Glossary

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

adulting: millennial slang for behaving like a responsible adult

aft castle: the stern structure behind the mizzenmast and above the transom on large sailing ships

all-heal: another name for the herb valerian

Almany: archaic name for Germany

Area 51: a conspiracy theorist reference to Homey Airport, a top-secret Air Force facility within the Nevada Test and Training Range

arse: ass

assist: millennial slang for assistance or help

bae: millennial acronym for before anyone else

bailey: outer wall of a castl e

baklava: a Greek dessert made of phyllo dough filled with nuts and soaked in honey

ballocks: testicles

bàs: Scots Gaelic for death

bawbag: scrotum

baws: testicles

besotted: old term for infatuated

bet: millennial slang for okay (used as an agreement)

big mad: millennial slang for furious

big yikes: millennial slang interjection for something embarrassing, disturbing or shocking

birlinn: a galley propelled by sail and oar

boak: vomit

boon: gift, power

bovine: cow-like

bràmair: Scots Gaelic for sweetheart

breac-sheunain: freckles

Cait Sith: half-Therion shape shifters

can’t even: millennial slang for being rendered helpless

carrack: a large European merchant ship that operated during the 14th to 17th centuries

catalepsy: a medical condition in which a person enters a trance or has a seizure that leads to a loss of sensation and consciousness; includes rigidity of the bod y

centurial: an archaic reference meaning one hundred years

changeling: a Fae child left in exchange for a human child

cheb: Scottish slang for “breasts”

chevalier: a knight or a gallant man

chib: shiv or makeshift knife

Chlíodhna: Celtic goddess of the afterlife, beauty and the sea

churn dash: the staff or plunger in a churn

clatty: Scottish slang for dirty

clootie dumpling: traditional pudding

co-chèilidh: Scots Gaelic for together, used to mean lover

colicus: colic

conger: a large, predatory eel

cossetted: pampered or coddled

cote: shed for pigeons

deets: millennial slang for details

ditz: slang for idiot

dobber: a stupid person

eejit: idiot

effigy: a doll, scarecrow or similar object roughly made to resemble a person which is meant to be destroyed or burned for symbolic reasons.

Elphyne: the otherworld of the Fae

érieann: Iris h

extra: millennial slang for too much

fab: millennial slang for fabulous

fack: fuck

Fae: people and artifacts from the magical realm

fail: millennial slang for failure

fash: Scottish slang for confuse

Finfolk: the clan’s word for the Selseus

fire: millennial slang for anything amazing

firesteel: a metal implement used to spark kindling for a fire

forecastle: a raised deck at the bow of a ship

Francia: medieval name for France

get busy: slang for have sex

ginormous: millennial slang combining the words giant and enormous

gorse: a large evergreen shrub with needle like leaves

hairsplitter: a slur for someone who argues over unimportant details

halflings: a term used for the offspring of Fae and mortals

hartshorn: a type of smelling salts rendered from deer horns

homeopath: a medical practitioner who uses natural substances to treat the injured and diseased

hooch: southern slang for liquor

hoor: whore, prostitut e

imp: a small demon or otherworldly creature

indie: millennial slang for independent

Insii Cait: old name for Shetland

Insii Orc: old name for Orkney

jobby: Scottish slang for poop

kalends: the first day of the month in the ancient Roman calendar

laird: lord

l’amour courtois: French for “courtly love”

landcrawler: slur used by the Finfolk for people who live on land

landwalker: polite term used by the Finfolk for people who live on land

leine: long shirt

lit: millennial slang for excellent, great, wonderful

lochan: small lake

maister: mister

màthair: mother

mawkish: weakly sentimental

mayweed: another name for stinking chamomile, a malodorous plant

meet and greet: slang for an introductory meeting

melia: woodland Fae who inhabit trees

ménage à trois: French for a sexual relationship involving three people

merrow: a mermaid or merman

mo bòidhchead: my beaut y

mojito: a cocktail based on a traditional Cuban punch, typically made of white rum, lime or lemon juice, sugar, crushed fresh mint leaves and sparkling water

morphew: skin lesions or blisters, historically caused by scurvy

nacre: mother-of-pearl

narked: diver slang for suffering from nitrogen narcosis, a dangerous condition caused by deep diving which creates an altered emotional state ranging from anxiety to euphoria

NDE: acronym for near-death experience

neoprene: a synthetic polymer much like rubber

Nifon: archaic name for Japan

Nóregr: archaic name for Norway

null: cancel

och: expression of surprise, disapproval, regret

Ornyst: old name for Unst

OTP: millennial slang acronym that stands for One True Pairing

ovate: a rank of druid above novices; one who is trained and skilled

p: millennial slang for pretty

Papou: Greek for grandfather

parlay: negotiate, bargain

pells: belts

pervy: slang for perverte d

Pished: Scottish slang for intoxicated

portents: omens, signs or other indicators of events yet to happen

Poseidon: Greek god of the sea

pottage: soup or stew

primeur: a vegetable or fruit picked while still young and small

quim: vagina

ratchet: millennial slang for angry, rude, disrespectful

Reparation: an ancient war between the Fae that took place in Elphyne

Ronalsee: an archaic name for North Ronaldsay island

salty: millennial slang for angry

scunner: an annoying person

Selse: home world of the Finfolk

Selseus: Finfolk’s name for their race

seneschal: steward or major-domo of a medieval great house

skiff: a small boat

skinwork: tattoos

slaps: millennial slang for something delightful

smite: a blow or to strike

sneaks: slang for sneakers

spill: millennial slang for passing along gossi p

stalker and fan: used to describe the actions of an avid fan

STEM: an acronym that stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics

stupit: stupid

swaddling: diaper

swain: male boyfriend or lover

swol: millennial slang for buff, well-built

tadger: slang for penis

Tbr: millennial slang acronym for To Be Real, which means being brutally honest

tenterhook: a hook used to fasten cloth to a wooden frame

Therion: shape-shifting type of Fae

thermocline: a high-gradient layer based on temperature in a large body of water

tight: millennial slang for nervous, upset

TMI: acronym for “too much information”

totes: millennial slang for totally

tragic: millennial slang for a terrible burden

trotter: pig’s foot

tsunami: a giant wave or waves caused by undersea earthquakes or eruptions

turncoat: traitor

turned up: millennial slang for excited

uber: millennial slang for very much

uiseag: Scots Gaelic for lar k

vetch: a plant in the legume family

walk of shame: slang for a woman going home after an unplanned sexual encounter, usually wearing the same clothes she had on the day before

walkabout: slang for wandering

ward: an open-air courtyard

warding: imprisonment or shielding spell

wee: small

weevers - a fish that can sting

whale-killer: orca

whinge: whine and complain

whirl bone: archaic name for arthritis

white swelling: archaic name for bone tuberculosis

White-mouth: local term for a mako shark

wulvers: werewolf-like creatures from Scottish mythology

Yetland: archaic word for Shetland