TKAM vocabulary

vocab words in To Kill A Mockingbird

Assuaged

provide physical relief, as from pain
(When it healed, and Jem's fears of never being able to play football were assuaged, he was seldom self-conscious about his injury.)

Dictum

a short statement that expresses a general truth or principle.
(So Simon, having forgotten his teacher's dictum on the possession of human chattels, bought three slaves and with their aid established a homestead on the banks of the Alabama River some forty miles above Saint)

Apothecary

a person who prepared and sold medicines and drugs.
Brethren
(All we had was Simon Finch, after trapping apothecary)

Methodist

United Methodists believe in actualizing their faith in community — actions speak louder than words.
(Simon called himself a Methodist, he worked his way across the Atlantic to Philadelphia, thence to Jamaica, thence to Mobile, and up the Saint Stephens.)

Chattels

(in general use) a personal possession.
(So Simon, having forgotten his teacher's dictum on the possession of human chattels)

piety

righteousness by virtue of being religiously devout
(All we had was Simon Finch, a fur-trapping apothecary from Cornwall whose piety was exceeded only by his stinginess.)

Brethren

fellow Christians or members of a male religious order.
(In England, Simon was irritated by the persecution of those who called themselves Methodists at the hands of their more liberal brethren)

persecution

causing someone to suffer
(In England, Simon was irritated by the persecution of those who called themselves Methodists)

Taciturn

habitually reserved and uncommunicative
(Their sister Alexandra was the Finch who remained at the Landing: she married a taciturn man who spent most of his time lying in a hammock by the river wondering if his trot-lines were full.)

unsullied

Free from blemishes
(Atticus's office in the courthouse contained little more than a hat rack, a spittoon, a checkerboard and an unsullied Code of Alabama.)

nebulous

lacking definite form or limits
(Boo's transition from the basement to back home was nebulous in Jem's memory.)

concede

give over
(It was all right to shut him up, Mr. Radley conceded, but insisted that Boo not be charged with anything: he was not a criminal.)

profane

grossly irreverent toward what is held to be sacred
(on charges of disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace, assault and battery, and using abusive and profane language in the presence and hearing of a female)

pulpit

a platform raised to give prominence to the person on it
(They did little, but enough to be discussed by the town and publicly warned from three pulpits)

domicile

housing that someone is living in
(Sarum, an enormous and confusing tribe domiciled in the northern part of the county)

acquainted

having fair knowledge of
(According to neighborhood legend, when the younger Radley boy was in his teens he became acquainted with some of the Cunninghams from Old)

predilection

a predisposition in favor of something
(The Radleys, welcome anywhere in town, kept to themselves, a predilection unforgivable in Maycomb.)

morbid

suggesting the horror of death and decay
(Once the town was terrorized by a series of morbid nocturnal events)

stealthy

marked by quiet and caution and secrecy
(Any stealthy small crimes committed in Maycomb were his work.)

malevolent

wishing or appearing to wish evil to others
(Inside the house lived a malevolent phantom.)

vapid

lacking significance or liveliness or spirit or zest
(But by the end of August our repertoire was vapid from countless
reproductions, and it was then that Dill gave us the idea of making)

repertoire

the range of skills in a particular field or occupation
(But by the end of August, our repertoire was vapid from countless
reproductions, and it was then that Dill gave us the idea of making)

quaint

attractively old-fashioned
(Dill as a pocket Merlin, whose head teemed with eccentric plans, strange longings, and quaint fancies.)

eccentric

conspicuously or grossly unconventional or unusual
(Dill as a pocket Merlin, whose head teemed with eccentric plans,
strange longings, and quaint fancies.)

contentment

happiness with one's situation in life
(Thereafter the summer passed in routine contentment.)

tyrannical

characteristic of an absolute ruler or absolute rule
(She had been with us ever since Jem was born, and I had felt her tyrannical presence as long as I could remember.)

profound

situated at or extending to great depth
(an occasion that was probably the beginning of my father's profound distaste for the practice of criminal law.)

imprudent

not sensible, responsible, or wise
(were imprudent enough to do it in the presence of three witnesses)

condescend

behave in a patronizing manner
(Jem condescended to take me to school the first day, a job usually done by one's parents, but Atticus had said Jem would be delighted to show me where my room was.)

secede

withdraw from an organization or polity
(When Alabama seceded from the Union on January 11, 1861)

compel

force somebody to do something
(Now that I was compelled to think about it, reading was something that just came to me, as learning to fasten the seat of my union suit without looking around, or achieving two bows from a snarl of shoelaces.)

assurance

a binding commitment to do or give or refrain from something
(Miss Caroline and I had conferred twice already, and they were looking at me in the innocent assurance that familiarity breeds understanding.)

vexation

anger produced by some annoying irritation
(Entailment was only a part of Mr. Cunningham's vexations.)

mortification

strong feelings of embarrassment
(If I could have explained these things to Miss Caroline, I would have saved myself some inconvenience and Miss Caroline's subsequent mortification, but it was beyond my ability to explain things as well as Atticus, so I said, "You're shamin' him, Miss Caroline.)

sojourn

a temporary stay
(My sojourn in the corner was a short one. Saved by the bell, Miss Caroline watched the class file out for lunch.)

