Slang

Faranth - Although Pern has no real religious beliefs, Faranth comes to occupy ambiguous status in Pernese culture; "by the egg of Faranth" is a common oath. It is similar to Chaseth's Flame, except shared by the entire world of Pern rather than a few choice locations.

Dorath's Curse - Dorath is the current gold of High Reaches Weyrwoman. However, this slang has traveled beyond the walls of High Reaches Weyr and is commonly used at Telgar Weyr and beyond. The saying is a result of Dorath having two goldless clutches in a row. To say a clutch is under Dorath's curse means the clutch has no gold eggs. It may also be used in the context to refer to a gold herself should she not lay a gold egg. (Ex: "That clutch has Dorath's curse on it.", "That goldrider's dragon has Dorath's curse on her!")

Chaseth's Flame - A symbol of hope and perseverance for High Reaches Weyr, Telgar Weyr and less commonly High Telgar Hold (see "story" on the front page for more info). It has become commonplace to use it when surprised, frustrated, or when giving your word. (Ex: "By Chaseth's Flame! Can you believe that girl?", "Chaseth's Flame will die out before I apologize to that man!", "I swear by Chaseth's Flame, I will find your daughter.")

Faseth - Faseth was a well known, highly skilled bronze whose arrogance cost him his life. Because of this, to call someone Faseth is similar to how modern day people sarcastically call someone a genius. Generally, it used after a plan or idea goes wrong, mostly by children or teenagers who find themselves in trouble. It is used in both High Reaches and Telgar, but hearing it in a Hold is rare. (Ex: "Good thinking there, Faseth. That worked out great.")

Deadglow - An insult the equivalent of calling someone stupid. (Ex: "That boy is a deadglow." / "High Reaches Weyr is made of deadglows.")

Tainted - Slang native only to Ghenza Weyr. Calling some 'tainted' technically refers to someone who could potentially be a carry of the Telgar Plague. Most outsiders are referred to as 'tainted'. The word has also become an insult, and is considered highly offensive. (Ex: "That stranger could be tainted." OR "You may as well be tainted!")

Time

Turn - One year. (A child would be referred to as "six turns" instead of "six years old").

Sevenday - One week.

Pass - The duration the Red Star is close enough to Pern for Thread to fall. 50 years in length.

Interval - The two hundred years which Thread is not falling.

Long Interval - A doubled Interval due to the Red Star's orbit being shifted.

Location

Weyr - A home for dragonriders and those who work directly to help them manage said dragons.

weyr - Note to be confused with 'Weyr', a weyr (lowercase only), is the room for a single dragon and rider pair within a Weyr (though some may choose to double up with a roommate).

Hold - A village-esque area crafted out of stone to protect it's inhabitants from thread.

Between - "A dimension through which dragons, watch-whers and fire lizards travel during the process of teleportation, referred to as "going between". Always written in italics. See here under "Between" for more info.)

Creatures

Dragons: Large creatures who fight Thread. They come in five colors: Gold, bronze, brown, blue and green. (See here for more info.)

Firelizard - A smaller version of the larger dragons with some differences. They come in the same colors: gold, bronze, brown, blue and green. However, Firelizards will Impress to the first person who cares for them, no matter their gender or orientation. (Gold will impress to a man, etc.) Green firelizards can lay eggs, unlike their larger counterparts. (See here for more info.)

Watchwher - A relative of the dragon, but not as intelligent or attractive. They are nocturnal and mostly used as guards or for other such tasks. They can Impress, but do not have to. (See here for more info.)

Runner (Beast) - Not to be confused with "runner (craft)", a runner is a horse.

Wherries - Emu-like birds with a set of long legs, a set of shorter legs, two wings and other avian features such as feathers. They can not fly and are used as fodder for dragons. Singular form is "wherry".

Tunnelsnakes - Six-legged, snake like creatures with long, sharp teeth and claws. They are edible, but considered vermin by the holds and Weyrs.

Cats - There are no domestic cats, rather just their larger, more wild cousins (tigers, etc.)

