The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate: Chapters 9–15

by Jacqueline Kelly
The year is 1899, and 11-year-old Callie enjoys studying Darwin and exploring the natural world with her grandfather — but her traditional mother wants Callie to spend her time engaged in "ladylike" pursuits like cooking and sewing. As a new century dawns, Callie must struggle to balance her desires and interests with the expectations of society.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–6, Chapters 7–8, Chapters 9–15, Chapters 16–22, Chapters 23–28
40 words 37 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. jettison
    throw away, of something encumbering
    I was ready to jettison him outside for all the trouble he put me to.
  2. slapdash
    marked by great carelessness
    It looked like slapdash work.
  3. foreboding
    ominously prophetic
    There was something foreboding and primeval about it; it made the fine hairs on my arms stand up.
  4. ungainly
    lacking grace in movement or posture
    I rushed at the dog again, when Petey, with a mighty effort, launched himself into the air and in that split second was transformed from an ungainly land-bound dweller into something else, a creature of the wind, a citizen of the air.
  5. antic
    a playful, attention-getting act done for fun and amusement
    The rock-thrush of Guiana, birds of Paradise, and some others, congregate; and successive males display their gorgeous plumage and perform strange antics before the females, which standing by as spectators, at last choose the most attractive partner.
  6. ignominy
    a state of dishonor
    It took my friend Lula Gates a long time to live down the ignominy of getting sick in public at the piano recital.
  7. veritable
    being truly so called; real or genuine
    I did convince Lula to play some Sousa arrangements for four hands with me, and we made a good go of it, pounding out twice as much music in a veritable torrent of strict-tempo chords, which was highly gratifying.
  8. inordinate
    beyond normal limits
    Miss Harbottle homed in on my distracted state and called on me an inordinate number of times with questions on Texas history, which I could not answer, much to the class’s amusement.
  9. pert
    characterized by a lightly saucy or impudent quality
    “And don’t you get pert with me, Calpurnia. Go to the corner. One hour. Any more comments and it’ll be the switch for you.”
  10. assent
    agreement with a statement or proposal to do something
    I grunted noncommittally, which Travis chose to interpret as assent; he fell in beside us, and he and Lula chattered on about the kittens.
  11. inane
    devoid of intelligence
    I wanted to run on ahead, leaving Lula and Travis to their inane conversation, but I feared he would be fallen upon by thugs along the road.
  12. gambit
    a strategic maneuver
    He thought hard and then said, “What are those books about, Lula?”—a pretty good gambit on his part.
  13. skein
    coils of worsted yarn
    Mother seemed pleased by the skeins of new wool that she pulled from her own bag, which bristled with needles of every size.
  14. tedium
    the feeling of being bored by something
    There was my whole life for you, socks stretching all the way to the infinite horizon, a yawning valley of knitting tedium.
  15. darn
    repair a garment by weaving thread across a hole
    “You can knit?” I asked, amazed.
    “Oh, yes, and darn too. Several of the men in my regiment were accomplished knitters.”
  16. lop
    cut off from a whole
    There was, of course, the problem of the empty fingers in the gloves. They interfered with his rifle grip, but he lopped them off at the knuckle and sewed them flat.
  17. phylum
    the major taxonomic group of animals and plants
    The plants were nowhere near as interesting to me as the insects, and the insects were not as interesting as the animals, but Granddaddy had shown me how they were all dependent, one upon the other, and you had to study and appreciate all of the phyla in order to understand any one of them.
  18. unprepossessing
    creating an unfavorable or neutral first impression
    I scuffled through the jars and envelopes and came up with it, an unprepossessing dried brown scrap.
  19. node
    the part of a plant stem from which leaves emerge
    “There appears to be a small uncinate leaf dependent from the main node, but it’s difficult to say, as it’s so desiccated. I don’t remember this in any of the descriptions. And I don’t recall seeing it in any of the drawings, and we have some excellent ones in Dr. Mallon’s atlas.”
  20. aberration
    a state or condition markedly different from the norm
    “It’s so dried out it’s hard to say. It may be an aberration, it may be nothing.”
  21. cajole
    influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering
    I dragged myself home at the end of the day, lagging far behind my brothers, who had given up trying to cajole me out of my mood.
  22. crockery
    ceramic dishes used for serving food
    From the kitchen behind us came the homey noises of the crockery being put away.
  23. deference
    a courteous expression of esteem or regard
    Even though he had removed himself from domestic matters, everyone still paid him enormous deference.
  24. parasol
    a handheld collapsible source of shade
    Even though the day was overcast, I had one of Mother’s old parasols shading both me and the Plant, which was snugly ensconced in a small clay flowerpot.
  25. ensconce
    fix firmly
    Even though the day was overcast, I had one of Mother’s old parasols shading both me and the Plant, which was snugly ensconced in a small clay flowerpot.
  26. chagrin
    cause to feel shame
    Mr. Hofacket looked chagrined, like maybe he was kicking himself for not charging a special plant premium.
  27. emboss
    raise in a relief
    He carried all three portraits to the front counter and was about to stamp his embossed gold Hofacket’s Fine Portraiture seal on the lower left corner of each one when Granddaddy stopped him.
  28. loath
    strongly opposed
    It was time for us to leave, but he was loath to let us go.
  29. malaise
    a feeling of mild sickness or depression
    We inspected it several times a day, vigilant for signs of under- or overwatering, too much or too little sun, spider mites, drafts, chlorosis, general malaise.
  30. kowtow
    bend the knees and bow in a servile manner
    He always made a great show of waiting on the Tates; he kowtowed to my parents when they came in.
  31. impertinent
    improperly forward or bold
    Was I being impertinent or not?
  32. derisive
    expressing contempt or ridicule
    I’d heard him called “the Perfessor” by various semiliterate wags about town in tones that might have been termed faintly derisive.
  33. debutante
    a young woman making her formal entrance into society
    “Your mama got plans for you, you know that? Just last week she says she wants you to come out. And now this. No, sir. Can’t have no debutante chopping cotton.”
  34. dictum
    an authoritative declaration
    The next morning, I found Mother outside examining the rows in the kitchen garden, a wide straw hat shading her face and a pair of white cotton gloves on her hands, following her own dictum that a lady always hid her hands and face from the sun.
  35. unseemly
    not in keeping with accepted standards of what is proper
    “The War ruined us. It ruined many families. People were starving. Making one’s debut would have been...unseemly.”
  36. conscript
    enroll into service compulsorily
    I was conscripted into kitchen duty with Mother.
  37. officious
    intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner
    My next job was to keep an eye on the two dozen or so babies who played in the yard between the house and the outside kitchen while their mothers worked the fields, and to make sure they didn’t get pecked by the busy, officious hens who were aggrieved by this invasion of their normal habitat.
  38. gamely
    in a plucky or sporting manner
    Granddaddy looked amused; Mother looked as if she had a sick headache but gamely held up her end of the conversation.
  39. potshot
    the discharge of a weapon at an easy or casual target
    Sul Ross came by as I was taking potshots at the hens.
  40. genial
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
    And although he spoke genially enough, I sensed something—disappointment?—in his expression.
Created on Wed Aug 22 10:54:54 EDT 2018 (updated Wed Aug 22 11:37:10 EDT 2018)

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