Before We Were Free: Chapters 1–3

by Julia Alvarez
Twelve-year-old Anita has grown up in the Dominican Republic during the brutal Trujillo regime. When her family gets caught up in an attempt to overthrow the dictator, Anita must find her own path to freedom.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–3, Chapters 4–7, Chapters 8–11

Here are links to our lists for other works by Julia Alvarez: How the García Girls Lost Their Accents, In the Time of the Butterflies, Names/Nombres
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. consul
    a diplomat appointed to protect a government's interests
    Papi has explained that Mr. Washburn is the American consul, who represents the United States when Ambassador Farland is out of the country.
  2. economize
    spend sparingly or avoid waste
    At supper, Papi explains that the construction business isn’t doing all that well, that we’re going to have to economize, that the familia is going to be scattered for a while—
  3. cranny
    a small opening or crevice
    They go from room to room, looking in every nook and cranny.
  4. bayonet
    a knife fixed to the end of a rifle and used as a weapon
    The men go into Lucinda’s room without knocking, opening up the jalousies, lifting the bedskirt and matching skirt on her vanity, plunging their bayonets underneath.
  5. askew
    turned or twisted toward one side
    My older sister sits up in bed, startled, her pink-foam rollers askew from sleeping on them.
  6. traipse
    walk or tramp about
    “The SIM know perfectly well where the Garcías are,” Lucinda says. “They just want an excuse to traipse through here. And of course, they’d love to get their hands on Papi.”
  7. vigorously
    in an energetic manner
    Lucinda shakes her head vigorously.
  8. proposition
    a suggestion offered for acceptance or rejection
    But this evening, Mr. Washburn has a proposition to make.
  9. embassy
    a building where diplomats live or work
    With someone from the United States embassy living next door, the SIM might not bother us anymore.
  10. harem
    living quarters for wives in some Muslim households
    “What’s that mean?” His blue eyes light up. “Is it like a harem?”
    I’m not sure what a harem is, so I know the compound can’t be that.
  11. apprehensive
    in fear or dread of possible evil or harm
    But even after everything is laid out, I feel apprehensive about going back. Everyone will be asking me why I’ve been absent for over two weeks.
  12. preoccupied
    having excessive or compulsive concern with something
    “But my parents are preoccupied and that is why they do not wish anything sneaky to go on.”
  13. embargo
    a government order imposing a trade barrier
    In class, Mrs. Brown tries explaining how an embargo works. Sometimes a group of countries disapproves of what another country is doing, and they refuse to trade or do business with that country until the situation improves.
    “As you know,” Mrs. Brown is saying, “the United States has now joined the embargo.”
  14. plantain
    starchy banana-like fruit
    The Saturday before Christmas, we go shopping in the open air mercado for roasted pig, avocados, guava paste, and ripe plantains for pIátanos maduros, the different merchants calling out their wares from their stands.
  15. censor
    a person authorized to suppress unacceptable material
    All mail has to go through the censors first, so, especially at Christmas, it takes a long time to get a letter.
Created on Thu Feb 21 15:54:06 EST 2019 (updated Mon Jul 28 14:34:46 EDT 2025)

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