2024 Gatsby Vocab - Entire Book

Contains the vocab words from chapters 1-5 and from chapters 6-9

feign

to fake or pretend something that you don’t feel

wistful

feeling nostalgic longing for the past

extemporaneous

made up on the spot; not pre-planned or rehearsed

haughty

stuck up, arrogant

incredulous

completely shocked, in disbelief

deplorable

shockingly bad, wrong and immoral behavior

feign

When my nephew talks about Pokemon, I ____ interest even though I couldn’t care less.

wistful

When it snows, I feel _____ for the days when my friends and I would meet at the sledding hill and play all day.

extemporize

I didn’t have a rain jacket, so I had to ____ one out of plastic bags when I got caught in a downpour.

haughteur

I was expecting _____ and rudeness from Lady Bixbury due to her rank and title, but she was surprisingly down-to-earth.

incredulity

I had never seen my sister run more than a mile without getting winded, so I could not hide my ____ when she said that she was joining the Cross Country team.

deplorably

The middle schoolers behaved _____ on the field trip, so our school was banned from visiting the Science Museum again.

mutual

agreed upon or shared by multiple people

mutual

The break-up was ______: neither Sam nor Andi dumped the other one; they just decided they were better as friends.

conflate

to assume two things are the same, when in reality, they are not

conflates

The toddler I babysit frequently ______ stories she’s heard before, and it takes a while before I figure out that the story of the cat who saves the forest is really The Cat and the Hat AND The Lorax.

innate

existing from birth; in-born

innately

Some people are more ________ attuned to their natural environment and can pick up on bird songs or signs of weather to come. Some of us are more oblivious and never notice these things.

entailed

to be included within something; involved

entails/entailed

My sister wanted to be a gymnast, but she was not prepared for all the stretching and physical endurance that the sport ________.

conspicuous

obvious, evident

inconspicuous

not noticeable

inconspicuous

I left to use the bathroom during a noisy part of the play because I wanted the disruption to be as ______ as possible.

libel

lies published by the press

libelous

The political candidate sued our local newspaper, claiming that the reporter had published ______ accusations that cost him the election.

affectation

a behavior or manerism that is unnatural and fake - adopted to impress others

unaffected

this word describes someone who is genuine and doesn’t act phony at all

affectation

She tried to use the word “indubitably” so much that it seemed like a(n) ______ to make her sound smarter.

jaunty

fashionable, stylish, confident

jaunty

Felix stood out among the other middle schoolers because his _______ outfits were nothing like the sweatpants and hoodies that most other students wore.

wan

pale and sick-looking

wan

Before she said anything, I could tell by my friend’s ____ appearance that she was not feeling well.

contingency

a back-up plan in case something goes wrong

contingent

dependent on something else happening (like you don’t get to go out with your friends unless your chores are done)

unprecedented

something that’s never happened before

precedent

a previous action/decision that guides future decisions

incarnation

in the flesh; a physical embodiment of an idea

affront

(verb) to offend someone in a disrespectful way OR (noun) something disrespectful or offensive

inexplicable

something that can’t be explained or understood

vicariously

experiencing something second-hand through someone else

portentous

a sign that something bad will happen

discern

to be able to look at something and understand what it means

indiscernable

unclear and impossible to see or understand

unscrupulous

a person who has no morals or ethics; they will lie, cheat, or steal to get ahead

scruples

a sense of right and wrong that warns you when something doesn’t seem right

precedent

My parents set the ____ with my older sister that we could get our ears pierced when we turned 12, so my sister was upset when I got mine pierced at 10. She said that it wasn’t fair.

incarnate

My dog is goofiness ____; he makes everyone laugh with his silly antics.

affront

I did not mean it as a(n) ____ when I came late to class; I’m so sorry that you felt disrespected.

inexplicably

My computer ____ turned off right in the middle of the quiz; I swear this thing is possessed or something.

vicariously

It’s not healthy for a parent to try to live _____ through their kids; children should be able to choose what activities bring them joy.

discern

Because the sky was cloudy, I could not ____ which direction was north.

scruples

My ____ about joining the group were justified when it came out later that it was a cult!

portentous

I had a(n) _____ feeling as I walked up to the large, creepy building.

grotesque

warped, misshapen, distorted

grotesque

Even though the child imagined that he saw ________ creatures hovering in his closet, when the light was on, he could see that there were only clothes and some boxes of toys.