Glossary

To make amends, as for a sin or fault.

A one-celled organism involved in fermentation, putrefication, infectious diseases, or nitrogen fixation.

Inflamed, tender swelling of lymph nodes, especially in the armpit or groin, which are characteristic of bubonic plague.

A serious, sometimes fatal, infection with the bacterial toxin, yersinia pestis, transmitted by fleas from infected rodents, and characterized by high fever, weakness, and the formation of buboes, especially in the armpit or groin.

An underground cemetery, especially one consisting of tunnels and rooms with recesses dug out for coffins and tombs.

One of a Medieval European sect of fanatics who practiced scourging (whipping) in public.

To make an incision in, as with a lancet.

An attempt by English peasants to force King Richard II to abolish serfdom and repeal an unpopular tax.

Epidemic diseases that cause high rates of death and pestilence.

A form of plague characterized by lung involvement.

Vomited.

The period of European history marking the waning of the Middle Ages and the rise of the modern world.

An especially dangerous form of plague in which the infecting organisms invade the bloodstream.