"The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak, Part Four

Liesel Meminger is a foster child living in Nazi Germany in 1939. Surrounded by violence, hardship, and war, Liesel is watched over by Death, who narrates her story.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Part Two, Part Three–Part Four, Part Five, Part Six, Part Seven, Part Eight, Part Nine, Part Ten–Epilogue
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. affront
    a deliberately offensive act
    He ran in the middle, climbed in the middle, and he could shoot straight enough so as not to affront his superiors.
  2. malignant
    dangerous to health
    Cold sweat—that malignant little friend—outstaying its welcome in the armpits and trousers.
  3. apex
    the highest point of something
    Slapped down with oil, his hair gleamed, though a small piece was always upright and vigilant at the apex of his head.
  4. immaculate
    without error or flaw
    Erik even said, “Immaculate handwriting, sir, immaculate.”
  5. gangly
    tall, thin, and awkward
    The gangly young soldier made his way forward and asked what his duty might be.
  6. awry
    away from the correct or expected course
    When Hitler rose to power in 1933, though, the painting business fell slightly awry.
  7. antagonize
    provoke the hostility of
    He couldn’t join a party that antagonized people in such a way.
  8. girth
    the distance around something, especially a person's body
    At first, the man looked down, past his girth, to the ground, but when his eyes returned to the painter, the question clearly made him uncomfortable.
  9. morose
    showing a brooding ill humor
    The movement inside tapered from hurried to morose, then stopped altogether.
  10. innocuous
    lacking intent or capacity to injure
    Innocuously, a man walked past.
  11. ostracism
    the act of excluding someone from society by general consent
    It was the accordion that most likely spared him from total ostracism.
  12. ludicrous
    inviting ridicule
    The very idea of it was ludicrous, but he accepted it nonetheless.
  13. capitulate
    surrender under agreed conditions
    As is often the case, the family surrounded the bed and watched him capitulate.
  14. gallantry
    the qualities of a hero or heroine
    Personally, I quite like that. Such stupid gallantry.
  15. archetypal
    of an original pattern on which other things are modeled
    A group of die-hard friends and enemies would gather down at a small reserve on Steber Street, and they would fight in the dying light. Archetypal Germans, the odd Jew, the boys from the east.
  16. proffer
    present for acceptance or rejection
    Kugler proffered a warning.
  17. emulate
    strive to equal or match, especially by imitating
    Walter was always seeking revenge for that first victory Max took from him, and Max was looking to emulate his moment of glory.
  18. tirade
    a speech of violent denunciation
    Curiosity got the better of her then, as she imagined a tirade thrown down from the wrath of Rosa.
  19. wrath
    intense anger
    Curiosity got the better of her then, as she imagined a tirade thrown down from the wrath of Rosa.
  20. convulse
    contract involuntarily, as in a spasm
    His back convulsed and his arms were well spread.
  21. bemused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    It was a kind of bemused, inaugural silence.
  22. inaugural
    serving to set in motion
    It was a kind of bemused, inaugural silence.
  23. callous
    emotionally hardened
    “For starters,” he said, “I will take each and everyone of your books— and I will burn them.” It was callous. “I’ll throw them in the stove or the fireplace.”
  24. mortify
    cause to feel shame
    The very idea of it mortified him.
  25. tentatively
    in a hesitant manner
    She walked tentatively down the steps, knowing that no words were required.
  26. beleaguer
    surround so as to force to give up
    As days turned into weeks, there was now, if nothing else, a beleaguered acceptance of what had transpired—all the result of war, a promise keeper, and one piano accordion.
  27. rendition
    the act of expressing something in an artistic performance
    If Rudy wasn’t talking about Deutscher’s intense ways, he was playing his usual broken record, providing renditions and re-creations of the last goal he scored in the Himmel Street soccer stadium.
  28. emaciated
    very thin, especially from disease or hunger or cold
    Slowly then, the drop sheets were dragged aside and the emaciated body and face of Max Vandenburg appeared.
  29. propaganda
    information that is spread to promote some cause
    A blatant lie—he had nothing to give, except maybe Mein Kampf, and there was no way he’d give such propaganda to a young German girl.
  30. caustic
    harsh or corrosive in tone
    You can do all manner of underhanded nice things when you have a caustic reputation.
Created on Tue Feb 26 19:13:20 EST 2013 (updated Wed Jun 25 11:31:58 EDT 2025)

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