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The Tell-Tale Heart vocabulary words

This list gathers vocabulary drawn from Edgar Allan Poe's short story The Tell-Tale Heart, including words tied to the narrator's obsession, guilt, and growing paranoia. It is built for students reading the story in class, teachers preparing a vocabulary quiz, and readers who want to understand Poe's more old-fashioned word choices.

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The Tell-Tale Heart vocabulary words

Word	Meaning	In a sentence
vulturenoun	A large bird that feeds mainly on the flesh of dead animals and is known for circling above prey.	Vultures circled slowly above the desert, waiting for the injured animal to die.
hearkenverb	To listen carefully and attentively to something, especially advice or a warning.	The old sailor urged the young crew to hearken to the storm warnings.
stealthilyadverb	In a quiet, careful, and secretive manner intended to avoid being noticed.	The cat moved stealthily across the yard, careful not to startle the birds nearby.
sagacitynoun	The quality of having sound judgment and keen practical wisdom, especially in difficult situations.	The elder's sagacity guided the village through many difficult decisions.
dissimulationnoun	The act of hiding one's true feelings, intentions, or beliefs by pretending something else.	Years of political dissimulation had made the diplomat impossible to read in negotiations.
audacitynoun	A willingness to take bold risks or behave in a shockingly disrespectful way.	She had the audacity to ask for a raise on her very first day at work.
hypocriticaladjective	Claiming to hold certain moral standards or beliefs while behaving in a way that contradicts them.	It felt hypocritical of him to criticize littering while tossing his own trash on the ground.
vexverb	To annoy, worry, or cause distress to someone, often over a persistent minor issue.	The constant dripping of the faucet vexed her all through the night.
acuteadjective	Very serious, severe, or intense, especially describing a problem, feeling, or sensation.	The refugees faced an acute shortage of clean drinking water.
nervousadjective	Easily agitated, worried, or apprehensive, especially before or during a stressful situation.	She felt nervous before walking onto the stage for her first solo performance.
cunningadjective	Skilled at achieving goals through deception or clever, often underhanded, trickery.	The fox used a cunning trick to steal the food without waking the farmer.
shriekverb	To make a loud, high-pitched cry, typically expressing fear, pain, or excitement.	She shrieked when the spider dropped onto her desk.
suspicionnoun	A feeling or belief that something is wrong or that someone has done something dishonest, without firm proof.	Her sudden nervousness only deepened his suspicion that she was hiding something.
derisionnoun	Contemptuous ridicule or mockery directed at someone or something considered foolish or worthless.	His outdated theory was met with derision from the rest of the scientific community.
profoundadjective	Very deep, strong, or important in its effect or meaning.	Learning to read had a profound effect on her independence.
gesticulationsnoun	Expressive movements of the hands or arms, especially while speaking.	His wild gesticulations made it obvious he was upset about the delay.
vehementlyadverb	In a forceful way that shows strong feeling or conviction.	The residents vehemently opposed closing the only playground.
suavitynoun	Smooth, confident charm and polished manners, especially in social situations.	The diplomat handled the tense negotiation with remarkable suavity and tact.
phantomnoun	A ghost or apparition, or something that seems to exist but has no real, physical presence.	Local legend says a phantom still wanders the corridors of the abandoned hotel.
hingenoun	A jointed device that allows a door, lid, or gate to swing open and closed.	The old gate creaked loudly because its hinge badly needed some oil.
crevicenoun	A narrow crack or gap, especially in a rock or wall.	A tiny fern had taken root in a crevice between the boulders.
hideousadjective	Extremely ugly or unpleasant to look at or think about.	The old warehouse was covered in hideous graffiti and broken glass.
tormentnoun	Severe physical or mental suffering, or a source of such suffering.	The endless waiting for test results was pure torment for the whole family.
malignitynoun	Deep-seated ill will or a strong desire to cause harm to others.	The villain's plan revealed a malignity that shocked even his closest allies.
corpsenoun	A dead body, especially of a human being.	Investigators examined the corpse for clues about the cause of death.
suffocateverb	To die or struggle to breathe because of a lack of air, or to cause this to happen.	The smoke was so thick that firefighters feared people inside might suffocate.
muffledadjective	Made quieter or less clear, especially describing a sound that is partly blocked or absorbed.	Through the thick walls, we could only hear muffled voices from the apartment next door.
planknoun	A long, flat, thick piece of sawn wood or similar material used in building or flooring.	Workers laid wooden planks across the ditch to make a temporary bridge.
guiltyadjective	Responsible for committing a wrongdoing or crime, or feeling regret about one's actions.	The jury found the defendant guilty after carefully reviewing all the evidence.
madnessnoun	The state of severe mental illness, or extremely foolish or wildly irrational behavior.	The character's descent into madness is the central theme of the play.

Words for the narrator's obsession

Several words in the story describe the narrator's fixation on the old man's eye, including acute, meaning sharp or intense, and sagacity, meaning cleverness or shrewd judgment. Stealthily and cunning both describe how carefully the narrator moves, while vex captures how the eye irritates him beyond reason. Together these words build the picture of a mind circling a single obsessive idea.

Words for guilt and paranoia

As the story builds toward its ending, Poe leans on words like derision, torment, and vehemently to show the narrator unraveling under guilt. Hearken, an old-fashioned word for listen, appears as the narrator becomes convinced he can still hear the old man's heartbeat. Words like hypocritical and suavity describe the calm mask the narrator tries to keep in front of the police.

Frequently asked questions

What does acute mean in The Tell-Tale Heart?

Acute means sharp or highly sensitive, and the narrator uses it to describe his heightened senses of sight and hearing.

What does hearken mean in the story?

Hearken is an old-fashioned word meaning to listen closely, used as the narrator strains to hear the old man's heartbeat.