The Witch of Blackbird Pond: Chapters 10–15

by Elizabeth George Speare
After emigrating from Barbados to Connecticut Colony, sixteen-year-old Katherine (Kit) Tyler finds herself at odds with her Puritan neighbors, which turns dangerous when she befriends a Quaker woman accused of being a witch.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–5, Chapters 6–9, Chapters 10–15, Chapters 16–21
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. impassive
    having or revealing little emotion or sensibility
    She could never be sure what thoughts were hidden behind that impassive face, but she had learned to recognize the sudden stiffening of his jaw muscles that meant she had said something shocking.
  2. disclosure
    the act of making something evident
    Not even her father could have failed to guess that Judith was in love. She had never spoken another word, even to Mercy or Kit, after that first surprising disclosure.
  3. toady
    a person who tries to please someone to gain an advantage
    Matthew Wood, after baiting John with fierce questions that threw the young student into confusion, had scornfully labeled him a “young toady with no mind of his own.”
  4. unorthodox
    breaking with tradition or typical norms
    There were no more stories, no games, even no small unorthodox poems.
  5. stint
    an individual's prescribed share of work
    Finally, on one hot afternoon, Kit and Judith finished their stint of onion rows a little early, and as they trudged back along the dusty path, Kit looked across the fields to the roof of the lopsided house by Blackbird Pond and knew that she could not pass by one more time.
  6. trinket
    a small cheap ornament, knickknack, or piece of jewelry
    A keg of fine Barbados molasses. So it was not just coral trinkets and flower bulbs that this seafaring friend of Hannah’s brought from afar!
  7. amiss
    in an improper or mistaken manner
    He seemed not to have noticed anything amiss, but very casually he reached out his hand and covered Hannah’s worn fingers with his own.
  8. pious
    having or showing or expressing reverence for a deity
    Here in New England books contained only a dreary collection of sermons, or at most some pious religious poetry.
  9. docile
    willing to be taught or led or supervised or directed
    Sighing, Kit glanced over the docilely bent heads of her charges toward the open doorway, and as she did so a sudden motion caught her attention.
  10. filigree
    delicate and intricate ornamentation
    It was backed by silver filigree, underlaid with red satin, and it had a small silver handle.
  11. blanch
    turn pale, as if in fear
    Terror blanched the child’s face.
  12. misgiving
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
    Watching Prudence scurry off toward home, Kit had a moment’s misgiving. As always, she had acted on impulse, never stopping to weigh the consequences.
  13. qualm
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
    Wasn’t that worth a little risk? Kit shook off her qualms and set her own face towards home and another dull evening.
  14. adroit
    quick or skillful or adept in action or thought
    Her purpose was only too apparent as she made adroit attempts to draw John Holbrook into the discussion.
  15. discern
    perceive, recognize, or detect
    What William thought, it was impossible to discern.
  16. tract
    a brief treatise on a subject of interest
    Kit often wished that John would read something besides the religious tracts he so admired, but even for her impatient spirits the beauty of his voice wove a magic spell.
  17. tallow
    a hard substance used for making soap and candles
    Back and forth the three women walked, carrying the candle rods, dipping the dangling wicks into the tallow, hanging them back to cool, and dipping them again, till the wax fattened slowly into the hard slow-burning candles that would fill the house with fragrance all through the coming months.
  18. revoke
    cancel officially
    “If the King respects our rights and keeps his word to us, then he will retain our loyalty. But if he revokes the laws he has made and tacks and comes about till the ship is on her beam ends, then finally we will be forced to cut the hawser.”
  19. consternation
    sudden shock or dismay that causes confusion
    She expected that when they reached South Road Nat would turn back, but to her consternation he strode along beside her, and even when she hesitated at Broad Street he did not take the hint.
  20. scanty
    lacking in extent or quantity
    The family allowed Nat scanty nods of acknowledgment, but William did not alter a muscle of his tight-clenched jaw.
  21. heretic
    a person whose religious beliefs conflict with church dogma
    “She is a heretic, and she refuses to attend Meeting. She has no claim on your charity.”
  22. morosely
    in a sullen, moody manner
    “If she wants help, let her repent her sin. You are never to go to that place again, Katherine. I forbid it.”
    Morosely Kit followed the family into the house.
  23. blithely
    in a joyous, carefree, or unconcerned manner
    "I’ll find one, never you fear,” she said blithely. "I have my own methods.”
  24. intimacy
    close or warm friendship
    In a rare mood of intimacy Judith linked arms with Kit as they set out along High Street to gather the last of the corn in the meadow.
  25. wryly
    in a humorously sarcastic or mocking manner
    Why did Judith have to remind her? Kit thought wryly.
  26. propitious
    presenting favorable circumstances
    Ever since the day of William’s house-raising, when the neighbors had gathered together and, working from dawn to sunset, had raised a fine imposing frame and nailed the sturdy new clapboards in place, Kit had known that William was only waiting a propitious time to speak.
  27. drudgery
    hard, monotonous, routine work
    As William’s wife she could come and go as she pleased. There would be no more endless drudgery, and she could snap her fingers at a woman like Goodwife Cruff.
  28. foreboding
    a feeling of evil to come
    Then why did Judith’s teasing always raise this cold little lump of foreboding?
  29. impetuously
    in an impulsive or hasty way; without taking precautions
    "Oh, Father!” she cried impetuously. "He doesn’t need to miss the husking, does he? You know what he wants to ask! Say yes, now, so we can go to the party together!”
  30. brazen
    not held back by conventional ideas of behavior
    “If you will come courting such a headstrong, brazen girl,” he said indulgently, “then I can only give you both my blessing. Perhaps you can teach her some meekness.”
  31. stifled
    held in check or kept back with difficulty
    She ached with her own stifled protests.
  32. wane
    decrease in phase
    The intent look in his eyes, even in the waning light, warned her of what was coming.
  33. unwonted
    out of the ordinary
    "Tomorrow then. Let me speak to your uncle. You won’t need to help me out,” he added with unwonted humor. “I am quite capable of speaking for myself.”
  34. irrelevant
    having no bearing on or connection with the subject at issue
    This silk dress is not warm enough for New England, she thought irrelevantly.
  35. buoyancy
    irrepressible liveliness and good spirit
    No one had ever told her about autumn in New England. The excitement of it beat in her blood. Every morning she woke with a new confidence and buoyancy she could not explain.
  36. brusquely
    in a blunt direct manner
    Her husband brusquely waved away her comfort.
  37. cavalier
    a gallant or courtly gentleman
    He was a true cavalier, with his fine embroidered coat, his commanding air, and the wealth of dark curls that flowed over his velvet collar. How elegantly he sat the saddle of his borrowed horse. Why, he was a gentleman, an officer of the King's Dragoons, a knight!
  38. resignation
    acceptance of an unpleasant but inevitable situation
    Resignation and despair settled over the household that evening, as though, Kit thought, it were the eve of that Doomsday that the minister warned of in Sabbath Meeting.
  39. raucous
    disturbing the public peace; loud and rough
    As Kit lay wide awake in the blackness, some distant shouts, a snatch of raucous, unrestrained singing such as she had never heard before in Wethersfield, sent her mind back to the days of her childhood.
  40. insubordination
    defiance of authority
    She knew she had overheard an account of serious insubordination to the King, yet in her heart she was glad that her uncle had known this small victory.
Created on Fri Aug 19 14:53:12 EDT 2016 (updated Sat Jun 17 13:26:06 EDT 2023)

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