The Free Verse Society: Chapters 27–38

by Delali Adjoa
A teenaged girl trying to leave her past behind and a teenaged boy trying to hide his present circumstances are drawn together by a poetry club.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–7, Chapters 8–14, Chapters 15–26, Chapters 27–38, Chapters 39–50
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. rove
    (of the eyes) move over something to appraise
    His eyes rove the room, avoiding my gaze.
  2. je ne sais quoi
    something indescribable
    Here it’s the gentle waft of alcohol souring in the carpet, the overpowering notes of cigarette smoke, the je-ne-sais-quoi of spoiled food you can’t identify.
  3. poised
    marked by balance or equilibrium and readiness for action
    He turns around, his hand still poised over the check.
  4. perfunctory
    as a formality only
    He blinks a few times and gives a perfunctory, closed-mouth smile before he walks out the door.
  5. elusion
    the act of avoiding capture (especially by cunning)
    I become a master of elusion and soon, he stops calling.
  6. ward
    watch over or shield from danger or harm; protect
    “Oh, yeah. We’re warding off evil with wings and lots of skin.”
  7. inhibition
    the quality of being held back
    By the time “Monster Mash” is playing, I’ve lost all inhibition.
  8. mirth
    great merriment
    But the sight of Miguel, red mouth agape, eyes smudged with liner and squeezed shut in pure mirth, makes me glance at the quiver full of arrows on William’s back.
  9. materialize
    come into being; become reality
    Valeria materializes from around the corner, and I almost laugh at her giant onesie and bonnet and bib.
  10. supine
    lying face upward
    I watch him from my supine position on the sofa, where I’m balancing my book of short stories on my chest.
  11. emanate
    proceed or issue forth, as from a source
    The pain is like oxygen feeding my anger, and I run down the steps and onto the warmth of concrete, needing to be closer, wanting him to feel the fire emanating off my skin.
  12. penchant
    a strong liking or preference
    “It’s true. And a certain bully with a penchant for dramatic readings,” he says, pronouncing penchant the French way, “ended up in the back of a squad car.”
  13. pulverize
    destroy completely
    “I was trying to leave and she followed me to the car. That’s when Derek showed up. He looked so embarrassed, I didn’t think he’d say anything. We’d just pretend it never happened. But no. Not Derek. He wanted to pulverize me.”
  14. hijack
    seize control of
    “So, what do you guys think? I don’t want to hijack the event—”
    “I think it’s brilliant!”
  15. elephant in the room
    an obvious, important issue that no one wants to address
    “Can we also address the elephant in the room? Or, not in the room, rather? Derek. Will he be there?”
Created on Mon Oct 05 04:28:36 EDT 2026 (updated Tue Oct 06 12:19:10 EDT 2026)

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