Semester 1 Vocabulary Flashcards
The puppy whimpered __________ when I stepped on his tail.
plaintively (adverb) done in a sad, somewhat pathetic way
Though he seemed a mellow fellow, Anthony’s dream was to __________ the world. He was, in reality, an evil genius bent on bringing all the nations of the earth under his control. If that required force, then so be it.
conquer
to overcome by force
When Mitzi’s cruise ship docked in Seattle, she __________ and spent most of the afternoon ashore. After several hours of visiting the local museums and shops, she returned to the ship.
disembark (verb)
to go ashore from a ship.
Relax!
Seriously - relax! You got this!
In his first years of teaching, Mr. Gilmore became angry whenever a student interrupted him. Now, after several years, he had become __________ to being interrupted.
accustomed
Usually “accustomed to _________” / “accustomed to something”
To become used to something, to get used to something so that it becomes ordinary
The worst part of swimming is when the water is cold. To accustom yourself to the temperature, you need to __________ yourself in the water. Dipping just your foot won’t do; all of you needs to be in the water.
immerse
involve oneself deeply in a particular activity or interest.
dip or submerge in a liquid.
I feel __________ whenever I check Powerschool because I don’t want to get in trouble for my poor grades.
apprehensive (adjective) anxious or fearful
Shay was __________ disappointed in Mr. Gilmore. She submitted an essay three weeks ago and he still hadn’t looked at the thing.
What a loser, she thought.
Profoundly
Very, extremely (more intense than either of these two words)
The “fancy meter” for ‘profoundly’ is 90, while the “fancy meter” for very is 20.
When I was in the bathroom, my friends put spaghetti sauce in my chair. I sat down and stained my pants, and even after washing them countless times my butt was __________ red.
tinged (adjective)
having a very slight amount of a color OR of a feeling:
Mr. Gilmore considered the __________ lies he told his students, usually in the form of stories. There were so many of them that he found it hard to keep track.
I hope they don’t think I’m a lying loser, he thought.
Innumerable (adjective)
Unable to be counted
“A lot of” / “Very many”
Nick had many concerns about Mr. Gilmore’s poor teaching, so he arranged a meeting. They met during lunch and __________ at length regarding a number of different topics. Their discussion ended with Mr. Gilmore breaking down in tears and apologizing to Nick for his shortcomings.
Conversed
Converse - to engage in conversation
“I’m missing a log,” Mr. Gilmore said, then turned to Charles and pointed a finger at him. “We all know it’s yours!” Charles got up, __________ his reading log onto the front table, then stormed out of class.
flounced (verb - past tense) to move in an exaggerated way, usually with impatience or anger
Mr. Gilmore went to great lengths to teach his class about motifs, which are essentially __________ symbols.
He explained, “The fact that they repeat over and over is what sets them apart from symbols.”
Recurring
Repeating, happening again and again
Mr. Gilmore sighed impatiently as Matteo checked his quiz for the forty-seventh time.
Matteo was now certain that every ‘i’ was dotted and every ‘t’ was crossed. He’d spelled each word correctly, capitalized all proper nouns, and provided enough space between each word. Furthermore, his letters were written perfectly straight. Finally, he reached the last sentence he’d written.
“I’m not sure if I should end this sentence with a period or an exclamation point,” Matteo said. “Maybe I have to use my probability simulator.”
Mr. Gilmore sighed. “Would you stop being so _______________ and turn your quiz in?”
persnickety (adjective)
fussy about small details
The most important among our class rules is that we never use __________ language when speaking to each other.
derogatory (adjective) to show a critical or disrespectful attitutude
I hurried through the back door to find my dad cooking in the kitchen. “My bike broke,” I said. “I’m busy,” he said __________. “Ask your sister to help you.”
shortly (adverb) in a few words; briefly; impatiently
The puppy let out a _________ whimper when I stepped on his tail.
plaintive (adjective) sad or pathetic
Daniel was __________ at the thought of yet another vocab quiz. He was so upset that he worried all weekend about it.
apprehensive (adjective) anxious or fearful
Joe took longer than usual to get home because his backpack was __________ with countless books which slowed him down.
laden (adjective) burdened, loaded down Usually seen in the form “laden with _____”
Charlotte and her classmates __________ to keep Mr. Gilmore distracted all class by talking about cats. Their goal was to prevent him from introducing the lesson so that they were guaranteed to have no homework.
