The Golden Goblet: Chapters 10–13

by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
An orphan living in ancient Egypt, twelve-year-old Ranofer dreams of becoming a master goldsmith — but instead he must work at menial jobs for his cruel half-brother. When Ranofer discovers a stolen goblet in his brother's possession, he believes he may have a chance at a new life.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapters 3–4, Chapters 5–6, Chapters 7–9, Chapters 10–13, Chapters 14–16
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. crony
    a close friend or associate
    A week passed during which neither Gebu nor Wenamon did anything more suspicious than walk to some wineshop after the evening meal, or gamble at hounds-and-jackals with some crony in the privacy of their own courtyards.
  2. doggedly
    with obstinate determination
    Gebu went out one evening, with Ranofer doggedly behind him, and struck straight across the City of the Dead instead of turning toward Mutra’s wineshop as usual.
  3. treacherous
    dangerously unstable and unpredictable
    Ranofer dropped to the ground, staggered with relief and treacherously numbed toes, flung himself out the gate and closed it.
  4. intermittent
    stopping and starting at irregular intervals
    He kept a faithful, if intermittent, eye on Setma, too; the riverman had begun regular trips up and down the Nile again.
  5. staccato
    marked by or composed of disconnected parts or sounds
    He saw nothing but blackness, heard nothing but the light staccato of his own frightened feet.
  6. fleeting
    lasting for a markedly brief time
    It took him some time to quiet his breathing, longer to stop trembling, and longer still to remember some fleeting familiarity about that gliding shape he had seen.
  7. enigmatic
    not clear to the understanding
    The street was as black, as threatening, as enigmatic as before.
  8. bumble
    make a mess of, destroy or ruin
    A fine spy I have turned out to be! Ranofer told himself. I am as great a bumbler as I am a coward.
  9. truncate
    make shorter as if by cutting off
    One of these latter drawings contained a detail he found in none of the others, either a truncated passage or a small room in a location which seemed either senseless or mistaken.
  10. sketchy
    giving only major points; lacking completeness
    Far from satisfying him, the sketchy meal only whetted his appetite; moreover, the onion had made his lip smart and burn.
  11. whet
    make keen or more acute
    Far from satisfying him, the sketchy meal only whetted his appetite; moreover, the onion had made his lip smart and burn.
  12. audacious
    not held back by conventional ideas of behavior
    Halfway there an audacious thought stopped him.
  13. incantation
    a ritual reciting of words believed to have a magical effect
    Cat or kheft, by the time he reached the distant doorway he was weak with fright, but he thrust his torch into the flame, made himself wait while it caught well and, whispering what he could remember of the incantation against evil spirits, stumbled back the way he had come.
  14. laconic
    brief and to the point
    “Yesterday’s baking,” he remarked laconically.
    “No matter,” Ranofer retorted. “I have yesterday’s hunger.”
  15. strew
    spread by scattering
    He will summon me to his courtyard for the Shower of Gold, he will hang golden collars around my neck and order flowers strewn in front of me and tell Zau he must take me as his pupil.
  16. wraith
    a ghostly figure, especially one seen shortly before death
    Then he climbed the steps, silent as a wraith.
  17. morosely
    in a sullen, moody manner
    The Ancient nodded in a conspiratorial manner, winked his one eye, and chuckled again as he led Ranofer into the lane where his donkey was snuffling morosely along the baked roadside ditch in search of a blade of something green.
  18. rogue
    a deceitful and unreliable scoundrel
    “Gold, my boy. What else? When two rogues like that fall out, you may be sure it is over the price of some skulduggery one is to do for the other. I think that young scamp Heqet is right. Setma has been taking whatever Gebu steals and selling it for him in another city. But it’s finished now.”
  19. skulduggery
    misrepresentation intended to take advantage of someone
    “Gold, my boy. What else? When two rogues like that fall out, you may be sure it is over the price of some skulduggery one is to do for the other. I think that young scamp Heqet is right. Setma has been taking whatever Gebu steals and selling it for him in another city. But it’s finished now.”
  20. daub
    cover by smearing
    However, Heqet quickly began to chatter about Setma and the conversation the Ancient had overheard, and when that was exhausted he launched into a story about the Ancient’s donkey, who had gone lame in one foot a few days before, and had required much rubbing with castor-bean oil and daubing with cool mud.
  21. muse
    reflect deeply on a subject
    “But why worry, tomorrow everyone will have cakes and beer. Aye,” he mused, “Great Osiris is ready to loose his flood over the land once more. Seen any hangings lately?”
  22. shrewd
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    His one eye was shrewd and very thoughtful.
  23. plait
    a hairdo formed by braiding or twisting the hair
    He advanced soundlessly, passing so close under the shelf that Ranofer could have touched the black plaits of his hair.
  24. pennant
    a flag that usually tapers and is longer than it is wide
    As he watched, seven red and white pennants rose simultaneously on the palace walls, and he caught the faint, squealing notes of a trumpet.
  25. ominously
    in a manner suggesting something bad will happen
    It stretched before him, a wasteland of glaring red hills rising from a giant’s block pile of tumbled boulders—desolate, barren and ominously still.
  26. brazen
    made of or resembling brass, as in color or hardness
    High above him in the brazen sky a lone falcon wheeled; far ahead the figures of Gebu and Wenamon were dwarfed by their surroundings to mere swatches of black and white.
  27. consternation
    sudden shock or dismay that causes confusion
    In consternation he scanned the cluster of rocks where he had seen them only a moment before, then broke into a run.
  28. apprehensive
    in fear or dread of possible evil or harm
    Apprehensive and breathless, he arrived at the rock pile, stopped short, and sprang back behind it.
  29. projection
    any solid convex shape that juts out from something
    He could see nothing for a moment; then a dimly glimpsed surface made him stretch an arm down to explore it. It was a narrow projection. Perhaps a step?
  30. fervently
    with strong emotion or zeal
    Once more, even Gebu and Wenamon seemed companions fervently to be desired.
  31. cumbersome
    difficult to handle or use, especially because of size or weight
    At that moment a gust of wind swept across the sands, there was a loud clapping and beating, and from behind the rock pile a huge black form with outstretched wings rose cumbersomely, tilting and flapping directly toward him.
  32. finery
    elaborate or showy attire and accessories
    For a time they talked together happily, admiring each other’s finery, teasing, laughing from sheer excitement, and glancing up the thoroughfare from time to time to see if Ranofer was in sight.
  33. palanquin
    a closed litter carried on the shoulders of four bearers
    Gilded palanquins and chariots, preceded by runners and followed by retinues of servants, began to appear from the direction of the noblemen’s villas.
  34. retinue
    the group following and attending to some important person
    Gilded palanquins and chariots, preceded by runners and followed by retinues of servants, began to appear from the direction of the noblemen’s villas.
  35. restive
    impatient especially under restriction or delay
    The two friends waiting on the fish dock began to get restive.
Created on Tue Oct 09 14:29:53 EDT 2018 (updated Tue Oct 09 15:09:04 EDT 2018)

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