Chapter 1-2: Read the following sentences. Using context clues guess the meaning of the underlined
words.
1. Anecdotes
Sentence: I guess I thought my father had told him one of the embarrassing anecdotes he saw
merely as loving testaments to his children.
Meaning of word:_____________________________________________________________
2. Indignity
Sentence: At least I was spared that indignity.
Meaning of word:_____________________________________________________________
3. Audacity
Sentence: I was in heaven by that time, fitting my limbs together and couldn’t believe his
audacity.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
4. Perpetual
Sentence: Life is a perpetual yesterday for us.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
5. Exasperated
Sentence: As my father pulled into the garage, she would rush about, fixing him a cocktail, a dry
sherry, and put on an exasperated face.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
6. Unsheathed
Sentence: Unsheathed, it smiled at me, curving up in a grin.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
7. Reveries
Sentence: At the end of my reveries, I sat in the back of the car as my father drove.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
8. Reproach
Sentence: I was beyond reproach.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
9. Inexplicably
Sentence: I would overtake high school in a matter of days, not years, or, inexplicably, earn an
Oscar for Best Actress during my junior year.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
10. Destitute
On Earth she had been a social worker for the homeless and destitute.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
11. Meticulous
Sentence: She made a meticulous list of what I’d carried and worn.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
12. Futile
Sentence: In my mind I had wavered between the bittersweet joy of seeing my mother name all
the things I carried and loved and her futile hope that these things mattered.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
13. Modulate
Sentence: Mrs. Dewitt likes to modulate her reading list, she does a big push before Christmas
with Shakespeare.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
14. Ostracized
Sentence: The Ostracized: One Man Alone.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
15. Dutifully
Sentence: With its scribbled theories that I could never understand but still dutifully recorded,
had been found when a chat knocked down a crow’s nest.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
16. Finials
Sentence: Mr. Harvey sat carving finials for a gothic dollhouse.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
17. Solace
Sentence: I tried to take solace in Holiday, our dog.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
18. Insinuating
Sentence: The police descended on his house, leaning heavily on him, insinuating things.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
19. Alibi
Sentence: But Ray had an alibi.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
20. Clandestine
Sentence: Gladly partook of any clandestine eating on the part of my mother.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
21. Inconsequential
Sentence: She crossed her arms and braced for another inconsequential detail in which others
invested meaning.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
22. Accosted
Sentence: It appears whoever accosted Susie used this during the crime.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
23. Petulant
Sentence: Susie don’t speak to me in that petulant tone.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
24. Reverberated
Sentence: The song reverberated until Holly, for a final time, passed the tune over, and Mrs.
Utemeyer, quiet, upright, historical, finished with a jig.
Meaning of word: ____________________________________________________________
Using a dictionary or SmartPhone Look up the dictionary definition:
1. Anecdotes:__________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
2. Indignity:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
3. Audacity:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
4. Perpetual:__________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
5. Exasperated:________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
6. Unsheathed:________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
7. Reveries:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
8. Reproach:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
9. Inexplicably:_________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
10. Destitute:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
11. Meticulous:_________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
12. Futile:______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
13. Modulate:__________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
14. Ostracized:__________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
15. Dutifully:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
16. Finials:_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
17. Solace:_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
18. Insinuating:_________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
19. Alibi:_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
20. Clandestine:_________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
21. Inconsequential:_____________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
22. Accosted:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
23. Petulant:___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
24. Reverberated:_______________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________