Fahrenheit 451 Vocabulary
Word
POS
Definition
1. 1. stolid
ADJ
Part 1
showing little or no emotion, not easily
excited or upset, unemotional
stolidly
ADV
unemotionally
2. 2. to illuminate
V
3. 3. fringe
N
4. 4. to pulverize
V
5. 5. to accumulate
V
to supply with light;
to make clear and easier to understand
a border made of hanging threads;
a narrow area along the edge of something
an area of activity that is related to but not
part of something
to crush, beat, or grind into powder;
to destroy or defeat completely
to gather or acquire gradually as time
passes;
to increase gradually in amount as time
passes
accumulation
N
increase or growth by accumulation
6. 6. to distill
V
7. 7. proboscis
N
8. 8. trajectory
N
9. 9. to ignite
V
to make a liquid pure by heating;
to take the most important parts of
something and put them in a different and
usually improved form
a long thin nose, snout, or trunk of some
animals;
a person’s nose especially when it is very
long or big
the curved path along which something
moves through air or space;
a path, progression, or line of development
to set on fire, to cause to burn
to give life or energy to, to kindle
ignition
N
10. 10. rollicking
11. 11. cacophony
12.
cacophonous
13. 12. pantomime
Example Simple
The butler responded to the
duchess's constant demands with
stolid indifference.
With indifference, the butler stolidly
responded to the duchess’s constant
demands.
A university study has illuminated
the problem.
He was always on the fringes of their
social scene.
The lawn mower pulverizes blades of
grass into fine clippings.
The leaves accumulated on the
ground.
The accumulation of leaves on the
ground is proceeding at a much
faster rate than my raking.
In his poem, he has perfectly distilled
the meaning of the holiday.
An elephant’s proboscis can lift as
much as 770 pounds.
In physics, you will calculate the
trajectory of things that are thrown
and things that fall.
The fire was ignited by sparks.
ADJ
N
the act of causing something to start
burning
enjoyable in a lively or noisy way
unpleasant loud sounds
The ignition of the fire was caused by
sparks.
We had a rollicking good time.
The sounds of barking dogs and
sirens added to the cacophony on
the streets.
ADJ
discordant, harsh-sounding
N
a way of expressing information or telling a
story without words by using body;
movements and facial expressions (miming)
The cacophonous sounds of barking
dogs and sirens made my ears ache.
When playing charades, one player
uses pantomime to depict a word or
phrase, and the other players guess.
14. 13. luminescence
N
the creation of light by processes that do
not involve heat or the light itself
Because of the luminescence coming
from the fungus on the walls of the
cave, we could see every detail of the
path even without a flashlight.
ADJ
light-producing
15. 14. dictum
N
16. 15. exploit
N
a statement or well-known remark that
expresses an important idea or rule
an exciting act or action, a notable deed
17. 16. drone
N
one that lives on the labors of others;
a stingless male bee;
an unmanned aircraft;
a continuous low humming sound
The luminescent fungus shone
brightly on the cave wall.
A doctor must follow the dictum,
“First, do no harm.”
Once famed as an actor, John Wilkes
Booth is now remembered for a
single exploit, his assassination of
Lincoln.
She felt like a drone; she never only
served to live and lived off of the
serving of others.
V
to make a continuous low hum
18. 17. olfactory
ADJ
19. 18. jargon
N
of, relating to, or connected with sense of
smell
the language used for a particular activity or
that used by a particular group of people
20. 19. odious
ADJ
causing hatred or strong dislike
21. 20. heresy
N
a belief or opinion that does not agree with
the official belief or opinion of a particular
religion
heretic
N
someone who believes something that goes
against accepted beliefs, dissenter,
nonconformist
22. 21. insidious
ADJ
causing harm in a way that is gradual or not
easily noticed
23. 22. to writhe
24. 23. oblivion
V
N
to twist your body from side to side
the state of having forgotten;
the state of being unconscious or unaware;
the state of being destroyed;
ADJ
not conscious or aware, lacking memory
unware or unconscious of
V
to move toward one point and join
together, to meet, to unite
luminescent
to drone
oblivious
25. 24. to converge
We could hear the wasps droning in
the garden.
The role of perfume as an olfactory
“disguise” is obvious.
Although the lawyer’s jargon just
confused me, eventually I was able to
understand that we might actually
win.
The Holocaust is one of the most
odious crimes in recent history.
In Galileo’s day, it was considered
heresy to state that the Earth
revolved around the Sun.
Galileo was condemned as a heretic
for supporting Copernicus’s thesis
that the Earth revolves around the
Sun and not vice versa.
Most people with this insidious
disease have no idea that they are
infected.
She lay on the floor, writhing in pain.
She fell into the sweep oblivion of
sleep.
The out-of-state motorist claimed to
be oblivious of the local speed limit,
even though the signs must have
been hard to miss.
The students converged in the
parking lot to say goodbye after the
graduation ceremony.