Moon Over Manifest: List 4

by Clare Vanderpool
During the Great Depression, Abilene Tucker tries to solve a mystery in her father's hometown of Manifest, Kansas, while also learning about Manifest's fascinating past.

This list covers "Hattie Mae’s News Auxiliary, July 21, 1918"–"Miss Sadie’s Divining Parlor, July 15, 1936," or pages 197-250 in the 2010 Yearling edition.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: List 1,List 2,List 3,List 4,List 5
35 words 293 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. subterfuge
    something intended to misrepresent the nature of an activity
    How's the spy hunt going? Uncovered any subterfuge?
  2. romp
    play boisterously
    “I bet Charlotte Hamilton is romping in some cool beach water down in South Carolina.”
  3. apprise
    inform somebody of something
    I’d been keeping Lettie and Ruthanne apprised of the latest goings-on in Miss Sadie’s stories, and our conversation generally revolved around Manifest in its earlier and more exciting times.
  4. humdrum
    the quality of wearisome constancy and lack of variety
    I think it helped distract us from the dry, humdrum, and heat of the here and now.
  5. consternation
    sudden shock or dismay that causes confusion
    Ruthanne glared at her and I couldn’t help giving her a look of half pity, half consternation.
  6. jowl
    the jaw in vertebrates that is hinged to open the mouth
    I made a beeline for a porch railing and jumped just in time to keep my pant leg away from his snapping jowls.
  7. stony
    showing unfeeling resistance to tender feelings
    I noticed the faded porch with its ornate woodwork and realized I was at the worn-out gingerbread house that belonged to the stony lady who always sat on the porch.
  8. artillery
    large but transportable armament
    She peered around the corner of the building like she was waiting for some incoming artillery.
  9. stationery
    paper cut to an appropriate size for writing letters
    Finally, he removed a key from his pocket, unlocked the top drawer of his desk, and took out a single sheet of yellow stationery and a matching envelope.
  10. staccato
    (music) separating the notes
    She could work a telegraph machine like nobody’s business. She said that over time, she could tell a woman operator from a man, as each operator developed a style, or a voice, so to speak. The operator in Decatur was a woman who displayed a precise staccato touch.
  11. telltale
    disclosing unintentionally
    Once the telltale signs of sickness had been exhibited, it didn’t take long for Lester Burton, Arthur Devlin, and their wives and associates to start feeling a bit puny.
  12. quarantine
    enforced isolation of patients suffering contagious disease
    The county medical examiner was called in, and within thirty minutes he declared that until the influenza ran its course, the entire town of Manifest would be under official quarantine.
  13. pallor
    an unnatural lack of color in the skin
    Then Mrs. Cybulskis stepped onto her porch, washing from her face the powder that had given her a deathly pallor.
  14. ruse
    a deceptive maneuver, especially to avoid capture
    It was as if a miracle had happened and all were healed, but the real miracle was that Burton and Devlin had fallen for their ruse.
  15. sentry
    a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
    Word spread quickly, and soon Stucky Cybulskis, the McIntyre boys—Danny, Michael, Patrick, and Sean—the Santoni brothers, and even nine-year-old Rosa Santoni, who was as pretty as pie but as rough and tumble as the big boys, all climbed trees or perched themselves on rooftops, appointing themselves sentries of Manifest.
  16. sentinel
    a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
    While the trees were lined with young sentinels keeping watch, the adults would be busy making the one thing that had brought in any money of late: the combined concoction of Shady’s hooch and Velma T.’s elixir.
  17. cobbler
    a person who makes or repairs shoes
    “In Poland,” Mrs. Cybulskis continued, “I have no shoes, so my neighbor, he is a cobbler, he makes me a new pair. Beautiful shoes with fancy heels. Never had I walked in heels. The inspectors detain me, because they think I have a problem with balance and maybe am sick.”
  18. ferment
    cause to undergo the breakdown of sugar into alcohol
    The first batches of mash fermented day after day, with any number of men standing by, like children in Mama Santoni’s kitchen.
  19. palatable
    acceptable to the taste or mind
    “This is what is called the base mixture,” Velma T. answered, “which you would know if you ever showed up to my chemistry class. This syrup combined with Manifest springwater in an exact four-to-one ratio makes up a palatable and restorative elixir.”
  20. restorative
    promoting good health or recuperation
    “This is what is called the base mixture,” Velma T. answered, “which you would know if you ever showed up to my chemistry class. This syrup combined with Manifest springwater in an exact four-to-one ratio makes up a palatable and restorative elixir.”
  21. depravity
    moral perversion; impairment of virtue and moral principles
    My husband, the late county appraiser, would be rolling over in his grave at this exercise in depravity.
  22. meticulously
    in a manner marked by extreme care of details
    “They are meticulously prepared remedies that deserve a little respect.”
  23. serendipity
    good luck in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries
    “Still, I suppose serendipity is a force to be reckoned with,” Velma T. said with a sigh.
  24. staunch
    firm and dependable especially in loyalty
    “Surely you’re not suggesting using the baptistry,” said Mrs. Larkin, a staunch Baptist and lifelong member of the First Baptist Church.
  25. stalwart
    possessing or displaying courage
    I saw hundreds of young stalwart men in uniform coming into the wards of the hospital. Every bed was full, yet others crowded in.
  26. galvanize
    cover with zinc
    With an unexpected shove from below, I ended up tumbling into the storage room, overturning a galvanized bucket with a god-awful clamor.
  27. shenanigan
    reckless or malicious behavior that causes annoyance
    My brothers say he can sniff out mischief and shenanigans before they even happen.
  28. slate
    a writing tablet made of a thin layer of rock
    I lifted the desktop and laid it back on its hinges to reveal the space where each student would store his or her books and slate or tablet of paper.
  29. lackadaisical
    lacking spirit or liveliness
    I could hear the sound of the janitor’s lackadaisical scrubbing against the wooden floor.
  30. trellis
    latticework used to support climbing plants
    Ruthanne shoved me behind a rose trellis that didn’t provide much coverage, as there were no blooms to boast of.
  31. misshapen
    so badly formed or distorted as to be ugly
    With the curlers rolled up tight, her face seemed strangely misshapen, and I wanted to pull away, but she held me with her eyes.
  32. homely
    lacking in physical beauty or proportion
    Tall and skinny, a little on the homely side, but smarter than any woman I’d ever known.
  33. smidgen
    a tiny or scarcely detectable amount
    I was all ready to help parcel out the smidgeon of food when, lo and behold, Hattie Mae uncovered a huge angel food cake.
    The text uses the less common spelling, smidgeon.
  34. deference
    courteous regard for people's feelings
    “Oh, now, that’s where I’ll have to disagree. My dear friend, Mrs. DeVore, God rest her”—she nodded in deference to Ivan—“made the most delicious French cookies. Now, what were they called, Ivan? Those buttery cookies your mother made?”
  35. rankle
    make resentful or angry
    But for some reason, these stories all made me sad and more than a little rankled. It rankled me that everyone in this town had a story to tell.
Created on Fri May 18 14:31:16 EDT 2018 (updated Wed May 23 08:55:53 EDT 2018)

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