The document is a vocabulary list for a medieval unit with definitions for common terms from that time period. It includes words like armor, bow, castle, knight, lance, shield, and sword. Students are to match each term with its definition from the word bank. The list provides background knowledge on key people, places, and objects from the Middle Ages to help understand stories like King Arthur.

1. Medieval Vocabulary Ms. J. Carnovale, student teacher High School of World Cultures Middle Ages Unit Background Knowledge for King Arthur ESL L4, Spring 2011

3. Archer: person who uses a bow and arrow Armor: any covering worn as a defense against weapons Arrow: a slender, straight weapon made to be shot from a bow

4. Axe: an edge tool with a heavy bladed head mounted across a handle Bow: a flexible strip of wood or other material, bent by a string stretched between its ends, for shooting arrows Castle: a fortified, usually walled residence, as of a prince or noble in feudal times

5. Catapult: an ancient military engine for hurling stones, arrows, etc. Court: the extended household and all those who regularly attended on the ruler or central figure Crossbow: a medieval weapon consisting of a bow fixed transversely on a stock having a trigger mechanism to release the bowstring

6. Drawbridge: a bridge that may be raised to prevent access or to enable vessels to pass Gate: an opening permitting passage through an enclosure Gauntlet: a medieval glove worn by a knight in armor to protect the hand

7. Helmet: medieval armor for the head Herald: an officer who arranged tournaments and other functions, announced challenges, marshaled combatants, who was later employed also to arrange processions, funerals, and to regulate the use of armorial bearings horse

8. Jester: a professional fool or clown, especially at a medieval court Joust: a combat in which two knights on horseback attempted to unhorse each other with blunted lances King: a male sovereign or monarch; a man who holds by life tenure, and usually by hereditary right, the chief authority over a country and people

9. Knight: a man, usually of noble birth, who after an apprenticeship as page and squire was raised to honorable military rank and bound to chivalrous conduct Lance: a long wooden shaft with a pointed metal head, used as a weapon by knights and cavalry soldiers in charging Moat: a deep, wide trench, usually filled with water, surrounding the rampart of a fortified place, as a town or a castle

10. Prince: a non-reigning male member of a royal family Princess: a non-reigning female member of a royal family or the wife of a prince Queen: a female sovereign or monarch or the wife of a king

11. Quest: an adventurous expedition undertaken by a knight or knights to secure or achieve something Shield: a broad piece of armor, varying widely in form and size, carried apart from the body, usually on the left arm, as a defense against swords, lances, arrows, etc. Spear: a weapon consisting of a long shaft with a sharp pointed end of metal, stone, or wood that may be thrown or thrust

12. Squire: a young man of noble birth who served a knight Sword: a weapon with a long, straight or slightly curved blade, sharp-edged on one or both sides, with one end pointed and the other fixed in a hilt or handle

13. Tournament: a sport or contest in which mounted combatants fought for a prize Tower: a mobile structure used in medieval warfare to attack a castle