To Kill a Mockingbird: Chapters 16–19

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. akimbo
    bent outward with the joint away from the body
    She was now standing arms akimbo, her shoulders drooping a little, her head cocked to one side, her glasses winking in the sunlight.
  2. subpoena
    a writ issued to compel the attendance of a witness
    "Better be careful he doesn't hand you a subpoena."
  3. elucidate
    make clear and comprehensible
    We asked Miss Maudie to elucidate: she said Miss Stephanie seemed to know so much about the case she might as well be called on to testify.
  4. assessor
    an official who evaluates property in order to tax it
    To reach the courtroom, on the second floor, one passed sundry sunless county cubbyholes: the tax assessor, the tax collector, the county clerk, the county solicitor, the circuit clerk, the judge of probate lived in cool dim hutches that smelled of decaying record books mingled with old damp cement and stale urine.
  5. probate
    act or process of proving that a will was properly executed
    To reach the courtroom, on the second floor, one passed sundry sunless county cubbyholes: the tax assessor, the tax collector, the county clerk, the county solicitor, the circuit clerk, the judge of probate lived in cool dim hutches that smelled of decaying record books mingled with old damp cement and stale urine.
  6. unobtrusive
    not undesirably noticeable
    I found myself in the middle of the Idlers' Club and made myself as unobtrusive as possible.
  7. litigant
    a party to a lawsuit
    When asked upon what grounds, Judge Taylor said, "Champertous connivance," and declared he hoped to God the litigants were satisfied by each having had their public say.
  8. congenital
    present at birth but not necessarily hereditary
    No truant officers could keep their numerous offspring in school; no public health officer could free them from congenital defects, various worms, and the diseases indigenous to filthy surroundings.
  9. deign
    do something that one considers to be below one's dignity
    Against the fence, in a line, were six chipped-enamel slop jars holding brilliant red geraniums, cared for as tenderly as if they belonged to Miss Maudie Atkinson, had Miss Maudie deigned to permit a geranium on her premises.
  10. acrimonious
    marked by strong resentment or cynicism
    We could tell, however, when debate became more acrimonious than professional, but this was from watching lawyers other than our father.
  11. complacently
    in a self-satisfied manner
    Mr. Ewell wrote on the back of the envelope and looked up complacently to see Judge Taylor staring at him as if he were some fragrant gardenia in full bloom on the witness stand, to see Mr. Gilmer half-sitting, half-standing at his table.
  12. ambidextrous
    equally skillful with each hand
    "About your writing with your left hand, are you ambidextrous, Mr. Ewell?"
  13. mollify
    cause to be more favorably inclined
    Mollified, Mayella gave Atticus a final terrified glance and said to Mr. Gilmer, "Well sir, I was on the porch and—and he came along and, you see, there was this old chiffarobe in the yard Papa'd brought in to chop up for kindlin'—Papa told me to do it while he was off in the woods but I wadn't feelin' strong enough then, so he came by—"
  14. volition
    the capability of conscious choice and decision
    He seemed to be a respectable Negro, and a respectable Negro would never go up into somebody's yard of his own volition.
  15. expunge
    remove by erasing or crossing out or as if by drawing a line
    Judge Taylor told the reporter to expunge anything he happened to have written down...
Created on Wed Jul 25 09:16:04 EDT 2018 (updated Thu Jun 26 14:17:53 EDT 2025)

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