Vocabulary ladder
War and Peace
Book One, IV
1,443 words. Everyday vocabulary (band A) covers 62% of the text; the hard 9% is 63 entries — all of them below.
A 61.5% (285 types) B 4.9% (62 types) C 2.1% (28 entries) D 1.9% (22 entries) E 0.9% (8 entries) N 6.0% (33 entries)
Band B — common reading vocabulary
A sample of 24 of 62 — you will meet these often; they are explained only at the fullest help level.
- clutched
- feminine
- bore
- sleeve
- conscience
- lightly
- evident
- kindly
- kindness
- visitor
- insisting
- seized
- begged
- ashamed
- charming
- scanned
- folds
- advise
- influential
- resumed
- unfortunate
- beaming
- hurrying
- invitation
Band C — recognition checklist
All 28 upper-intermediate words in this chapter. Tick the ones you know; the rest are explained at the fullest help level.
- pester
- grimace
- impatience
- classically
- tiresome
- procure
- indebted
- frown
- overtake
- syllable
- annoyance
- affectionate
- familiarity
- betray
- reluctantly
- politely
- tedious
- disturb
- interrupt
- weary
- distort
- gaze
- unexpectedly
- devotion
- frightened
- supper
- tightly
- mold
Band D — advanced (22 entries)
- aide-de-camp
- a general's personal officer — French
- ill-suited
- badly suited
- tear-worn
- worn with weeping
- chary
- cautious; sparing
- careworn
- worn by worry
- good-by
- good-by
- anteroom ×2
- a waiting room
- radiantly
- with shining brightness
- clearcut
- sharply defined
- kindhearted
- kind at heart
- embittered
- made bitter
- weariness
- tiredness
- fete
- a festival
- hurriedly ×2
- in a rush
- faltered
- to speak with faltering breaks
- qualms
- a stab of conscience
- benefactor ×3
- one who does another good
- obliges
- to compel; bind by duty
- conspired
- to plot together
- adjutant · adjutants ×2
- an officer's staff assistant
- enchanting
- delightful as magic
- deprive · deprives ×2
- to take away from
Band E — rare & archaic (8 entries)
- economized
- to spend sparingly
- coquettish ×2
- flirting; playfully teasing
- ingratiating
- seeking favor with charm
- revoir
- explained by the text itself
- vicomte ×5
- a French noble rank below count
- affectation
- a put-on manner; pretense
- entreat
- to beg earnestly
- rapturous
- full of delighted joy
False friends — common words wearing old senses (3)
- interest
- the spectacle that draws a crowd — the old sense here
- touching
- concerning — the old sense here
- use
- habit; custom — the old sense here
Names (18)
- bolkónski ×2
- the family name of Prince Andrew and Princess Mary
- borís ×2
- Borís Drubetskóy, the ambitious young officer
- drubetskáya ×2
- Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya, Borís' scheming mother
- golítsyn ×2
- a princely Russian family
- ilariónovich
- Kutúzov's patronymic — son of Ilarión
- kutúzov ×4
- Michael Kutúzov, the old one-eyed commander in chief
- mikháylovna ×2
- a patronymic — daughter of Michael
- pávlovna ×6
- a patronymic — daughter of Paul; Anna Pávlovna Schérer
- rumyántsev
- the chancellor who favored peace with France
- vasíli ×13
- Prince Vasíli Kurágin, the smooth court intriguer
- buonaparte
- Bonaparte — the scornful Italian spelling
- hélène ×2
- Countess Hélène, Pierre's beautiful, cold wife
- lise
- the little princess, Prince Andrew's wife
- andré
- Andrew — French form
- anna ×8
- a woman's name — Anna Pávlovna Schérer and others
- michael
- a man's name — Kutúzov's given name and others
- Anna Pávlovna
- the Petersburg hostess
- Mademoiselle George
- a famous actress of Paris