Vocabulary for
The Epic of Gilgamesh: Part Two
The Revenge of Ishtar
with Sniffy the Hamster, resident wordsmith
Printable Version (opens in new window).
Sniffy Says: "Boy oh boy oh boy is that Ishtar mean. Revenge, that's all she wants. Gilgamesh won't marry her—she tries to destroy Uruk with the Bull of Heaven. Enkidu and Gilgamesh kill the bull and she wants revenge again, so she harms Enkidu by making him sick and Gilgamesh by making him sad. She is full of vengeance—very vindictive. I don't like her, no, no, no I don't, I don't, I don't! Maybe I'll take revenge on her—what could I do?—hmmmmmm—she's way bigger than me—hmmmm—she's way stronger than me—hmmmmmm—well? Maybe I'll just eat some ice cream and go to bed. Good night."
Sniffy Says: "My Uncle Mike, Magnificent Mike we call him, has a magnificent hamster cage. You should see it! It's as big as a car. The outside is painted red, yellow and blue. Inside he has four splendid hamster wheels: one made of gold, one of silver, one of glass and the other of chocolate—he has to buy a new chocolate one every week. The cage has about 40 rooms with beautiful paths lined with jelly beans and all manner of hard candies. It has three elevators, one escalator and even an electric train. The walls are covered with gorgeous, inspiring hamster paintings. There's one of my great-great-great grandmother smacking a cat on the nose. The whole cage is carpeted and there are even 12 hamster bathrooms and you should see the dining room! The table seats 50! What magnificent meals we've had there! It's very impressive. The next time you get a chance would you tell Mr. Draeger to build a cage like that for me? Thanks."
Sniffy Says: "So you want to know what 'vast' is do you? Think big, very big. Huge! My cage is not vast, in fact, it's tiny. But go to the top of a mountain and look at everything around you. Now that is vast. Space is vast. It's immense. It's enormous. I mean it's humongous. It goes on for millions and millions and trillions and trillions and googles and googles of miles. I don't know if it ever stops it's so gigantic. I get dizzy just thinking about it—must be my vast intelligence. What do you think?"
Sniffy Says: "Furry? That's easy. I'm a furry hamster. You should touch me. I feel so soft and cuddily—don't squeeze though, I'll bite."
Mr. Draeger Says: "Sniffy. The word is not 'furry,' it's 'fury.'"
Sniffy Says: "What!? You're correcting me in front of all these students! Never, never correct me in front of students or you're going to have to find yourself a new hamster wordsmith, buddy boy! Oh me, oh my, am I angry! I'm going to bounce around this cage with such rage and passion you'll never get any sleep. Correcting me? Are you saying I'm not furry? You wait bub, I'll show you a furry fury so intense you'll—"
Mr. Draeger Says: "Sniffy? Remember who feeds you."
Sniffy Says: "Yeeees. Food, yes I suppose one does need food. Nevermind."
On-Line Dictionaries
The Free Dictionary: This is now my favorite on-line dictionary (the box above links to this dictionary). Not only does it provide you with audios to pronounce the word, but it also gives you examples of the word used in context. They also have a "References in classic literature" section which provides entire sentences from classic literature in which the word is used. Also includes a thesaurus, encyclopedia and more.
Answers.com: This is not just a dictionary, but it has a dictionary and the reason I list it is because the dictionary has an audio pronunciation feature which is very helpful when one comes across words that are difficult to pronounce or have never been seen before. Access is free.
The Dictionary of Difficult Words: Good resource for those words that your dictionary doesn't have or that other on-line dictionaries do not have.
A Latin Dictionary: This is great resource for Latin. There is even a downloadable version for your computer that will do both Latin/English and English/Latin.
Dictionary.com Free Access. You can purchase additional features.
Merriam-Webster Free Access.
WordSmyth A children's dictionary is also available. This dictionary requires registration. Free Access.
Oxford English Dictionary The best English dictionary in the world! This dictionary requires paid subscription. $29.95 per month or $295.00 per year.
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