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VOCABULARY>>
Vocabulary Development
Know (10) More Words
CAN YOU PLACE IT?
By Suzanne Bilyeu
What do Brobdingnag, the Balkan Peninsula, Camelot, Bedlam, and Waterloo have in common? They are all places.
Some are real; others are imaginary. But each has such memorable characteristics or historical significance that
its name has become part of our language. Take a tour of the following 10 words, which all come from place names
in fiction and in reality.
balkanize (BALL-kuh-nyz) verb to break up a region or
group into smaller, mutually hostile units
Origin: The Balkan Peninsula, a region of southeastern Europe, includes Albania, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece,
Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro,
Slovenia, and part of Turkey. Numerous invasions over the centuries caused
instability that led to wars and
ethnic rivalries.
bedlam (BED-luhm) noun a place or
condition of uproar and confusion
Origin: “Bedlam”—a corruption of
“Bethlehem”—became the common
nickname for St. Mary’s of
Bethlehem, a London insane asylum
dating back to 1402.
Brobdingnagian (brob-ding-NAG-ee-uhn) adjective
marked by tremendous size; gigantic
Origin: Brobdingnag was one of four
imaginary countries visited by Lemuel
Gulliver in Gulliver’s Travels,
written in 1726 by the British
satirist Jonathan Swift.
Brobdingnagians were 12 times
the size of ordinary humans.
Camelot (KA-muh-lot) noun 1. a
place or atmosphere of idyllic
happiness 2. any time idealized
for its excitement, sense of purpose, or cultural achievements
Origins: According to British legend, Camelot was the town where
King Arthur held court.
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donnybrook (DAH-nee-bruk) noun 1. a rowdy fight
2. a public quarrel or dispute
Origin: Donnybrook Fair was a festivity held in
Ireland every August from the 1200s until
1855. Mass consumption of alcoholic
beverages during the fair led to
riots and brawls.
Lilliputian (lil-luh-PYEW-shun)
adjective 1. small, miniature
2. petty
Origin: Gulliver also visited the
land of Lilliput, where the people were one twelfth the size of
normal humans. Lilliputians
were not only tiny in stature, but
extremely petty and selfish as well.
mecca (MEHK-uh) noun a center of activity sought out
by people sharing a common interest
Origin: Mecca, a city in what is now Saudi Arabia, is
the birthplace of the prophet Mohammed. It is
therefore considered the holiest city in
Islam, and Muslims bow toward it
when they pray. The devout are
expected to make a pilgrimage
to Mecca at least once during
their lifetime.
shanghai (shang-HYE) verb to
trick or manipulate into an undesirable position
Origin: Shanghai is a major port city in
China. During the 1800s, shipping companies seeking crew members would ply
young men with alcohol or drugs. When
they passed out, they were put aboard
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merchant ships bound for Shanghai and
other Asian ports.
utopia (yew-TOH-pee-uh) noun 1. a place
of ideal laws, government, and social conditions 2. an impractical scheme for
improvement of social conditions
Origin: Utopia, written in 1516 by Sir
Thomas More, describes an imaginary place where poverty, crime, and
SKILL DRILL
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other social ills do not exist.
waterloo (WOT-uhr-loo) noun
a disastrous or decisive defeat
Origin: Waterloo is the town in Belgium
where the French Emperor Napoleon
Bonaparte met his final defeat in
1815. It marked the end of nearly
20 years of war and shattered
Napoleon’s dreams of glory.
FILL IN THE BLANKS WITH ONE OF YOUR NEWLY ACQUIRED
VOCABULARY WORDS.
balkanize
bedlam
Brobdingnagian
Camelot
donnybrook
Lilliputian
mecca
shanghai
utopia
waterloo
1. Maria managed to __________ me into baby-sitting for Betty and Bobby; I know the
experience will be total __________.
2. José got into a __________ with Doug, after Doug told him, “Get your __________ feet
off my coffee table!”
3. Admirers of President John F. Kennedy often refer to his time in office as the
__________ years.
4. Britney’s grandfather built her a Victorian dollhouse, complete with a __________
grand piano in the parlor.
5. The UN fears that frequent disputes among political factions may further __________
an already unstable region.
ILLUSTRATIONS BY TERRY COLON
6. Graceland has become a __________ for fans of Elvis Presley.
7. The cult leader tried to create a worry-free __________ by forming a commune where
everyone was required to smile all the time.
8. Derrick feared that a match against the opposing team’s toughest wrestler would be
his __________.
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