Vocabulary+Page

=Vocabulary Page=

Discreetly: judicious in one's conduct or speech, especially with regard to respecting privacy or maintaing silence about something of a delicate nature. Discreetly, he scouted the territory (11). I discreetly listened to the man as I tried to understand his history.

Sauntering: to walk with a leisurely gait, stroll. Reading it while sauntering down the sidewalk, you feel a nudge (30). He was sauntering down the street as if his life was care free.

Detrimental: causing a loss, disadvantage, or injury. Their job was to argue that sending him to the juvenile detention center would be detrimental to his worrisome mental state (36). His current job is detrimental to his true potential.

Penance: a punishment undergone in token of penitence for sin. It would also give him a chance to do penance (42). His penance was to serve 24 hours of coummunity service.

Plantain: a green fruit resembling a banana, eaten cooked as a staple food in many tropical countries. Feed him more plantain, like in Puerto Rico (60). I found a tasty plantain in Fiji.

Tack: a sailing term meaning to turn into the wind. You tack, come alongside, heave to, and help the unfortunate aboard (30) While sailing you may need to tack your boat.

Traction: In orthopedic medicine, traction refers to the set of mechanisms for straightening broken bones or relieving pressure on the skeletal system. You regret that he'll be in traction for years (30). The injured kick boxer will need through many years of traction.

Probation: a way of dealing with offenders without imprisoning them. ...sentencing him to probation in place of the detention center (37). The theif was on probation instead of being imprissoned.

Exuberant: joyously unrestrained. Her wavy hair flowed exuberantly over her shoulders... (38) The yound child was exuberant on Christmas morning.

concertina: A hexagonel-shaped, free-reed, bellows instrument played with keys (buttons) on both ends. Floating up the stairway come the faint peeping of a concertina (68). The street musician was playing a concertina for money.

Deneb: A star of the first magnitude in Cyngus. (a constellation) "Deneb, in the constellation Cygnus, the swan." (63) Deneb was the brightest star in the sky.

Shearwater: any of numerous oceanic birds (especially genus //Puffinus//) that are related to the petrels and usually skim close to the waves in flight "He said it was called a shearwater." (60) We followed the shearwater as it weaved in and out of the waves.

Botanica: a shop that deals in herbs and charms used especially by adherents of Santeria (a cuban religion) "She went to a botanica and bought special candles and statues of saints..." (59) I could smell the herbs and spices of the botanica from a block away.

Cicada: any of a family (Cicadidae) of homopterous insects which have a stout body, wide blunt head, and large transparent wings and the males of which produce a loud buzzing noise usually by stridulation. "Cicadas droned in the sultry air." (127) I observed the cicada moving through the leaves and twigs with my magnifying glass.

Boisterous: marked by or expressive of exuberance and high spirits. "...the boisterous family get-togethers I'd heard of." I could tell he had won the competition by his boisterous actions of victory.

Yiddish: a German language with a mixture of Hewbrew and Slavic vocabulary. "Then again, Yiddish washer first language, English was her sixth." (105) I had never heard someone speak Yiddish, very cool.

Nonchalantly: relaxed, coolly, unconcerned, indifferent. "I fiddled with the gearshift, found first, and proceeded down the street as nonchalantly as possible." (107) Although Mother was very distraught she nonchalantly greeted each guest into our home.

Obsidian: A volcanic rock much like granit, usually dark but transparent. "He probed the photo for new information and now saw that she'd drawn her hair, shiney andbalck as obsidian, to the side with a clip." (44) The young child had found a dark beautiful rock, and when he asked his science teacher what it was, he said it had to be obsidian.

Perennially: lasting for an indefinitely long time/enduring "No more, Brent promised, would he complain about the bus after reading of the retching, fatigue, perennialy wet clothes and mortal dangers that the author had endured." (88) The bus ride seemed perennialy long and never ending, so I decided to read my book.

Pizzicato: An instrument you pluck strings with your fingers and not with a bow like a violin. "Holder of single-season records in harmonics, triple stops, and left-hand pizzicato" (78) Although my mom wanted me to play the pizzicato I decided to play the guitar, it sounds cooler, I think.