TGWLTG pages 10-39

Hey guys! Here is the first set of vocabulary words from pages 10-39. All the definitions are taken directly from the Miriam Webster Dictionary, and are basically quoted. The sentences are taken straight from the book. The page numbers are included. You can find other sentence examples from http://www.merriam-webster.com/ .


1. Unerring- (adj.) Committing no error.
Synonyms: infallible, unfailing
"He understood with some unerring instinct that it was the one he could plant the deepest and pulled the hardest.” p. 10

2. Cataclysmically- (adv.) a) Flood, Deluge b) Catastrophe c) A momentous and violent event marked by overwhelming upheaval and demolition; broadly: an event that brings great changes.
Synonyms: alluvion, inundation, spate, torrent, cataract
“Pete sat at the table, looking cataclysmically bored.” p. 13

3. Ostentatious- (adj.) marked by or fond of conspicuous or vainglorious and sometimes pretentious display.
Synonyms: flamboyant, flashy, garish, gaudy, swank
“Mom had refused to notice is ostentatious lack of interest.” p. 13

4. Gall- (n.) a) Bile, something bitter, bitterness of spirit b) Brazen boldness coupled with imprudent assurance and insolence
Synonyms: impudence, moxie, audacity, nerve
“He even had the gall to say he should be home studying for his final exam.” p. 14

5. Indignant- (adj.) Filled with or marked by indignation (anger aroused by something unjust)
Synonyms: angered apoplectic, ballistic, enraged, fuming, incensed
“Tricia would remember the last phrase she got in the clear; her brothers hurt, indignant voice.” p. 23

6. Indecorous- (adj.) not decorous, conflicting with accepted standards of good contuct or good taste.
Synonym: amiss, graceless, inept, infelicitous, wrong
“It seemed indecorous.” p. 23

7. Dubiously- (adv.) a) giving rise to uncertainty; a doubtful promise or outcome; questionable or suspect as to true nature or quality b) unsettled in opinion
Synonym: debatable, disputable, equivocal, fishy, queer, doubtful, questionable
“When she was done she looked around dubiously for something to blot with and decided not to push [her] luck.” p. 24

8. Disquiet- (v.) to take away the peace or tranquility of; to disturb or alarm
Synonym: agitate, alarm, ail, distract, distress, dismay, perturb
“She felt the first minnowy flutter of disquiet.” p. 27

9. Sough- (v.) to make a moaning or sighing sound
Synonym: sigh
“She could hear the sough of the wind through the big old West country pine.” p. 28

10. Ascertained- (v.) a) to make certain, exact or precise b) to find out or learn with certainty
Synonym: discover, realize, learn
“She ascertained that she was still traveling in a straight line.” p. 33

11. Oppressive- (adj.) a) unreasonable burdeonsome or severe b) tyrannical c) overwhelming or depressing to the spirit or senses
Synonyms: bitter, brutal, burdensome, grim, harsh, onerous, severe
“She was suddenly drowning in isolation, choking on a bright and yet oppressive sense of self as a living being cast out from her fellows.” p. 35

12. Pram - (n.) a small lightweight nearly flat bottomed boat with a broad transom and usually squared-off bow
Synonym: cart, carriage, buggy,
“Her voice trembled, became first the wavery voice of a little kid and then almost the shriek of the babies who lies forgotten in her pram.” p. 36