Amble

to walk leisurely
(They ambled across the square, shuffled in and out of the stores around it, took their time about everything.)

revelation

something previously unknown
(Dill had seen Dracula, a revelation that moved Jem to eye him with the beginning of respect.)

onslaught

an offensive against an enemy
(His fists were half cocked, as if expecting an onslaught from both of us.)

dispensation

the act of giving out in portions
(Jem's free dispensation of my pledge irked me, but precious noontime minutes were ticking away.)

irk

irritate or vex
(Jem's free dispensation of my pledge irked me, but precious noontime minutes were ticking away.)

cordially

in a politely friendly manner
("A hain't lives there," he said cordially, pointing to the Radley house.)

expound

add details, as to an account or idea
(Atticus was expounding upon farm problems when Walter interrupted to ask if there was any molasses in the house.)

erratic

liable to sudden unpredictable change
(She was furious, and when she was furious Calpurnia's grammar became erratic.)

tranquility

an untroubled state that is free from disturbances
(When in tranquility, her grammar was as good as anybody's in Maycomb.)

iniquity

absence of moral or spiritual values
(staying behind to advise Atticus of Calpurnia's iniquities was worth a solitary sprint past the Radley Place.)

persevere

be persistent, refuse to stop
(Apparently she had revived enough to persevere in her profession.)

contemptuous

expressing extreme scorn
(He gave a short contemptuous snort.)

truant

one who is absent from school without permission
(The truant lady gets 'em here 'cause she threatens 'em with the sheriff, but she's give up tryin' to hold 'em.)

contentious

showing an inclination to disagree
("Ain't got no mother," was the answer, "and their paw's right
contentious.")

diminutive

very small
(He was among the most diminutive of men, but when Burris Ewell turned toward him, Little Chuck's right hand went to his pocket)

leisurely

not hurried or forced
(The boy snorted and slouched leisurely to the door.)

mystify

be puzzling or bewildering to
(Miss Caroline smiled, blew her nose, said, "Thank you, darlings," dispersed us, opened a book and mystified the first grade with a long narrative about a toadfrog that lived in a hall.)

fraught

filled with or attended with
(If the remainder of the school year were as fraught with drama as the first day, perhaps it would be mildly entertaining)

fractious

easily irritated or annoyed
(She had always been too hard on me, she had at last seen the error of her fractious ways, she was sorry and too stubborn to say so.)

amiable

diffusing warmth and friendliness
(He waited in amiable silence, and I sought to reinforce my position: "You never went to school and you do all right, so I'll just stay home too.)

begrudge

be envious of or feel annoyance toward
(I don't know of any landowner around here who begrudges those children any game their father can hit.")

concession

the act of yielding
("No, an agreement reached by mutual concessions.)

concede

give over
("If you'll concede the necessity of going to school, we'll go
on reading every night just as we always have.)

disapprobation

an expression of strong disapproval
("I'm afraid our activities would be received with considerable
disapprobation by the more learned authorities.")

Auspicious

indicating favorable circumstances and good luck
(The remainder of my schooldays were no more auspicious than the first.)

Expend

use up or consume fully
(Unit, in which miles of construction paper and wax crayon were expended by the State of Alabama in its well-meaning but fruitless efforts to teach me Group Dynamics.)

tyranny

government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator
(Calpurnia's tyranny, unfairness, and meddling in my business had faded to gentle grumblings of general disapproval.)

unanimous

in complete agreement
(Mrs. Dubose lived two doors up the street from us; neighborhood opinion was unanimous that Mrs. Dubose was the meanest old woman who ever lived.

abominable

unequivocally detestable
(He had discarded the abominable blue shorts that were buttoned to his shirts and wore real short pants with a belt)

dreary

lacking in liveliness or charm or surprise
(We had strolled to the front yard, where Dill stood looking down the street at the dreary face of the Radley Place.)

Arbitrate

act between parties with a view to reconciling differences
(Jem arbitrated, awarded me first push with an extra time for Dill, and I folded myself inside the tire.)

melancholy

a constitutional tendency to be gloomy and depressed
(It was a melancholy little drama, woven from bits and scraps of gossip and neighborhood legend)

evasion

the act of physically escaping from something
(Jem's evasion told me our game was a secret, so I kept quiet.)

