Animal Farm: 40 words to know before you read it
The 40 words George Orwell uses again and again in Animal Farm that are outside the 4,000 most common in English. Learn them first and the opening chapters read much more easily. Each comes with its pronunciation and a sentence from the book.
windmill/ˈwɪndˌmɪɫ/71× in the book
But of all their controversies, none was so bitter as the one that took place over the windmill.
sheep/ˈʃip/36× in the book
The hens perched themselves on the window-sills, the pigeons fluttered up to the rafters, the sheep and cows lay down behind the pigs and began to chew the cud.
farmhouse/ˈfɑɹmˌhaʊs/34× in the book
Then they filed back to the farm buildings and halted in silence outside the door of the farmhouse.
hoof/ˈhuf/26× in the book
… came in together, walking very slowly and setting down their vast hairy hoofs with great care lest there should be some small animal concealed in the straw.
barn/ˈbɑɹn/25× in the book
It had been agreed that they should all meet in the big barn as soon as Mr. Jones was safely out of the way.
hen/ˈhɛn/22× in the book
And you hens, how many eggs have you laid in this last year, and how many of those eggs ever hatched into chickens?
labour/ˈɫeɪbɝ/19× in the book
Because nearly the whole of the produce of our labour is stolen from us by human beings.
stall/ˈstɔɫ/18× in the book
I have had a long life, I have had much time for thought as I lay alone in my stall, and I think I may say that I understand the nature of life on this earth as well as any animal now living.
harvest/ˈhɑɹvəst/15× in the book
Today we begin the hay harvest.
ration/ˈɹæʃən/14× in the book
In return for your four confinements and all your labour in the fields, what have you ever had except your bare rations and a stall?
pigeon/ˈpɪdʒən/14× in the book
Every day Snowball and Napoleon sent out flights of pigeons whose instructions were to mingle with the animals on neighbouring farms, tell them the story of the Rebellion …
comrade/ˈkɑmˌɹæd/13× in the book
… of course) and tramp steadily round and round the field with a pig walking behind and calling out "Gee up, comrade!"
utter/ˈətɝ/13× in the book
… he would move rapidly to and fro, drawing in line after line and uttering little whimpers of excitement.
straw/ˈstɹɔ/13× in the book
At one end of the big barn, on a sort of raised platform, Major was already ensconced on his bed of straw, under a lantern which hung from a beam.
orchard/ˈɔɹtʃɝd/11× in the book
… he was devoted to Boxer; the two of them usually spent their Sundays together in the small paddock beyond the orchard, grazing side by side and never speaking.
pasture/ˈpæstʃɝ/11× in the book
But they woke at dawn as usual, and suddenly remembering the glorious thing that had happened, they all raced out into the pasture together.
shed/ˈʃɛd/11× in the book
One of the cows broke in the door of the store-shed with her horn and all the animals began to help themselves from the bins.
rumour/ˈɹumɝ/10× in the book
But there were also rumours of something more serious.
timber/ˈtɪmbɝ/10× in the book
It happened that there was in the yard a pile of timber which had been stacked there ten years earlier when a beech spinney was cleared.
cart/ˈkɑɹt/10× in the book
The two cart-horses, Boxer and Clover …
trotter/ˈtɹɑtɝ/9× in the book
Major raised his trotter for silence.
honour/ˈɑnɝ/9× in the book
Let us make it a point of honour to get in the harvest more quickly than Jones and his men could do."
rebellion/ɹɪˈbɛɫjən/9× in the book
Nevertheless, they were both thoroughly frightened by the rebellion on Animal Farm, and very anxious to prevent their own animals from learning too much about it.
ribbon/ˈɹɪbən/9× in the book
She took a place near the front and began flirting her white mane, hoping to draw attention to the red ribbons it was plaited with.
spite/ˈspaɪt/9× in the book
… but he was still a majestic-looking pig, with a wise and benevolent appearance in spite of the fact that his tushes had never been cut.
bleating8× in the book
… the sheep developed a great liking for this maxim, and often as they lay in the field they would all start bleating "Four legs good, two legs bad!
pellet/ˈpɛɫət/8× in the book
The pellets buried themselves in the wall of the barn and the meeting broke up hurriedly.
expulsion/ɪkˈspəɫʃən/8× in the book
In spite of the shock that Snowball's expulsion had given them, the animals were dismayed by this announcement.
quarry/ˈkwɔɹi/8× in the book
There was a good quarry of limestone on the farm, and plenty of sand and cement had been found in one of the outhouses …
inch/ˈɪntʃ/8× in the book
As for the horses, they knew every inch of the field, and in fact understood the business of mowing and raking far better than Jones and his men had ever done.
clever/ˈkɫɛvɝ/8× in the book
Weak or strong, clever or simple, we are all brothers.
cockerel7× in the book
He had made an arrangement with one of the cockerels to call him in the mornings half an hour earlier than anyone else, and would put in some volunteer labour at whatever seemed to be most needed …
gallop/ˈɡæɫəp/7× in the book
Their first act was to gallop in a body right round the boundaries of the farm, as though to make quite sure that no human being was hiding anywhere upon it …
harness/ˈhɑɹnəs/7× in the book
The harness-room at the end of the stables was broken open; the bits …
growl/ˈɡɹaʊɫ/7× in the book
But suddenly the dogs sitting round Napoleon let out deep, menacing growls, and the pigs fell silent and sat down again.
hedge/ˈhɛdʒ/7× in the book
… the geese, who had been hiding behind the hedge, rushed out and pecked viciously at the calves of their legs.
frighten/ˈfɹaɪtən/7× in the book
… and this sudden uprising of creatures whom they were used to thrashing and maltreating just as they chose, frightened them almost out of their wits.
whip/ˈhwɪp/7× in the book
The next moment he and his four men were in the store-shed with whips in their hands, lashing out in all directions.
knoll/ˈnoʊɫ/6× in the book
A little way down the pasture there was a knoll that commanded a view of most of the farm.
maxim/ˈmæksəm/6× in the book
After much thought Snowball declared that the Seven Commandments could in effect be reduced to a single maxim, namely: "Four legs good, two legs bad."
Pronunciation: ipa-dict (MIT), from Wiktionary.
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