Thirteen Reasons Why: Prologue–Cassette 2

by Jay Asher
After Hannah Baker's death, classmate Clay Jenson receives a set of cassette tapes in which Hannah makes painful revelations.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Cassette 2, Cassettes 3–4, Cassette 5–The Next Day
35 words 1213 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. intentional
    done or made with purpose and will
    A package with no return address? Did they forget, or was it intentional?
  2. serrated
    notched like a saw with teeth pointing toward the apex
    I watch her tear the slip across the serrated plastic and drop it into a wastebasket.
  3. souvenir
    something of sentimental value
    Did they keep their receipts as sick souvenirs?
  4. meander
    move or cause to move in a winding or curving course
    It leads through the front doors and turns into a hallway, which meanders between rows of lockers and classrooms on both sides, finally entering the always-open door to first period.
  5. smirk
    smile in a mocking or condescending way
    Tomorrow at school, someone will laugh when they see me. Or they'II smirk and look away.
  6. insight
    clear or deep perception of a situation
    I can't force you to go there, but if you'd like a little more insight, just head for the stars.
  7. relevance
    the relation of something to the matter at hand
    And when they go through my belongings, they'll probably toss it away thinking a freshman crush has no relevance.
  8. awkward
    socially uncomfortable; unsure and constrained in manner
    I waited till Zach inserted himself into our awkward conversation before sneaking inside to thaw my fingers beneath running water.
  9. compatible
    capable of being used with or connected to other devices
    "The format’s not compatible," he tells them.
  10. envy
    a desire to have something that is possessed by another
    More girls have dumped him out of car envy than my lips have even kissed.
  11. innocence
    the state of being unsullied by sin or moral wrong
    I think that's the reason, in my dreams, my first kiss took place at the rocket ship. It reminded me of innocence. And I wanted my first kiss to be just that. Innocent.
  12. resistance
    any mechanical force that tends to slow or oppose motion
    So I sit on the slide and push off. But the wind resistance on my feet makes me go so slow.
  13. avert
    turn away or aside
    They averted their eyes. And when she passed, they started laughing.
  14. reputation
    notoriety for some particular characteristic
    A rumor based on a kiss started a reputation that other people believed in and reacted to.
  15. barely
    in a sparse or scanty way
    Though the sun has barely started dipping beneath the rooftops and trees, streetlamps are lit on both sides of the road.
  16. factor
    anything that contributes causally to a result
    But let me put it this way, I don't think my ass—as you call it—was the deciding factor.
  17. revenge
    action taken in return for an injury or offense
    I think the deciding factor . . . was revenge.
  18. traumatic
    psychologically painful
    The day your list came out wasn't too traumatic. I survived. I knew it was a joke.
  19. wince
    draw back, as with fear or pain
    I wince. What happened in that store because of Alex's list?
  20. involved
    connected by participation or association or use
    God, who else is involved in this?
  21. arrogance
    overbearing pride evidenced by a superior manner
    And he said it with such arrogance, which sounded so natural coming from his mouth.
  22. dissect
    analyze by breaking down into components
    Okay let's dissect what just happened.
  23. interpret
    make sense of; assign a meaning to
    I'm not even going to interpret this. I'm just going to tell you why it pissed me off.
  24. aggressive
    characteristic of an enemy or one eager to fight
    And when this guy saw me upset, did he apologize? No. Instead, he got aggressive.
  25. condescending
    characteristic of those who treat others with arrogance
    Then, in the most condescending way he told me to relax.
  26. ridicule
    the act of deriding or treating with contempt
    but the point is, when you hold people up for ridicule, you have to take responsibility when other people act on it.
  27. rely
    have confidence or faith in
    And while we never became close friends, we did rely on each other those first few weeks of school.
  28. decelerate
    lose velocity; move more slowly
    I hold myself steady as the bus decelerates and pulls to the curb.
  29. anticipate
    regard something as probable or likely
    Unlike old age or cancer, no one anticipates a suicide.
  30. candid
    openly straightforward and direct without secretiveness
    Before coming out here, I took the initiative to look up "candid" in the dictionary.
  31. stalk
    recur constantly and spontaneously to
    For example, how long were you stalking me.
  32. paranoia
    a mental disorder characterized by delusions of persecution
    Maybe I should give him the same paranoia he gave me.
  33. intimidated
    made scared or fearful as by threats
    I want to, but I'm too intimidated to look at the people around him.
  34. massive
    imposing in size or bulk or solidity
    A massive thesaurus sits beside a dictionary that’s missing its hardcover spine.
  35. grotesque
    distorted and unnatural in shape or size
    They mark special occasions, write horrible poetry, sketch things that are beautiful or grotesque, or just rant.
Created on Mon Mar 23 19:42:39 EDT 2015 (updated Mon Oct 01 15:16:15 EDT 2018)

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