Salt to the Sea: Chapter 1 (Joana)–Chapter 33 (Emilia)

by Ruta Sepetys
Through the alternating perspectives of four fictional teens, best-selling author Ruta Sepetys dramatizes the experiences of refugees searching for a safe haven during World War II. Learn key vocabulary from this engrossing historical novel based on a true story.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapter 1 (Joana)–Chapter 33 (Emilia), Chapter 34 (Joana)–Chapter 64 (Alfred), Chapter 65 (Joana)–Chapter 97 (Florian), Chapter 98 (Joana)–Chapter 131 (Emilia), Chapter 132 (Florian)–Author's Note
40 words 1444 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. petulant
    easily irritated or annoyed
    My conscience mocked me, picking fights like a petulant child.
    It's all your fault, the voice whispered.
  2. evacuation
    the act of leaving a dangerous place in an orderly fashion
    Evacuation orders hadn’t been issued and anyone fleeing East Prussia was branded a deserter.
  3. grateful
    feeling or showing thankfulness
    Today I saved a young woman from falling into the sea. It was nothing really, but she was so grateful she clung to me, not wanting to let go.
  4. valor
    courage when facing danger
    At this very moment, I am guarding dangerous explosives. I am serving Germany well. Only seventeen, yet carrying more valor than those twice my years.
  5. scavenge
    collect discarded or refused material
    I scavenged through the Russian’s frozen pockets and took cigarettes, a flask, a large sausage wrapped in paper, his gun, and ammunition.
  6. splatter
    dash a liquid upon or against
    I lowered my arm and saw my sleeve, splattered with Russian blood.
  7. trudge
    walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud
    We trudged farther down the narrow road.
  8. inhibit
    limit, block, or decrease the action or function of
    “Her shoes killed her. I keep telling them, but they don’t listen. Poorly made shoes will torture your feet, inhibit your progress. Then you will stop.”
  9. morale
    a state of individual psychological well-being
    We had been walking for days and both strength and morale waned.
  10. frostbite
    damage to bodily tissue caused by extreme cold
    I moved from body to body, treating blisters, wounds, frostbite.
  11. atrocity
    an act of shocking cruelty
    Germany had invaded Russia in 1941. For the past four years, the two countries had committed unspeakable atrocities, not only against each other, but against innocent civilians in their path.
  12. dwindle
    become smaller or lose substance
    As the war raged and the staff dwindled, I moved from stocking supplies to assisting him in surgery.
  13. haggard
    showing the wearing effects of overwork or care or suffering
    They were both haggard. The blond girl’s face was red with exertion. The young man’s face was also flushed. He had a fever.
  14. wince
    draw back, as with fear or pain
    The young woman winced at the mention of the Russian.
  15. appalling
    causing shock, dismay, or horror
    Some in our group called her Sorry Eva because she often said appalling things, but inserted the word sorry before or after, as if to soften the sting.
  16. blanch
    turn pale, as if in fear
    “Cornered by a Russian.”
    Eva’s face blanched.
  17. congeal
    solidify, thicken, or come together
    She peeled my sticky shirt from the mass of congealed blood.
  18. buffer
    protect from impact
    Home in Heidelberg feels so very far away. Buffered by distance, I feel compelled to share a secret.
  19. scant
    less than the correct or legal or full amount
    But time for reflection is scant. Relaxation is nonexistent for a brave man of the Kriegsmarine.
  20. traverse
    journey across or pass over
    I will finally be at sea, traversing the waterways into the oceans, like the adventurers you so love to read about in your precious novels.
  21. deny
    refuse to let have
    Some have carried all of their earthly belongings with them, piled high upon horse-drawn carts and sleds. Expensive rugs, clocks, china, chairs, they have brought it all. Certainly there won't be space enough and some items will be denied.
  22. scalpel
    a thin straight surgical knife
    I lit a match to sterilize the scalpel and began talking. The doctor in Insterburg taught me that talking to patients often calmed them.
  23. repatriate
    admit back into the country
    “When Stalin occupied Lithuania, my family fled,” I said. “My mother had German heritage, so Hitler allowed us to repatriate and come to Germany.
  24. tolerance
    the capacity of an organism to bear unfavorable conditions
    His tolerance for pain exceeded anything I had seen.
  25. shrapnel
    shell containing lead pellets that explodes in flight
    The final piece of shrapnel was lodged deep.
  26. gangrene
    the localized death of living cells
    I was concerned about gangrene but didn’t mention it.
  27. fruition
    the attainment or fulfillment of a plan or objective
    He said that my talents would provide Germany with a great service, one that would bring the Führer's dream of a national art museum in his hometown of Linz to fruition.
  28. yearning
    prolonged unfulfilled desire or need
    I couldn’t remember not being fearful and hungry, when my stomach didn’t feel pulled with yearning.
  29. archival
    of a depository containing historical records and documents
    My recitations seemed to bother my fellow sailors, but could I really blame them for being jealous of my archival facilities?
  30. fraught
    filled with or attended with
    Conversations were fraught with nerves and fear.
  31. eavesdrop
    listen without the speaker's knowledge
    “Don’t just stand there eavesdropping, Frick, move! You want to be blown up by a Russian plane?”
  32. lithe
    moving and bending with ease
    “The girl was fearful,” said Ingrid. “Her motions were taut and full of panic. Her breathing was pinched, almost panting. The boy was the opposite. His movement was smooth and lithe, like he was accustomed to moving silently.”
  33. marauder
    someone who attacks in search of loot
    Rather than fall into the brutal hands of Russian marauders, some people defied the Reich and left without orders, like us.
  34. plod
    walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud
    We plodded down the narrow band, the trees soldiering up around us, dark and tall.
  35. vile
    morally reprehensible
    And now the vile Russians were closing in.
  36. convoy
    a collection of merchant ships with an escort of warships
    The German High Command had quickly organized a massive water evacuation. They called it Operation Hannibal, after one of the greatest military strategists in history. An enormous convoy of ships would be dispatched to the West.
  37. smolder
    burn slowly and without a flame
    Our desks and chairs were stacked in the back of an open truck, our textbooks smoldering in a heap.
  38. serf
    (Middle Ages) a person who is bound to the land and owned by the feudal lord
    The Nazis said the people of Poland would become serfs to the Germans.
  39. writhing
    moving in a twisting or snake-like or wormlike fashion
    Then I saw the soldier between us, writhing on the ground, a bullet torn through the shoulder of his coat.
  40. ravaged
    having been robbed and destroyed by force and violence
    I set down my bag and walked through the house, admiring the ravaged ghostly splendor of each room in its panicked disarray.
Created on Wed Jun 07 20:22:49 EDT 2017 (updated Tue Apr 09 14:22:25 EDT 2019)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.