лукоморья Cf. лука = ‘river bend.’
Златая Poetic for золотая.
песнь A poetic variant of песня, useful when the poet needs to economize on a syllable.
заводит ‘Start up.’
чудеса Nsg чудо. This word and небо are the only nouns in standard Russian that regularly form a plural with an -ес- extension before the ending.
бродит ‘Wander, roam.’ This is a verb of motion (indeterminate бродить, determinate брести [бреду, бредёшь]). In Russian The Communist Manifesto begins Призрак бродит по Европе ‘a spectre is haunting Europe.’
неведомых ‘Unknown.’ Note the word play between this and the next line; the roots вед- ‘learn, know’ and вид- ‘see’ are related etymologically, since both pertain to the acquisition of experience and knowledge.
курьих Кура means ‘hen,’ and the form here is a special possessive that is common for animals, e.g., волчий, волчья ‘wolf’s’ or собачий, собачья ‘dog’s.’ These possessive adjectives are declined like the numeral третий, третья.
ножках Note the use of the diminutive.
дол ‘Valley.’
о заре A poetic variant of на заре.
прихлынут ‘Surge forward.’
брег A poetic variant of берег.
песчаный Material adjective derived from песок.
витязей Nsg витязь = богатырь.
Чредой Nsg чреда ‘row.’ Cf. очередь.
мимоходом Note the etymology: мимо and ход-.
Пленяет The root плен- indicates captivity.
грозного ‘Terrifying.’ The Russian name of the ruler known in English as Ivan the Terrible is Иван Грозный.
Колдун ‘Warlock.’
темнице Nsg темница ‘dungeon.’ This word is derived from the root тём- ‘dark,’ cf. светлица ‘front room (the room with windows) in a peasant hut,’ derived from the root свет- ‘light.’
бурый ‘Gray-brown’ (when describing the color of animals). Cf. каштановый ‘chestnut (of hair color),’ русый ‘light brown (of hair color),’ карий ‘brown or hazel (of eye color)’, and коричневый ‘cinnamon, bark-colored’ (the most general term for ‘brown’). ‘Brown shoes’ are, perhaps unexpectedly, жёлтые туфли.
ступа ‘Mortar.’
бредёт See the note about бродит above.
златом Nsg злато. Poetic variant of золото.
чахнет Inf чахнуть ‘wither away, grow weak.’
Русью пахнет ‘It smells of Russia.’ Note the impersonal use of the verb with the instrumental complement.
Поведаю Inf поведать = рассказать, but with the added nuance of disclosing a secret.
свету Synonym of мир ‘world.’