Lord Of The Flies Flashcards
Lagoon
area of shallow water
“The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of rock and began to pick his way toward the lagoon.”
a pond
The young boy swan in the shallow lagoon.
clamber
to climb or shuffle using both hands and feet
“He was clambering heavily among the creepers and broken trunks when a bird, a vision of red and yellow, flashed upwards with a witch-like cry; and this cry was echoed by another.”
scramble
The children clambered over the rocks.
Vainly
without success
“He took off his glasses and looked vainly for something with which to clean them.”
evil
Volunteers searched the area in the vain hope of finding clues.
quiver
to tremble or shake; a slightly rapid motion
“The palms that still stood made a green roof, covered on the underside with a quivering tangle of reflections from the lagoon.”
to shake
The mountains wind was so cold it had me quivering.
decorous
proper marked by good taste
“Suddenly Piggy was a-bubble with decorous excitement.”
elegant
We were asked to be on our most decorous behavior at the formal event.
interpose
place or insert between two things
“The shell was interesting and pretty and a worthy plaything; but the vivid phantoms of his day-dream still interposed between him and Piggy, who in this context was an irrelevance.”
to insert
He tried to interpose himself between the people who were fighting.
strident
loud and harsh
“The note boomed again: and then at his firmer pressure, the note, fluking up an octave, became a strident blare more penetrating than before.”
powerful
The strident tone in his voice revealed his anger.
scupper
to deliberately sink
speculate
to casually talk or to make predictions without firm evidence
“Their heads clustered above the trunks in the green shade; heads brown, fair, black, chestnut, sandy, mouse-colored; heads muttering, whispering, heads full of eyes that watched Ralph and speculated.”
brainstorm
She could only speculate about her friend’s motives
clamor
a loud and confused noise
“Jack started to protest but the clamor changed from the general wish for a chief to an election by acclaim of Ralph himself.”
shout
The clamor outside their window woke them up.
pallor
an extreme or unnatural paleness
“Now that the pallor of his faint was over, he was a skinny, vivid little boy, with a glance coming up from under a hut of straight hair that hung down, black and coarse.”
whiteness
The boys sickly pallor concerned his mother even though he had no fever.
Indignation
a feeling of righteous anger
“Piggy stood and the rose of indignation faded slowly from his cheeks. He went back to the platform.”
rage
The decision to assemble an emergency meeting has started an indignation of the townspeople.
jumble
untidy collection or pile
“There was a jumble of the usual squareness, with one great block sitting out in the lagoon.”
clutter
Due to the jumbled clothes in the closet I was unable to find my sweater.
grating
sounding unpleasant and annoying
“This one, against which Jack leaned, moved with a grating sound when they pushed.”
grinding
The grating of wood was heard throughout the factory.
warped
bent,distorted,pulled out
“He stood now, warped out of the perpendicular by the fierce light of publicity, and he bored into the coarse grass with one toe.”
dilution
The floorboards were warped due to the earthquake.
conch
a long spiral shell used as a horn
“A conch he called it. He used to blow it and then his mum would come.”
a shell used as a horn
Shelly used the conch to signal that the police were coming.
scornfully
with contempt or derision
“Like kids!” he said scornfully. “Acting like a crowd of kids!”
angrily
Mother shouted at me scornfully for not doing the dishes before she got home.
officious
intruding in a meddling or offensive manner
“There was pushing and pulling and officious cries.”
busy
My boss was an officious little man that often told people what to do.
tumult
a state of commotion, noise, and confusion
“He paused in the tumult, standing, looking beyond them and down the unfriendly side of the mountain to the great patch where they had found dead wood.”
illusion
We had to shout to be heard over the tumult.
irresistible
not capable of being refused
“At the sight of the flames and the irresistible course of the fire, the boys broke into shrill, excited cheering.”
alluring
The smell of his cologne was irresistible.
nimble
quick and agile
festoon
decorate with strings or flowers
“Smoke was rising here and there among the creepers that festooned the dead or dying trees.”
trim
We festooned the halls with leaves and white lights.
tendril
a stemlike structure of climbing plants that holds onto walls and other objects
“Here was a loop of creeper with a tendril pendant from a node.”
clasp
There was a long trendil leading from the grape vine to the other vine.
oppressive
weighing heavily on the senses or spirit
“The silence of the forest was more oppressive than the heat, and at this hour of the day there was not even the whine of insects.”
harsh
This region suffers from oppressive heat in the summer months.
