sacrament of Holy Communion the most sacred ritual of participating Christians.
saltpeter potassium nitrate; used in the preparation of snuff (also in gunpowder and fireworks).
sharecropping working land for a share of the crop, especially as a tenant farmer. Here, Okonkwo works as a sharecropper to obtain seed-yams.
silk-cotton tree any of several large, tropical, trees (genera Bombax and Ceiba) of the bombax family that have capsular fruits with silky hairs around the seeds. Here, the tree is revered because it contains spirits of good children as yet unborn.
singlets men's undershirts, especially the sleeveless kind.
snuff a preparation of powdered tobacco that is inhaled by sniffing, is chewed, or is rubbed on the gums.
superfluous being more than is needed, useful, or wanted; surplus; excessive.
taboo any social prohibition or restriction that results from convention or tradition.
tie-tie a vine used like a rope; from Pidgin English to tie.
Tufia-a! This sound represents spitting and cursing simultaneously.
twenty and ten years Igbo counting may not have a unique number for thirty, which is thus counted as twenty and ten. Similarly, in French, seventy is counted as sixty-ten, and eighty is four twenties.
twins two born at the same birth. Here, according to Igbo custom, twins are considered evil and must be placed in earthenware pots and left to die in the forest.
Udo peace.
udu a clay pot.
uli a liquid made from seeds that make the skin pucker; used for temporary tattoo-like decorations.
umuada daughters who have married outside the clan.
umunna the extended family and kinsmen.
umunna the extended family, the clan.
Umuofia kwenu a shout of approval and greeting that means United Umuofia!
Umuofia The community name, which means children of the forest and a land undisturbed by European influences.
Unoka Okonkwo's father's name; its translation, home is supreme, implies a tendency to stay home and loaf instead of achieve fame and heroism.