Conspire (verb) - to act or work together toward the same result or goal.
Often used with the word “to.” (Conspire to _________) or (Conspired to __________)
The pile of essays formed a veritable mountain which loomed over Mr. Gilmore. “There’s just too much work. It isn’t fair!” Mr. Gilmore __________.
mourned (verb - past tense) to feel or express sadness
After getting sent home for misbehaving, Matteo spent hours ____________ his actions and regretting them.
Contemplating
Contemplate: To look at for a long time (in a thoughtful way)
To think about deeply
After a lengthy __________ with my doctor, I was convinced to change my dietary and exercise habits.
consultation (noun)
a meeting to discuss something or to get advice
Throughout his twenties, the _______________ Mr. Gilmore lived all over the place. He moved from New Hampshire to South Korea, then Washington State. Finally, he settled in Connecticut.
itinerant (adjective)
Describing someone who travels from place to place (ex: an itinerant lifestyle is a traveling lifestyle)
“If you want to learn how to write well,” Mr. Gilmore began, “you have to __________ in good books and good writing. You can’t just do a little here and there - you have to be deeply involved.”
Christian rolled his eyes. What a loser, he thought.
immerse
involve oneself deeply in a particular activity or interest.
dip or submerge in a liquid.
When I get to class, I slowly and __________ organize my belongings atop my desk.
deliberately (adverb) intentionally; on purpose OR in a slow and careful way
Payton walked into class and was stopped in her tracks by the chorus of voices singing “happy birthday.” She was __________. Red-faced, she hurried to her seat and buried her face in her folded arms. This was, by far, the most embarrassing thing she’d ever experienced.
Abashed (adjective) - ashamed or embarrassed
On Thanksgiving, the tables were __________ with all kinds of food.
laden (adjective) burdened, loaded down Usually seen in the form “laden with _____”
My brother called my sister a __________ because he didn’t like the skirt she was wearing. She told him he could keep his opinion to himself.
tart (noun) a prostitute an insult aimed at a woman
The heavy-_________ plane took longer than usual to reach its destination because it was weighed down by so much luggage.
laden (adjective) burdened, loaded down Usually seen in the form “laden with _____”
Next summer, I plan to take a trip to __________, the southernmost region of Spain.
Andalusia
Alanna sighed. It was a lazy Sunday, and she just couldn’t get into the book that jerk Mr. Gilmore (also known as the worst teacher in the world) assigned her. She __________ the pages for a while, then tossed the thing aside and decided to do something else.
leafed through
leaf through (phrasal verb –> these two words always come as a pair, sort of like LADEN WITH)
If you leaf through something such as a book or magazine, you turn the pages without reading or looking at them very carefully.
Today was so terrible that I went straight home, __________ onto my bed, and fell asleep.
flounced (verb - past tense) to move in an exaggerated way, usually with impatience or anger
When Mr. Gilmore called on her to answer his question, Shay’s face was __________ in thought as she struggled to remember the answer.
contorted (adjective) twisted or bent out of its normal shape
In medieval times, priests’ books might have been kept in the either the __________ or in the adjacent cloister alley.
Sacristy
The back room in a church where a priest prepares for a service/sermon; where special clothing and other religious tools are kept
Strait - a narrow passage of water connecting two large bodies of water.
This arrow points to the Straits of Gibraltar.
My hair is blonde, and I have always been jealous of my sister’s dark, _________ hair.
Raven (6)
A black bird, similar to a crow.
Raven is ALSO an adjective for anything that’s the glossy black color of a raven’s feathers: “His raven hair was held out of his eyes with a sweatband.”
During the summer, it’s best to stay indoors when the sun is at its __________. Otherwise, you risk getting a terrible sunburn.
Zenith
the time at which something is most powerful or successful.
The time when the sun is at its highest point – the peak of an arc
Wool is a sustainable fabric; every year the sheep will grow new wool to be __________.
Sheared
To cut the wool off (a sheep)
Moors (noun)
Moorish (adjective)
“Moor” was a term used to refer to muslims during the period when The Alchemist takes place. Hundreds of years before the start of the story, the Moors inhabited Spain and left a great influence on the country and its people.
This poor creature has been __________ of its wool.
Sheared
To cut the wool off (a sheep)
Few people know that the __________ tree is symbolic of strength, protection, eternity, and divinity.
Sycamore (3, 7)
A large, European-Asian maple tree
Symbolic of “strength, protection, eternity, divinity (God)
