The Murder at the Vicarage: Chapters 13–18

by Agatha Christie
In this classic mystery novel, the peaceful English village of St. Mary Mead is upset by the murder of a local magistrate.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–12, Chapters 13–18, Chapters 19–24, Chapters 25–32
15 words 16 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. semblance
    the outward or apparent appearance or form of something
    Mrs. Price Ridley looked at me coldly, but produced the semblance of a gracious smile for the colonel.
  2. ominous
    presaging ill fortune
    And on that she took her departure, shaking her head with a kind of ominous melancholy.
  3. crux
    the most important point
    The crux of the matter seemed to be that The Poor did not want Miss Hartnell in their houses.
  4. complicity
    guilt as a confederate in a crime or offense
    I believed him, and yet it occurred to me to wonder why, since, as he said, he liked them both, their freedom from complicity seemed to have had the result of plunging him in gloom.
  5. inveterate
    habitual
    He is an inveterate poacher—one of those cheerful ne'er-do-wells that are to be found in any parish.
  6. inquest
    an investigation into the cause of an unexpected death
    "You'd be required to give evidence at the inquest."
  7. surreptitious
    marked by quiet and caution and secrecy
    The inspector touched his forehead in a surreptitious manner.
  8. zealous
    marked by active interest and enthusiasm
    And I haven't any too much confidence in Slack — he's a zealous fellow but zeal can't really take the place of brains.
  9. crestfallen
    brought low in spirit
    Slightly crestfallen, we explained.
  10. tacitly
    by unexpressed agreement
    It was tacitly assumed that the time of death was 6.22.
  11. doddering
    mentally or physically infirm with age
    There was only one other witness, a somewhat doddering old woman.
  12. badinage
    frivolous banter
    “Were you present also?” I asked Dr. Stone, in an effort to escape from this playful badinage.
  13. terse
    brief and to the point
    Gladys Cram brought him back to earth with a terse sentence.
  14. regale
    occupy in an agreeable, entertaining or pleasant fashion
    I suspect that they were being regaled at the expense of the Press.
  15. detrimental
    causing harm or injury
    He prides himself on his poise and general air of detachment, and there is no doubt that vulgar contact is detrimental to poise of any kind.
Created on Tue Mar 03 08:39:55 EST 2026 (updated Fri Mar 06 12:09:47 EST 2026)

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