Word List 3 - Groups 1-2

Question 1

alacrity

Answer 1

Eagerness; enthusiasm; quickness

Creon’s alacrity to punish the person who buried Polynieces caused his downfall.

Question 2

burgeon

Answer 2

Grow; flourish; put forth new shoots

Creon believed that under his rule, Thebes would burgeon.

Question 3

deleterious

Answer 3

Harmful

Bob Ewell was deleterious in his criticism of Tom Robinson.

Question 4

euphemism

Answer 4

A polite phrase to cover something unpleasant

The euphemism “To Kill a Mockingbird” relates to Scout’s own innocence being lost, due to racial conflicts in Maycomb.

Question 5

hypocritical

Answer 5

Insincere

Bob Ewell was hypocritical in court through his own lies and insecurities.

Question 6

lethargic

Answer 6

Tired; without energy

The legend of Boo Radley gave Scout, Jem, and Dill the impression that he was lethargic.

Question 7

ogle

Answer 7

Stare at; observe in an obvious manner

People in Maycomb were not allowed to ogle at Boo Radley’s house.

Question 8

postulate

Answer 8

Hypothesize; propose

Atticus postulated that Bob Ewell was ambidextrous, through Atticus’s own questions to Ewell.

Question 9

robust

Answer 9

Strong; healthy; tough

Atticus Finch possessed a robust mind through his intelligent profession as a lawyer in court trials.

Question 10

tractable

Answer 10

Obedient; dutiful; polite

Children in Scout’s time were expected to be tractable toward their elders.

Question 11

alchemy

Answer 11

Medieval chemistry; attempt to change base metal into gold

Atticus was not involved the study of alchemy, so instead, the man was a lawyer.

Question 12

burnish

Answer 12

Polish

Atticus most likely would have burnished his treasured pocket watch passed from his own father.

Question 13

deliberate

Answer 13

To think over deeply

Ismene deliberated over the consequences of illegally burying her and Antigone’s brother, Polynieces.

Question 14

euphony

Answer 14

Pleasant sounds

When Antigone was solitary in the cave, left to die by Creon, there was euphony being emitted from the location.

Question 15

iconoclast

Answer 15

Person who opposes orthodoxy
When Creon allowed Polynieces’s dead body to not be buried so that the birds and animals can eat it, Creon is an iconoclast.

Question 16

levity

Answer 16

Flippancy; joking about serious matters

Atticus, in his everyday attitudes, was a person who did not speak with levity.

Question 17

olfactory

Answer 17

Concerned with the sense of smell

The mad dog of Maycomb had olfactory senses that were able to guide it through Maycomb’s streets.

Question 18

potable

Answer 18

Suitable for drinking

Bob Ewell drank potable alcholic beverages, an act which he did often.

Question 19

rotund

Answer 19

Round

No character in To Kill a Mockingbird is specifically described as fat and rotund.

Question 20

tranquil

Answer 20

Peaceful

The atmosphere in the courtroom during the trial of Tom Robinson was definitely not tranquil when Bob Ewell testified.