A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man: Chapter 1

by James Joyce
In this modernist classic, Stephen Dedalus develops into an artist and challenges the traditional Irish values with which he grew up. Read the full text here.

Here are links to our lists from the book: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5

Here are links to our lists for other works by James Joyce: Araby, The Dead
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. prefect
    an older student who monitors or supervises other students
    All were shouting and the prefects urged them on with strong cries.
  2. refectory
    a communal dining-hall, usually in a monastery
    Rody Kickham had greaves in his number and a hamper in the refectory.
  3. magistrate
    a lay judge or civil authority who administers the law
    His father, who kept the racehorses, must be a magistrate too like Saurin's father and Nasty Roche's father.
  4. multitude
    a large indefinite number
    A tiny light twinkled at the pierhead where the ship was entering: and he saw a multitude of people gathered by the waters' edge to see the ship that was entering their harbour.
  5. profusely
    in very large amounts or quantities; extremely
    He inclined his head, closed his eyes, and, licking his lips profusely, began to speak with the voice of the hotel keeper.
  6. feign
    give a false appearance of
    He would seize a handful of grapes and sawdust or three or four American apples and thrust them generously into his grandnephew's hand while the shopman smiled uneasily; and, on Stephen's feigning reluctance to take them, he would frown and say:
  7. confine
    restrict or limit
    If they took a fool's advice they would confine their attention to religion.
  8. rend
    tear or be torn violently
    When he was down they turned on him to betray him and rend him like rats in a sewer.
  9. renegade
    having deserted a cause or principle
    I will defend my church and my religion when it is insulted and spit on by renegade catholics.
  10. litany
    a prayer consisting of a series of invocations by the priest with responses from the congregation
    And she did not like him to play with Eileen because Eileen was a protestant and when she was young she knew children that used to play with protestants and the protestants used to make fun of the litany of the Blessed Virgin.
  11. harridan
    a scolding (even vicious) old woman
    Well there was one old lady, and a drunken old harridan she was surely, that paid all her attention to me.
  12. denounce
    speak out against
    Didn't they denounce the fenian movement from the pulpit and in the confession box?
  13. surplice
    a loose-fitting ecclesiastical vestment with wide sleeves
    There were dark wooden presses there where the crimped surplices lay quietly folded.
  14. scandalous
    giving offense to moral sensibilities
    Father Arnall gave out the theme-books and he said that they were scandalous and that they were all to be written out again with the corrections at once.
  15. livid
    discolored by coagulation of blood beneath the skin
    His whole body was shaking with fright, his arm was shaking and his crumpled burning livid hand shook like a loose leaf in the air.
Created on Mon Aug 29 14:51:46 EDT 2016 (updated Fri Jul 18 14:23:34 EDT 2025)

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