; to mix up or perplex so thoroughly that clear thinking becomes impossible.

Forcibly pulled or taken away from someone's grip or control; seized by a violent twisting or struggling motion.

Too great, extreme, or overwhelming to be expressed in words; beyond ordinary language, used here for horrors or feelings that resist description.

Deprived of something one holds, especially a home, land, or in this context a body or soul; driven out and left with nothing.