Chameleon

a person who changes their opinions or behavior according to the situation
(She was a widow, a chameleon lady who worked in her flower beds in an old straw hat and men's coveralls)

benign

kind in disposition or manner
(Until Jem and Dill excluded me from their plans, she was only another lady in the neighborhood, but a relatively benign presence.)

tacit

implied by or inferred from actions or statements
(Our tacit treaty with Miss Maudie was that we could play on her lawn)

Magisterial

having or showing great authority.
(but after her five o'clock bath she would appear on the porch and reign over the street in magisterial beauty.)

prolonged

relatively long in duration; tediously protracted
(I asked, after witnessing a prolonged campaign against a blade not three inches high.)

pestilence

any epidemic disease with a high death rate
(When it comes fall this dries up and the wind blows it all over Maycomb County! Miss Maudie's face likened such an occurrence unto an Old Testament pestilence.)

Morbid

suggesting the horror of death and decay
("What a morbid question.)

Notion

a general inclusive concept
("Where did you get such a notion?")

placidly

in a quiet and tranquil manner
(Jem said placidly, "We are going to give a note to Boo Radley.")

inquisitive

given to questioning
(If he wanted to stay inside his own house he had the
right to stay inside free from the attentions of inquisitive children,)

edification

to instruct and improve
("No," said Atticus, "putting his life's history on display for the
edification of the neighborhood.")

ensuing

following immediately and as a result of what went before
(Jem said Mr. Avery misfigured, Dill said he must drink a gallon a day, and the ensuing contest to determine relative distances)

prowess

a superior skill learned by study and practice
(Jem said Mr. Avery misfigured, Dill said he must drink a gallon a day, and the ensuing contest to determine relative distances and respective prowess only made me feel left out again, as I was untalented in this area.)

ramshackle

in poor or broken-down condition
(The back of the Radley house was less inviting than the front: a ramshackle porch ran the width of the house; there were two doors and two dark windows between the doors.)

obliged

having a moral duty to do something
(That we would be obliged to dodge the unseen from all directions was confirmed when Dill ahead of us spelled G-o-d in a whisper.)

malignant

dangerous to health
(Boo Radley's insane fingers picking the wire to pieces; the chinaberry trees were malignant, hovering, alive.)

bewilderment

confusion resulting from failure to understand
(Sometimes I did not understand him, but my periods of bewilderment were short-lived.)

pilgrimage

a journey to a sacred place
(Sometimes when we made a midnight pilgrimage to the bathroom we would find him reading.)

desolate

providing no shelter or sustenance
(The night-crawlers had retired, but ripe chinaberries drummed on the roof when the wind stirred, and the darkness was desolate with the barking of distant dogs.)

communion

the sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings, especially when the exchange is on a mental or spiritual level.
(“But we can’t have communion with you all-” Apparently deciding that it was easier to define primitive baptistry than closed communion, Miss Maudie said: “Foot-washers believe anything that’s pleasure is a sin.)

vigil

a purposeful surveillance to guard or observe
(Next day Jem repeated his vigil and was rewarded.)

perplexity

trouble or confusion resulting from complexity
(She must have seen my perplexity.)

Analogous

something to be compared to

(Had I ever harbored the mystical notions about mountains that seem to obsess lawyers and judges, Aunt Alexandra would have been __analogous__ to Mount Everest: throughout my early life, she was cold and there.)

inconspicuous

not very noticeable

(With these attributes, however, he would not remain as __inconspicuous__ as we wished him to: that year, the school buzzed with talk about him defending Tom Robinson, none of which was complimentary.)

vehemently

with intensity

(Atticus shook his head __vehemently__: "Don't just stand there, Heck!")

articulate

able to speak/expressive with words

(Jem became vaguely __articulate__: " 'd you see him, Scout? d you see him just standin' there?")

rudiments

a statement of fundamental facts or principles

(*"When he gave us our air-rifles Atticus wouldn't teach us to shoot. Uncle Jack instructed us in the* ***rudiments*** *thereof;...")*

rotogravure

printing by transferring an image from a photogravure plate to a cylinder in a rotary press.

("Behind the rough oak pulpit a faded pink silk banner proclaimed God Is Love, the church’s only decoration except a rotogravure print of Hunt’s The Light of the World.")

ecclesiastical

associated with a church

(There was no sign of piano, organ, hymn-books, church programs— the familiar __ecclesiastical__ impedimenta we saw every Sunday.)

tactful

considerate of others' feelings

(I realized that this was not a __tactful__ question.)

formidable

impressive or intimidating

(Why they objected to Miss Maudie's yard was a mystery, heightened in my mind because for someone who spent all the daylight hours outdoors, Miss Maudie's command of Scripture was __formidable__.)

prerogative

right or privilege

(She was never bored, and given the slightest chance she would exercise her royal __prerogative__: she would arrange, advise, caution, and warn.)