Vocabulary: Ancient Greece *Don’t forget to skip lines!! **When defining the words select a definition that relates to the topic above. 1. Peninsula – An area of land bordered by water on three sides. 2. Epic – a long poem that tells a story that focuses on a hero. 3. Acropolis – a high, rocky hill on or near which early people built cities. 4. City-states – a city with its own traditions and its own government and laws; both a city and a separate independent state. 5. Aristocrats – a member of a rich and powerful family. 6. Tyrant – a ruler who takes power with the support of the middle and working classes; not necessarily cruel and violent. 7. Democracy – a form of government in which citizens govern themselves. 8. Tribute – a payment made by a less powerful state or nation to a more powerful one (bribe). 9. Immortal – someone or something that lives forever. 10.Philosophers – someone who uses reason to understand the world. In Greece, the earliest philosophers used reason to explain natural events. 11.Tragedy – a type of serious drama that ends in disaster for the main character. 12. Agora – A public market and meeting place in an ancient Greek city. 13. Plague – a widespread disease. 14. Blockade – the cutting off of an area by enemy forces that closes it to travel and trade. 15. Barbarians – a person considered to be wild and uncivilized. 16. Assassinated – to murder for political reasons. 17. Hellenistic – A period of time in which Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia 18.Polytheism – the belief in many gods.