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Shakespeare, it seems, is perpetually in need of glossing. There's been a small but steady stream of books explaining his words and phrases, some detailed and scholarly, others brief and for student or general use. This example was chosen not entirely at random but due to Skeat and the Clarendon Press who might perhaps add additional interest.
Walter Skeat (1834-1912) created one of the first major editions of Chaucer (largely the basis for the Kelmscott Chaucer) which along with the work of FJ Furnivall established both a scholarly groundwork and the more-or-less accepted canon. (Is there a collection of Chaucer apocrypha?) Born in London, Skeat became an Anglican deacon then math professor before falling to the siren lure of philology. He edited several dictionaries and reference works along with editions of several early English texts. (For a sampling see Specimens of English Literature.)
