A Raisin in the Sun Vocab

Question 1

Undistinguished (adj)

Answer 1

common; nothing special (23)

“Its furnishings are typical and undistinguished and their primary feature now is that they have clearly had to accommodate the living of too many people for too many years—and they are tired.”

Question 2

Pretense (n)

Answer 2

pretending or feigning; make-believe; a false show of something (24)

“All pretenses but living itself have long since vanished from the very atmosphere of this room.”

Question 3

Exasperated (adj)

Answer 3

irritated; provoked; irked (28)

“(The boy gives her an exasperated look for her lack of understanding, and eats grudgingly)”

Question 4

Viciously (adv)

Answer 4

with violence or fury (29)

“(Travis jabs his spoon into his cereal bowl viciously, and rests his head in anger upon his fists)”

Question 5

Sullen (adj)

Answer 5

showing irritation or ill humor by a gloomy silence or reserve (29)

“(With sullen politeness) Yes’m.”

Question 6

Vindicated (v)

Answer 6

cleared of accusation, blame, or doubt (30)

“The boy finally turns around and rolls his eyes at her, knowing the mood has changed and he is vindicated”

Question 7

Proposition (n)

Answer 7

a suggested plan (33)

“This ain’t no fly-by-night proposition, baby.”

Question 8

Vengeance (n)

Answer 8

revenge (35)

“She closes the door with a sleepy vengeance and crosses to the table and sits down a little defeated”

Question 9

Tentatively (adv)

Answer 9

uncertainly (44)

“She waits several seconds, trying to make up her mind about something, and looks at RUTH a little tentatively before going on”

Question 10

Furtively (adv)

Answer 10

stealthily; in a way that hides motive (44)

“Studying her mother-in-law furtively and concentrating on her ironing, anxious to encourage without seeming to”

Question 11

Futile (adj)

Answer 11

useless (45)

“Dropping her hands in a futile gesture”

Question 12

Tyrant (n)

Answer 12

dictator; harsh ruler (52)

“ I also see that everybody thinks it’s all right for Mama to be a tyrant.”

Question 13

Forlornly (adv)

Answer 13

pitifully; desperately; hopelessly (57)

“Ruth comes in forlornly and pulls off her coat with dejection.”

Question 14

Mutilated (adj)

Answer 14

maimed; damaged (61)

“You wear it well … very well … mutilated hair and all.”

Question 15

Assimilationism (n)

Answer 15

belief that minority cultures should be absorbed into a dominant culture (63)

“Assimilationism is so popular in your country.”

Question 16

Insinuatingly (adv)

Answer 16

with more meaning than is spoken; implied (66)

“Lord, that’s a pretty thing just went out here! (Insinuatingly, to her daughter)”

Question 17

Haphazardly (adv)

Answer 17

carelessly (66)

“She sets the headdress on haphazardly and then notices her hair again and clutches at it and then replaces the headdress and frowns at herself.”

Question 18

Arrogant (adj)

Answer 18

proud; haughty (76)

“She promenades to the radio and, with an arrogant flourish, turns off the good loud blues that is playing”

Question 19

Eccentric (adj)

Answer 19

deviating from the norm; strange (80)

“Oh, don’t be so proud of yourself, Bennie—just because you look eccentric.”

Question 20

Oppressive (adj)

Answer 20

tyrannical (81)

“It means someone who is willing to give up his own culture and submerge himself completely in the dominant, and in this case oppressive culture”

Question 21

Cliché (n)

Answer 21

trite or overused expression or idea (82)

“Just like they always say about Chicago weather: If it’s too hot or cold for you, just wait a minute and it’ll change. (She smiles happily at this cliché of clichés)”

Question 22

Plaintively (adv)

Answer 22

Sorrowfully; pathetically (86)

“(Plaintively) Walter Lee—why don’t we just try to talk about it”

Question 23

Menacingly (adv)

Answer 23

threateningly (90)

“(Mama clamps her lips together, and Ruth advances toward her son menacingly)”

Question 24

Exuberant (adj)

Answer 24

marked by unrestrained enthusiasm (93)

“(And she builds with momentum as she starts to circle the room with an exuberant, almost tearfully happy release)”

Question 25

Presumably (adv)

Answer 25

probably; reasonably supposed (96)

“Beneatha and George come in, presumably from an evening out again.”

Question 26

Rebuff (n)

Answer 26

blunt refusal (96)

“He starts to kiss her, she rebuffs him again and he jumps up.”

Question 27

Revelation (n)

Answer 27

new information (91, 105)

“The explosion comes from Walter at the end of the revelation and he jumps up and turns away from all of them in a fury.” or “This is a revelation to her.”

Question 28

Amiably (adv)

Answer 28

good-naturedly (114)

“Amiably, as he sits himself easily on a chair, leaning forward on his knees with interest and looking expectantly into the newcomer’s face”

Question 29

Ludicrous (adj)

Answer 29

ridiculous (124)

“She pops it on her head to prove it to her grandson, and the hat is ludicrous and considerably oversized”

Question 30

Ominous (adj)

Answer 30

menacing; threatening (131)

“In the living room Beneatha sits at the table, still surrounded by the now almost ominous packing crates.”

Question 31

Plunder (v)

Answer 31

to rob; to loot (134)

“What about all the crooks and thieves and just plain idiots who will come into power and steal and plunder the same as before”

Question 32

Wrought (v)

Answer 32

shaped; made (137)

“Ah—so this is what the New World hath finally wrought …”

Question 33

Monologue (n)

Answer 33

long speech by one person (138)

“Beneatha ignores the eccentricity of his actions and goes on with the monologue of insult”

Question 34

Eccentricity (n)

Answer 34

quality of being strange or unusual in behavior (138)

“Beneatha ignores the eccentricity of his actions and goes on with the monologue of insult”

Question 35

Epitaph (n)

Answer 35

inscription on a tombstone (145)

“You done wrote his epitaph too—like the rest of the world?”

Question 36

Amid (adv)

Answer 36

among; in the midst of (149)

“She flies to get it amid the general bustling of the family, who are deliberately trying to ignore the nobility of the past moment”