The Crucible: Act Three

by Arthur Miller
This scathing dramatization of the Salem Witch Trials is also an allegory of Senator Joseph McCarthy's pursuit of Communists in the 1950s.

Here are the links to our lists for the play: Act One, Act Two, Act Three, Act Four–Echoes Down the Corridor
15 words 28368 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. affidavit
    written declaration made under oath
    Then let him submit his evidence in proper affidavit.
  2. extravagance
    the quality of exceeding appropriate limits
    I understand well, a husband’s tenderness may drive him to extravagance in defense of a wife.
  3. undermine
    weaken or impair, especially gradually
    There lurks nowhere in your heart, nor hidden in your spirit, any desire to undermine this court?
  4. imperceptible
    impossible or difficult to sense
    DANFORTH, now an almost imperceptible hardness in his voice: Then your purpose is somewhat larger.
  5. hearten
    give encouragement to
    But Danforth goes on reading, and Proctor is heartened.
  6. effrontery
    audacious behavior that you have no right to
    This is a court of law, Mister. I’ll have no effrontery here!
  7. ipso facto
    by the fact itself
    One calls up witnesses to prove his innocence. But witchcraft is ipso facto, on its face and by its nature, an invisible crime, is it not?
  8. probity
    complete and confirmed integrity
    That is precisely what I am about to consider, sir. What more may you ask of me? Unless you doubt my probity?
    The pun on "probity" can be seen in its Latin roots: "probare" means "to test" and "probus" means "good"—although Danforth is asking whether Hale doubts his integrity, as a judge who's in charge of interrogation, he's also asking whether Hale doubts his ability to do his job.
  9. placidly
    in a quiet and tranquil manner
    Francis prays silently, hands pressed together. Cheever waits placidly, the sublime official, dutiful.
  10. perjury
    criminal offense of making false statements under oath
    I will tell you this — you are either lying now, or you were lying in the court, and in either case you have committed perjury and you will go to jail for it.
  11. apparition
    a ghostly appearing figure
    Your friend, Mary Warren, has given us a deposition in which she swears that she never saw familiar spirits, apparitions, nor any manifest of the Devil.
  12. guile
    the use of tricks to deceive someone
    But if she speak true, I bid you now drop your guile and confess your pretense, for a quick confession will go easier with you.
  13. incredulously
    in a disbelieving manner
    DANFORTH, pointing at Abigail, incredulously: This child would murder your wife?
  14. transfixed
    having your attention fixated as though witchcraft
    She is transfixed — with all the girls, she is whimpering open-mouthed, agape at the ceiling.
  15. confounded
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    Mary Warren, utterly confounded, and becoming overwhelmed by Abigail’s — and the girls’ utter conviction, starts to whimper, hands half raised, powerless, and all the girls begin whimpering exactly as she does.
Created on Mon Nov 25 22:50:39 EST 2013 (updated Wed Jul 02 13:18:11 EDT 2025)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.