Chapters 1-3 Flashcards
(30 cards)
Lagoon
“The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of rock and began to pick his way toward the lagoon.”
My definition: similar to a lake
Dictionary: an area of shallow water separated from the sea by low sandy dunes.
My sentence: We were so exited to play in the lagoon that we started to sprint towards it.
Clamber
“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.”
My definition: to climb or shuffle
Dictionary: to climb, using both feet and hands; climb with effort or difficulty.
My Sentence: We were clambering up the tree house.
Vainly
“He took off his glasses and looked vainly for something with which to clean them.”
My definition: quickly.
Dictionary: excessively proud of or concerned about one’s own appearance, qualities, achievements, etc.
My sentence: She vainly fixed her dress and hair in the restroom.
Quiver
“The palms that still stood made a green roof, covered on the underside with a quivering tangle of reflections from the lagoon.”
My definition: tremble
Dictionary: to shake with a slight but rapid motion; vibrate tremulously; tremble.
My sentence: She was quivering from the cold wind that was blowing in roughly.
Decorous
“Suddenly Piggy was a-bubble with decorous excitement.”
My Definition: respectful happiness
Dictionary: characterized by dignified propriety in conduct, manners, appearance, character, etc.
My sentence: She was screaming at me in a decorous manner.
Interpose
“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.”
My definition: To interfere or come in between.
Dictionary: to place between; cause to intervene
My sentence: She interposed in my conversation with my teacher.
Strident
“The note boomed again: and then at his firmer pressure, the note, fluking up an octave, became a strident blare more penetrating than before.”
My definition: stronger/louder noise
Dictionary: making or having a harsh sound; grating; creaking:
My sentence: She whistled 5 times and every time she whistled it be came even more strident.
Scupper
“Piggy was shouting something, his face pleased, his glasses flashing. The birds cried, small animals scuttered”
My definition:
Dictionary: Nautical. a drain at the edge of a deck exposed to the weather, for allowing accumulated water to drain away into the sea or into the bilges.
My Sentence: He dropped the water and it slowly moved tot he scupper in the middle of the room.
Speculate
“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.”
My definition: studied carefully.
Dictionary: to engage in thought or reflection; meditate
My sentence: We speculated her while she was doing her work.
Clamor
“The conch was silent, a gleaming tusk; Ralph’s face was dark with breathlessness and the air over the island was full of bird-clamor and echoes ringing.”
My definition: loud noise
Dictionary: a loud uproar, as from a crowd of people
My sentence: She came on stage and a big clamor burst through the crowd.
Pallor
“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.”
My definition: a cloak that he was hiding behind.
Dictionary:unusual or extreme paleness, as from fear, ill health, or death; wanness.
My sentence: She looked pallor when the ghost jumped out and screamed.
Indignation
“Piggy stood and the rose of indignation faded slowly from his cheeks.”
My definition: anger shown in his face
Dictionary: strong displeasure at something considered unjust, offensive, insulting, or base; righteous anger.
My sentence: She showed a hint of indignation in her eyes.
Jumble
“There was a jumble of the usual squareness, with one great block sitting out in the lagoon.”
My definition: a mix up, confusion.
Dictionary: to mix in a confused mass; put or throw together without order:
My sentnece: She jumbled all her flashcards as if she didn’t care.
Grating
“This one, against which Jack leaned, moved with a grating sound when they pushed.”
My definition: an annoying sound
Dictionary: a fixed frame of bars or the like covering an opening to exclude persons, animals, coarse material, or objects while admitting light, air, or fine material.
My sentence: We moved the grating stone wall to it’s previous spot.
Warped
“He stood now, warped out of the perpendicular by the fierce light of publicity, and he bored into the coarse grass with one toe.”
My definition: covered
Dictionary: to bend or twist out of shape, especially from a straight or flat form, as timbers or flooring.
My sentence: He warped the flexible ruler into an L shape.
Conch
“–a conch; ever so expensive. I bet if you wanted to buy one, you’d have to pay pounds and pounds and pounds–he had it on his garden wall, and my auntie–”
My definition: a shell that made a loud noise when blown in it.
Dictionary: the spiral shell of a gastropod, often used as a horn.
My Sentence: They used a conch to catch everyones attention.
Scornfully
“Like kids!” he said scornfully. “Acting like a crowd of kids!”
My definition: of mischievous or anger.
Dictionary: full of scorn; derisive; contemptuous.
My sentence: She yelled at him scornfully.
Officious
“There was pushing and pulling and officious cries.”
My definition: screaming demands at people
Dictionary: objectionably aggressive in offering one’s unrequested and unwanted services, help, or advice; meddlesome:
My sentence: He officiously pushed his sons to do the best.
Tumult
“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.”
My definition: a deep fall from the high point.
Dictionary: violent and noisy commotion or disturbance of a crowd or mob; uproar:
My sentence: As she looked down, she noticed how tumult the mountain was from the sides.
Irresistible
“At the sight of the flames and the irresistible course of the fire, the boys broke into shrill, excited cheering.”
My definition: not being able to resist or ignore
Dictionary: not resistible; incapable of being resisted or withstood
My sentence: The smell of the pie was irresistible.
Nimble
“The heart of flame leapt nimbly across the gap between the trees and then went swinging and flaring along the whole row of them.”
My sentence: moving softly and slowly.
Dictionary: quick and light in movement; moving with ease; agile; active; rapid.
My definition: We watched the fire move nimbly in the dark night.
Festoon
“Smoke was rising here and there among the creepers that festooned the dead or dying trees.”
My definition: the path the smoke was going through.
Dictionary: a string or chain of flowers, foliage, ribbon, etc., suspended in a curve between two points.
My sentence: The water was festooned in the path as it always go.
Tendril
“Ralph pushed the damp tendrils of hair out of his eyes”
My definition: some type of plant like form.
Dictionary: a threadlike, leafless organ of climbing plants, often growing in spiral form, which attaches itself to or twines round some other body, so as to support the plant.
My sentence: The tendrils on her gate were so beautifully spiraled into a patteren.
Oppressive
“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.”
My definition: didn’t stand a chance
Dictionary: burdensome, unjustly harsh, or tyrannical:
My sentence: the noise of the radio was oppresive towards her humming.