Dogs - Dogs are used as work animals for herders or hunting tunnelsnakes.

Dragonrider Terms

Touching - An event held prior to hatching in which candidates are allowed to touch a clutch of eggs. The hope is this will minimize causalities on the hatching grounds.

Impression - A hatchling choosing his or her rider and forming a mindlink between them is known as "Impressing". Hatchlings who do not impress will jump between to die.

Looks to - Impressed by. (ex: Green Parnath looks to Lahain)

Search/Searched - The act of (a dragon) recognizing those who have the potential to impress.

Mindspeak: Telepathic speech between dragon and human (usually their rider), or one dragon to another.

Hatching: The time in which eggs hatch.

"On the Sands" - Candidates are known to be 'on the sands' during hatchings. This may also be known by other terms such as 'standing'.

"Mine" - An affectionate term a dragon uses for their riders. Likewise, they may refer to themselves as "Yours" or "Your [dragon name]" when speaking about themselves.

Dragonrider Rankings

Weyrwoman - Generally the rider of a senior queen in the Weyr, but a Weyrwoman and her dragon may also be on the younger side (perhaps more youthful than other queens) if her dragon rises before the others. She is in charge of other queens during Threadfall and overall care of every dragon and rider at all times. It is her job to stay in the know, and those who hold this rank best have a high tolerance for stress as they are bound to many sleepless nights!

Weyrleader - The rider whose bronze (rarely a brown) has flown the Weyrwoman's queen. This man is responsible for maintaining order, training and disciplining dragonriders within the Weyr. He is also in charge of the fighting wings.

Weyrlingmaster - A skilled rider responsible for keeping the weyrlings on track and disciplining them should they veer off course.

Weyrling - The adolescent stage of a dragon's life. Upon reaching this stage in their life, dragon and rider begin training to become part of a wing.

Wing - A squad of dragonriders assigned to fight during threadfall. The layout of a wing is: Wingleader, wingsecond and a varying number of wingriders.

Wingleader - A bronzerider who leads a wing. May also be a brownrider.

Wingsecond - Usually a bronzerider or brownrider, they assist the Wingleader in guiding during Threadfall.

Wingrider - Assorted members of a wing. They are any color and led by the Wingleader.

Watchdragon - A dragon and rider assigned to watch duty. A single 'watch' usually spans four hours.

Candidate - An individual who is allowed to stand on the sands during hatchings for impression. If they are not there already, they are brought to the Weyr.

Weyrbrat - Children born and raised in a Weyr.

Craft Terms and Rankings

Craft - A trade / job.

Mastercraftsman - The single leader of a crafthall. Not to be confused with craftmaster; both use the title "Master".

Craftmaster - The highest rank in a crafthall aside from Mastercraftsman, a craftmaster is a fully trained craftsman.

Journeyman/woman - The middle rank in a crafthall. A journeyman has reached a level of knowledge and competence beyond an apprentice and journeys around Pern, hence the name.

Apprentice - The lowest rank in a crafthall. One still actively learning their craft, usually under one designated teacher.

Other Rankings

Headwoman - A woman elected by the Weyrwoman in charge of domestic duties such as childcare and cooking.

Holdless - People who have no hold, be it due to their job as a trade or because they are a criminal.

Trader - A person who travels from place to place trading.

Other

Thread - A organism of silver color that falls from the Red Star. It devours all organic material including flesh. It is killed by extreme heat and cold, water, starvation and fire. Thread is not self-aware.

Shards - The equivalent of "damn!" It is not uncommon to add 'ing'. ("And my sharding sister won't listen!", "Shards, I hurt my hand!")

Red Star - A planet which passes Pern and drops Thread.

Firestone - Harvested rocks which dragons chew to produce flame. Golds are unable to do this, and thus do not chew firestone.

Belior - Pern's largest moon.

Timor - Pern's smaller moon.

Glowbaskets - A source of light carried in a hand basket, similar to a torch or flashlight.