Uprooted: Prologue–Chapter 1

by Albert Marrin
In this meticulously researched book, Albert Marrin contextualizes the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II within the broader history of racial prejudice in the United States.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Prologue–Chapter 1, Chapters 2–3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapters 6–7
35 words 259 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. infamy
    evil fame or public reputation
    Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
  2. belie
    be in contradiction with
    These ships had graceful, poetic names: Misty Island, Shimmering Mist, Haze, Daybreak Cloud, and Wind on the Beach. Such names, however, belied the terrific firepower of the thirteen battleships, cruisers, and destroyers of the task force.
  3. idealize
    consider or render as the best or most appropriate type
    Americans often idealize the “good war.”
  4. glib
    marked by lack of intellectual depth
    Glib talk of the “good war” infuriated him.
  5. fervently
    with strong emotion or zeal
    The term racism as used in this book refers to an ideology, a set of beliefs, fervently held, about others and how the world works.
  6. exploit
    use or manipulate to one's advantage
    Racist ideas have been used to uphold political, social, and economic systems aimed at exploiting those deemed worthy of no better.
  7. uproot
    move forcibly from a homeland into a new foreign environment
    Against this background, the attack created such hysteria that President Roosevelt, citing “military necessity,” approved the uprooting of all people of Japanese ancestry, citizens and non-citizens alike, living on the West Coast.
  8. proverb
    a condensed but memorable saying embodying an important fact
    A proverb says, “Time heals all wounds.”
  9. evoke
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
    But the experiences of Japanese Americans in the last century still evoke strong feelings because of lingering memories of injustice but also because those events pose vital questions.
  10. unfathomable
    impossible to come to understand
    The age of the Pacific Ocean begins, mysterious and unfathomable in its meaning for our own future.
  11. incessantly
    without interruption
    The daimyo fought incessantly to gain land and power and to keep what they already had.
  12. samurai
    Japanese warrior who was a member of the feudal aristocracy
    In doing so, they depended on a unique social class: the samurai, or “one who serves.”
  13. trifling
    not worth considering
    “What a coward to cry for a trifling pain!"
  14. incite
    provoke or stir up
    “To be incited by mere impetuosity to violent action cannot be called valor,” samurai learned.
  15. impetuous
    characterized by undue haste and lack of thought
    “To be incited by mere impetuosity to violent action cannot be called valor,” samurai learned.
  16. indignantly
    in a manner showing anger at something unjust or wrong
    “I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country’s manufactures,” he replied indignantly.
  17. panacea
    hypothetical remedy for all ills or diseases
    Gradually, its use spread to Europe, where it became a panacea, a cure-all for nearly every illness.
  18. listless
    lacking zest or vivacity
    Addicts became listless and pale, merely living skeletons.
  19. decrepit
    lacking bodily or muscular strength or vitality
    A diseased, decrepit, insane being, he forgets even his family....
  20. prostrate
    lie face downward, as in submission
    .And at last he crawls out on the highway, digs himself a cave in the [dirt]...and prostrates himself before the camel and donkey drivers, whining, chattering, praying that a few copper cash [small coins] be thrown to him.
  21. insolent
    marked by casual disrespect
    Normally, in India, an English bishop reported, “we shut out the natives from our society, and a bullying, insolent manner is continually assumed in speaking to them.”
  22. breach
    a failure to perform some promised act or obligation
    A hero of the Mexican War, Perry was strict, ordering crewmen whipped for the slightest breach of his rules.
  23. compulsory
    required by rule
    A written constitution provided for a compulsory educational system, a postal system, courts, police, taxation, and government departments run by officials called ministers.
  24. overzealous
    marked by excessive enthusiasm for a cause or idea
    An American journalist sourly observed: “We can only hope that we may not find ourselves among the earliest victims of our overzealous and mistaken benevolence.”
  25. benevolence
    disposition to do good
    An American journalist sourly observed: “We can only hope that we may not find ourselves among the earliest victims of our overzealous and mistaken benevolence.”
  26. retribution
    the act of taking revenge
    Juries, too frightened of retribution to convict assassins, set them free.
  27. decadence
    the state of being degenerate in mental or moral qualities
    Jazz was banned because it promoted American-style “decadence,” as did guitars and banjos, also banned.
  28. extol
    praise, glorify, or honor
    Elementary school textbooks extolled a fighting spirit and self-sacrifice.
  29. contempt
    lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
    Not surprisingly, feelings of superiority bred contempt for others...
  30. barrack
    lodge in buildings used to house military personnel
    Even something so trivial as wearing a shirt with a button missing brought a slap in the face and punishment for the entire barracks.
  31. beleaguer
    surround so as to force to give up
    Chinese politicians and generals patched up their differences and rushed troops to the beleaguered city.
  32. disparage
    express a negative opinion of
    We disparaged all other races….
  33. sanction
    the act of punishing
    When Japan refused demands to withdraw from China, the president ordered full-scale economic sanctions.
  34. paper tiger
    an entity that appears powerful but is actually ineffectual
    Years of soft living had made America a “paper tiger,” a nation of cowards who loved life more than honor.
  35. crony
    a close friend or associate
    Within days, what had been separate European and Asian wars became a global war, as Adolf Hitler and his Italian crony, Benito Mussolini, sided with Japan and declared war on the United States.
Created on Mon Sep 10 19:44:00 EDT 2018 (updated Fri May 28 11:42:13 EDT 2021)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.