Agenothree - Pernese word for Nitric Acid, or HNO³. This chemical was loaded into portable tanks and used by the riders in the Queen's Wing or thread fighting ground crews to destroy any thread that reached the ground before it could burrow into the soil
Belior - The name of the closest of Pern's two moons
Between - An area of nothingness and sensory deprivation between "here" and "there." Dragons and their riders spend moments between as they travel between two points in space and time. It is extremely cold between
Day Sisters/Dawn Sisters - The Pernese name for the Yokohama, Buenos Aires, and Bahrain. The term was mostly used after it was forgotten that they were spaceships, and they were assumed to be just a trio of unusually bright stars
Dawn Sister - The ship used by Masterfisher Idarolan to bring Robinton to @Cove Hold
Red Star - Not a star, but a planet, the Red Star was a planet that was attracted into the Rukbat System only a few million years before the Pern expedition. Its orbit was almost parabolic in shape. Because of its orbit, it was conjectured by the original Pern colonists that the Red Star might eventually escape Rukbat's orbit or fall into the sun. It was noticed but ignored by the EEC team who explored Pern and declared it suitable for colonization. The colonists, upon arrival in the Rukbat system, speculated that they might see some spectacular meteor showers in about eight years time when the cometary trail crossed Pern's orbit
Rukbat - The name of the sun around which Pern orbits. Rukbat is found in the constellation Sagittarius the Archer
Timor - The name of the moon which is furthest from Pern
Craftmaster - People with the highest level of training in a craft
Deadglow - A numbskull, stupid, derived from "glow"
Herdsman - Term used to refer to a member of the Beastcraft in the Sixth Pass
Hold - Where the 'normal' folk of Pern live. Originally carved out of Thread-defensive rocky cliffs, they grew to include seats of government, commerce, and agricultuer. They were led by Lord Holdersr, to whom citizens looked for guidance and leadership
Holder - Title for the leader of a minor hold. It is also an honorific for any member of a hold when addressing them
Impression - The act of binding a dragon's mind to their rider. Lately, it is also the act of a fire lizard bonding to a person
Interval - Time between Passes, when no Thread falls. Normal Intervals are 200 years, but there have been two Long Intervals that were 450 years
Journeyman/Journeywoman - Title for a crafter that has moved past apprenticeship but has not yet become a Master. Specifics of duties, responsibilities, and requirements to both attain the title and become a Master depend on the craft hall they belong to
Klick - Ancient word for kilometre
Lady Holder - Title for the wife of the Lord Holder or for female Lord Holders
Long Interval - Time between Passes where the Red Star does not pass close enough to drop Thread.
Looks to - The same as 'Impressed by'
Lord Holder - Title for the leader of a major hold
Month - Timeframe equal to four sevendays
Oldtimer - Member of any of the five Weyrs that came forward with Lessa and has not adjusted to the expansion and changes that have taken place in the 250 years of the Eighth Interval
Pass - The time when the Red Star comes close enough to Pern for Threadfall to occur, lasting roughly 50 Turns
Queen - Alternate term for a gold @Fire-Lizard, @Watch-Wher, or @Dragonkin
Second Crossing - The Second Crossing refers to the relocation of Pern's colonists from the Southern Continent to the Northern Continent during their 10th turn on the planet. The term "Second Crossing" was used since it was the second time that the colonists relocated their base of civilization, the "First Crossing" was the 15 year voyage from Earth. The relocation to the Northern Continent was necessitated by volcanic activity that threatened the colony. The most suitable site for their relocated colonial headquarters was located on the Northern Continent, which was less susceptible to volcanic activity and contained large number of caves that would offer natural shelter from threadfall
Scoring - The Pernese term for a Thread injury
Sevenday - Timeframe equal to one week, seven days
Timing It - The practice of jumping between times
Turn - Timeframe equal to one year
Weyr - Either a place that is home to many dragons (Weyr) or the resting place of an individual dragon (weyr)
Watchdragon - The dragon whose rider has pulled watch duty on the Weyr roster. A watch is generally four hours long. Essentially Weyrs are military camps. Sentries are part of the ethos. During a Pass, they watch for any chance of erratic Fall of Thread, or for anyone entering or leaving the Weyr
Weyrbrat - Perjorative name for any child or young in a Weyr
Weyrleader - The leaders of their respective Weyrs, and they are always bronze (male) dragon riders. A weyrleader is the bronze rider whose dragon catches a Weyr's senior queen in a mating flight. Assisted in running the wing by two Wingseconds, either bronze or brown riders.
