Brave New World: Chapters 13–18

by Aldous Huxley
In the futuristic World State, the genetically altered citizens are happy and free of pain—but they cannot exercise free will. Learn these words from Huxley's influential dystopian novel, first published in 1932.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–12, Chapters 13–18
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. pallor
    an unnatural lack of color in the skin
    Henry detected the weariness in those purple eyes, the pallor beneath that glaze of lupus, the sadness at the corners of the unsmiling crimson mouth.
  2. adage
    a condensed but memorable saying embodying an important fact
    “A doctor a day keeps the jim-jams away,” he added heartily, driving home his hypnopaedic adage with a clap on the shoulder.
  3. exasperation
    a feeling of annoyance
    “Then why on earth didn’t you say so?” she cried, and so intense was her exasperation that she drove her sharp nails into the skin of his wrist.
  4. apothecary
    a health professional who prepares and dispenses drugs
    Give me an ounce of civet, good apothecary, to sweeten my imagination.
  5. irresolute
    uncertain how to act or proceed
    The nurse stood irresolute, looking now at the kneeling figure by the bed (the scandalous exhibition!) and now (poor children!) at the twins who had stopped their hunting of the zipper and were staring from the other end of the ward, staring with all their eyes and nostrils at the shocking scene that was being enacted round Bed 20.
  6. carapace
    hard outer covering or case of certain organisms
    The insults bounced off their carapace of thick stupidity; they stared at him with a blank expression of dull and sullen resentment in their eyes.
  7. sacrilege
    blasphemous behavior
    For a moment the khaki mob was silent, petrified, at the spectacle of this wanton sacrilege, with amazement and horror.
  8. indistinguishable
    exactly alike; incapable of being perceived as different
    “Free, free!” the Savage shouted, and with one hand continued to throw the soma into the area while, with the other, he punched the indistinguishable faces of his assailants.
  9. impunity
    exemption from punishment or loss
    But as I make the laws here, I can also break them. With impunity, Mr. Marx,” he added, turning to Bernard.
  10. illicit
    contrary to or forbidden by law
    I started doing a bit of cooking on my own. Unorthodox cooking, illicit cooking. A bit of real science, in fact.
  11. approbation
    official acceptance or agreement
    The Controller nodded his approbation.
  12. superfluous
    serving no useful purpose; having no excuse for being
    ‘The religious sentiment will compensate us for all our losses.’ But there aren’t any losses for us to compensate; religious sentiment is superfluous.
  13. postulate
    a proposition accepted as true to provide a logical basis
    But you’ve got to stick to one set of postulates. You can’t play Electro magnetic Golf according to the rules of Centrifugal Bumble-puppy.
  14. excruciating
    extremely painful
    From time to time he stretched out his arms as though he were on the Cross, and held them thus through long minutes of an ache that gradually increased till it became a tremulous and excruciating agony.
  15. monotone
    an unchanging intonation
    “We—want—the whip; we—want—the whip,” broke out again in the same loud, insistent monotone.
Created on Mon Feb 09 21:23:00 EST 2015 (updated Fri Jun 27 16:09:39 EDT 2025)

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