paisano peasant.
Pancho Villa colorful Mexican bandit (1878-1923).
paranoia an abnormal mental state which often causes the sufferer to feel persecuted.
"Pasa" Pass.
pavane a slow, stately dance.
Peace, be still Jesus' command to the sea, Mark 5:39.
peckerwood worthless, untrustworthy riffraff.
pedal pushers pants extending to mid-calf length.
Pig Latin a child's private jargon of the 1930s created by placing the initial consonant plus ay at the end of the word, as in ooday for do.
pince-nez eyeglasses which have no temple pieces and which rely on a spring to secure them to the bridge of the nose.
piqué a sturdy ribbed fabric.
play pretties toys.
Pobrecita Poor little thing.
policiás police officers.
pollo en salsa verde chicken in green chili sauce.
pooched out protruded.
post-Earthquake affair a house built after the catastrophe which struck San Francisco on April 18, 1906, leaving 700 dead and blocks of buildings collapsed, burning, or uninhabitable. Many of the replacement buildings contained architectural features which were designed to prevent future earthquake destruction, such as huge bolts and stabilizing bars.
"Precious Lord, Take My Hand" hymn which is a standard feature of fundamentalist revival services because of its crooning, mournful melody, melodramatic images, and gentle harmonies.
Pride and Prejudice Angelou is making a pun on the title of Jane Austen's novel.
Pride is a sin . . . it goeth before a fall a paraphrase of Proverbs 16:18.
prime ribs au jus beef ribs served with natural juices.
"Qué tiene? Qué pasa? Qué quiere?" What do you have? What's happening? What do you want?
"Quién es?" Who is this?
R.O.T.C. Reserve Officers' Training Corps, a military body which demands exacting posture and decorum.
Raise up a child in the way he should go and he will not depart from it a paraphrase of Proverbs 22:6.
recording angel Revelation 10:1-11.
restaurant cum gambling casino a combination restaurant and gambling casino.
Richard Arlen character actor (1898-1976) who played in Man from Montreal, Dangerous Game, Mutiny in the Arctic, and Men of the Timberland.
Rippers slashers of women, like the self-named Jack the Ripper, the unidentified mangler of seven London prostitutes from August 7 to November 10, 1888.
risco de Mexico Mexican cliff, or crag.
Rorschachs ink-blot tests which utilize respondents' interpretations of unstructured shapes to diagnose their mental states.
Rye-al-toh A standard name for movie theaters is Rialto, taken from a highly ornate bridge over the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy.