Wing - usually made up of 12-33 dragons. Wings were created as needed by the Weyrleader. Riders can join a wing once they reach the age of 16, so long as they complete training. Their main responsibility is to fight Thread. When not fighting Thread, wings can be assigned certain duties by the Weyrleader, such as flying patrols over their territory or going on search
Wingleader - Leaders of Wings during Threadfall; all are bronze riders
Weyrling - A young dragon and its rider who are not yet ready to join a Wing
Weyrlingmaster - Senior dragonrider - normally a bronze rider - responsible for training weyrlings
Weyrsinger - Any member of the Harper Hall who is also a @Dragonrider
Weyrwoman - The rider of a gold dragon. When capitalized, it is the rider of the senior queen who is responsible for managing the Weyr
Wherhide - Pernese term for leather made from wherries. It is tougher and longer lasting than leather from runners or heardbeasts, but also stiffer and harder to work with
Crawlers - A sort of small, six-legged, gecko looking creature that crawls along walls and even ceilings with their sticky little feet. They have a round stinging mouth and no eyes. Humans and dragons loathe them, @Fire-Lizard's love to eat them
Dragon's Tongue - A native succulent Pernese plant which produces a gel similar to Terran aloe
Dragonet - Original name for @Fire-Lizards. Also refers to young @Dragonkin
Firefly - A small winged beetle whose abdomen glows with a luminescent light. Looks a bit like the Terran firefly, but tends to glow in different colors
Fly-by - A small flying insect much like a gnat
Grub - A type of worm or millipede that has spread throughout the southern continent. They are known both for their eating of Thread and their beneficial effects on the plants around them
Klah - A Pernese beverage similar to Terran coffee. It is brewed from the bark of the klah tree. Its taste has hints of chocolate and cinnamon
Needlethorn - A native succulent Pernese plant whose hollow thorns can be used as hypodermic needles
Numbweed - A native Pernese plant that contains a strong analgesic which is made into a cream that numbs small wounds completely and dulls the pain of larger wounds
Packtail - A tasty, but dangerously barbed fish, resembling the Terran monkfish; its slime can infect open wounds
Snake - Short word for Tunnel Snake, a six-legged creature native to Pern
Spinner - Native species of Pernese spiders. There are also imported species descended from ones brought by the colonists whose silk can be gathered and spun like silkworm silk, though not quite as fine, called gossamer spinners
Springs - Insects that hang in spiral loops until they find someone or something to cling to. They have an irritating, prickly bite
Thread - A spore originating from the Red Star which consumes organic material, but which is vulnerable to fire, water, and cold
Trundlebug - A useful insect that eats parasites, turns the soil and acts as a pollinator. They have the most elaborate color camouflage of all the insects found on Pern and come in many colors
Tunnel Snake - Tunnel snakes are reptilian vermin that infest Pern. Unlike Terran serpents, tunnel snakes possess six limbs which some use to burrow and dig. Others are adapted to survive an amphibious life, with either webbed feet or paddles. Only a few species of tunnel snakes are edible, as the colonists learned early on. Some species also have a venomous bite, that could prove fatal if left untreated
VTOL - A sort of furry insect with double pairs of wings
Wherries - Wherries are large avian creatures with 6 limbs, a strong rear pair for walking and grasping; the forelimbs are used for rending and tearing, while the middle set of limbs are large leathery wings. Unlike Terran birds, the wherry is covered in a soft fur like down. Wherries are used as food stock, and their fatty flesh will often be an indication of where it fed, picking up a fishy taste when it feeds by the sea, and a nutty taste when it has fed on grains from the plains
Withies - An aquatic plant resembling Terran reeds found in the Northern Continent's many rivers that can be used in basket-weaving. It is common for an entire Hold's population to go gathering them in spring
Black Rock - Pernese word for coal
Firestone - A phosphine bearing rock found on Pern. Dragons and fire lizards can chew it to produce phosphorous gases which are ignited to burn Thread out of the sky
Flamestone - A highly volatile variant of firestone, capable of exploding into flame upon contact with moisture. Mistakenly used as firestone throughout the Second Interval
"By the Egg"
"By the Egg of Faranth"
"By the First Egg"
"By the shards of my dragon's egg"
"Fardles"
"Fardling"
"Jays"
"Scorch It"
"Shards"
"Shells"
"Through Fall, Fog and Fire"