Among the Hidden: Chapters 1–7

by Margaret Peterson Haddix
In this dystopian novel, famine and overpopulation has led to a strict Population Law that limits families to two children. Luke, an illegal third child, must spend his life in hiding — but when he meets Jen, another third child, he becomes involved in a dangerous plan to challenge the Population Law.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–7, Chapters 8–15, Chapters 16–21, Chapters 22–30
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. defiance
    an act boldly resisting authority or an opposing force
    They had defied the Government once, with Luke. That had taken all the defiance they had in them.
  2. lofty
    of imposing height; especially standing out above others
    Some already lay on the ground. Some hung at weird angles from their former lofty positions in the sky.
  3. jeer
    laugh at with contempt and derision
    “Luke don't do nothing nohow,” Matthew jeered. “We won’t miss his work at all.”
  4. beckon
    appear inviting
    Home, where the backyard always beckoned, always safe and protected by the house and the barn and the woods.
  5. careen
    move at high speed and in an uncontrolled way
    Now he gave the toy train a shove, and it careened off the track.
  6. reluctantly
    with a certain degree of unwillingness
    Reluctantly, Luke slid down from his step stool perch and scrambled over to recline innocently on his bed.
  7. resolutely
    showing firm determination or purpose
    Resolutely, Luke stuck his fork in the pile of scrambled eggs on his plate and took a bite. He ate the whole plateful of food without tasting any of it.
  8. curt
    brief and to the point
    Usually the Garners’ mail was just bills or thin envelopes carrying curt orders from the Government about how much corn to plant, which fertilizer to use, and where to take their crop when it was harvested.
  9. painstakingly
    in a very careful manner
    The letters Mother wrote back, painstakingly, late at night, when she’d saved up enough money for a stamp, contained plenty of news of Matthew and Mark, but never once had mentioned Luke’s name.
  10. emboss
    raise in a relief
    This letter was as thick as some from Luke’s grandmother, but it bore an official seal, and the return address was an embossed DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN HABITATION, ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS DIVISION.
  11. stupefied
    as if struck dumb with astonishment and surprise
    Dad didn’t answer. Even Mark, who normally had a smart-alecky comeback for everything, was stupefied.
  12. horde
    a vast multitude
    Hordes of workmen still arrived every morning, but almost all of them worked indoors now.
  13. baron
    a very wealthy or powerful businessman
    He’d overheard Mother and Dad marveling that the people moving into the new houses were not just going to be city people, but Barons. Barons were unbelievably rich, Luke knew.
  14. gewgaw
    cheap showy jewelry, ornament, or decoration
    The smallest ones were always as dressed up as their parents, with hair bows and suspenders and other geegaws Luke knew his parents would never buy.
  15. porcine
    relating to pigs or swine
    He’d read all their books dozens of times, even the ones with titles like Diseases of the Porcine Species and Common Grasses of Our Countryside.
Created on Fri Oct 05 18:02:33 EDT 2018 (updated Mon Jul 28 12:33:04 EDT 2025)

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