Category: Bookish Thoughts (Page 2 of 43)

Prosaic – dull, uninteresting, ordinary, commonplace

“The tin whistle lent a necessary touch of romance to what would otherwise have been a prosaic case, my dear Jotson,” [Sholmes] said light-heartedly.

“The Lost Persian”, The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1922

Gauntlets – a glove; specifically in medieval armor, the defensive covering of the hand

“We had not long to wait. There was a clanking of chains and deep groans. Then out of the library stepped an old-time knight, a short length of chain tracing behind one foot. His hands were encased in chain gloves, with gauntlets attached. His face was pale and luminous.”

“That Ghostly Xmas Knight”, The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1921

Attenuated – to make thin or slender; to become thin or slender; to diminish or weaken

“As I turned into Shaker Street, in which my famous detective friend, Herlock Sholmes, and I had our apartments, I saw a long, attenuated figure a little way ahead.”

The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1921

Jocular – jocose (given to jokes and jesting); waggish; merry; given to jesting; joking; humorous; full of fun; said as a joke

She stopped short as a violent peal sounded on the front-door bell.

“An impatient patient, I expect,” I murmured jocularly.

“I’m afraid not, my dear Jotson,” replied Sholmes.

The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1921

Proboscis – an elephant’s trunk, or a long, flexible snout; a person’s nose, humorously so called

“Even my illustrious friend, Herlock Sholmes, evinced a modicum of surprise. I distinctly saw his ears give a slight flap as he paused in the act of conveying a pinch of the best cocaine to his aquiline proboscis.”

The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1924

Evince – to show in a clear manner; to indicate; to manifest; to make evident; to conquer; to overcome

“Herlock Sholmes was silent and pre-occupied as he led the way up from the basement to our apartments. Once in his armchair with his ornate cocaine cask at his elbow, however, he evinced the greatest interest in my scientific discovery.”

The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1921

Cognisant – having cognisance (awareness, perception, knowledge); informed (spelled with Zs in American – Cognizant and cognizance)

“So you are astonished to find me so cognisant of your affairs, my dear Jotson?” [Sholmes] said.

The Complete Casebook of HErlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1921

Psychical – psychic – supposedly sensitive to forces beyond the physical world

“Herlock Sholmes, by his marvelous psychical power, detected the question which was framing itself in my mind.”

the complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes, Charles Hamilton, 1921