To Kill a Mockingbird: Chapters 11–15

by Harper Lee
In this classic coming-of-age story, Scout Finch recounts her childhood in Maycomb, Alabama. When Scout's father is appointed to defend a black man in a high-profile trial, racial tensions in the small town come to a head.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–3, Chapters 4–10, Chapters 11–15, Chapters 16–19, Chapters 20–31

Here are links to our lists for Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. passe
    out of fashion
    When we were small, Jem and I confined our activities to the southern neighborhood, but when I was well into the second grade at school and tormenting Boo Radley became passe, the business section of Maycomb drew us frequently up the street past the real property of Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose.
  2. philippic
    a speech of violent denunciation
    I pulled at his sleeve, and we were followed up the sidewalk by a philippic on our family's moral degeneration, the major premise of which was that half the Finches were in the asylum anyway, but if our mother were living we would not have come to such a state.
  3. umbrage
    a feeling of anger caused by being offended
    I wasn't sure what Jem resented most, but I took umbrage at Mrs. Dubose's assessment of the family's mental hygiene.
  4. rectitude
    righteousness as a consequence of being honorable and honest
    In later years, I sometimes wondered exactly what made Jem do it, what made him break the bonds of "You just be a gentleman, son," and the phase of self-conscious rectitude he had recently entered.
  5. interdict
    command against
    What Jem did was something I'd do as a matter of course had I not been under Atticus's interdict, which I assumed included not fighting horrible old ladies.
  6. undulate
    move in a wavy pattern or with a rising and falling motion
    From time to time she would open her mouth wide, and I could see her tongue undulate faintly.
  7. altercation
    a noisy, angry argument or fight between people
    After one altercation when Jem hollered, "It's time you started bein' a girl and acting right!"
  8. qualm
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
    I did likewise with no qualms.
  9. prerogative
    a right reserved exclusively by a person or group
    She was never bored, and given the slightest chance she would exercise her royal prerogative: she would arrange, advise, caution, and warn.
  10. myopic
    unable to see distant objects clearly
    Instead, Maycomb grew and sprawled out from its hub, Sinkfield's Tavern, because Sinkfield reduced his guests to myopic drunkenness one evening, induced them to bring forward their maps and charts, lop off a little here, add a bit there, and adjust the center of the county to meet his requirements.
  11. pensive
    deeply or seriously thoughtful
    Atticus looked pensive. "What's that again?"
  12. manacle
    shackle that can be locked around the wrist
    Still in wrist manacles, he wandered two miles out of Meridian where he discovered a small animal show and was immediately engaged to wash the camel.
  13. buttress
    a support usually of stone or brick
    Starkly out of place in a town of square-faced stores and steep-roofed houses, the Maycomb jail was a miniature Gothic joke one cell wide and two cells high, complete with tiny battlements and flying buttresses.
  14. succinct
    briefly giving the gist of something
    "Called 'em off on a snipe hunt," was the succinct answer.
  15. overture
    a tentative suggestion to elicit the reactions of others
    He seemed uncomfortable; he cleared his throat and looked away. My friendly overture had fallen flat.
Created on Wed Jul 25 09:15:12 EDT 2018 (updated Thu Jun 26 14:07:41 EDT 2025)

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