Huck Finn Vocab 1

intermittent

coming and going at intervals; not consistent

innocuous

producing no injury; not likely to give offense or to arouse strong feelings or hostility

inflection

change in pitch or loudness of the voice; the change of form that words undergo to mark such distinctions as case, gender, number, tense, person, mood, or voice

stratum

a socioeconomic level of society comprising persons of the same or similar status especially with regard to education or culture; one of a series of layers, levels, or gradations in an ordered system

victuals

supplies of food usable by people

ransom

to free from captivity or punishment by paying a price

skiff

any of various small boats, especially a flat-bottomed rowboat

brash

heedless of consequences; audacious

rapscallion

rascal, ne'er-do-well

aversion

a feeling of repugnance towards something, with a desire to avoid or turn from it

cynicism

the belief that human conduct is motivated wholly by self-interest

determinism

a theory or doctrine that acts of the will, occurrences in nature, or social or psychological phenomena are causally determined by preceding events or natural laws

dialect

a regional variety of language distinguished by features of vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation from other regional varieties; OR a variety of language whose identity is fixed by a factor other than geography, like social class

parable

example; specifically: a usually short fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or a religious principle

outlandish

strikingly out of the ordinary; bizarre

ornery

having an irritable disposition; cantankerous

temperance

moderation in or abstinence from the use of alcoholic beverages

lynch

to put to death (as by hanging) by mob action without legal sanction

providence

divine guidance or care (often capitalized)

contrive

devise, plan; to form or create in an artistic or ingenious manner