SKIP TO CONTENT

Wolf Hollow: Chapters 20–27

During World War II, a 12-year-old girl named Annabelle befriends a reclusive veteran and contends with a vicious bully.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Chapter 4, Chapters 5–8, Chapters 9–14, Chapters 15–19, Chapters 20–27
35 words 377 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Full list of words from this list:

  1. afield
    far away from home or one's usual surroundings
    Toby rode in the back of the truck with the dogs and four other men, some from our hills, some from farther afield.
  2. barrage
    the rapid and continuous delivery of communication
    Even when my father explained how they’d lowered him into the well, and Aunt Lily said, “That was very brave of you, Jordan,” again in that soft, almost-musical voice...and the boys launched a barrage of questions about what it was like and were there snakes and centipedes and did the well go all the way to China.
  3. afterthought
    an addition that was not included in the original plan
    “Oh,” she said, caught by an afterthought. “John, you didn’t tell us how you came to discover that Betty was in the well. Was it the bloodhounds?”
  4. skeptical
    marked by or given to doubt
    Aunt Lily was the only person I knew who could raise just one eyebrow, which had the effect of making her look both skeptical and wise.
  5. gangrene
    necrotic tissue; a mortified part or mass
    “Amazingly, no, but there’s some gangrene in her right foot. Her leg was wedged up tight under that poncho. When she tried to move it, the poncho started to rip, so she stopped. But they think it will be okay. She may lose a toe. Too soon to tell.”
  6. cowlick
    a tuft of hair in a different direction from the rest
    Toby had bowed his head, both hands in his lap. I stared at him, afraid of what he might be thinking. I could see places where I’d been careless with his hair. A small cowlick on his crown. An unevenness.
  7. irrefutable
    impossible to deny or disprove
    The scars on his left hand were as irrefutable as a fingerprint.
  8. abashed
    feeling or caused to feel uneasy and self-conscious
    School was different that day, for two reasons.
    First, because I walked in to find myself the subject of a standing ovation. Even my brothers joined in, though they looked a little abashed about it.
  9. lurk
    lie in wait or behave in a sneaky and secretive manner
    But it was also worse because Ruth was gone, too, and some of the littlest ones kept home by mothers who did not know Toby as I did and feared he might be lurking in the bushes, waiting to toss their babies down the nearest well.
  10. resilience
    an occurrence of rebounding or springing back
    Instead, the stone itself told me a thing or two about age and resilience, and the trees at the edge of the clearing quietly concurred.
  11. concur
    be in agreement
    Instead, the stone itself told me a thing or two about age and resilience, and the trees at the edge of the clearing quietly concurred.
  12. sate
    fill to contentment
    When Aunt Lily returned from her call, she said, “Officer Coleman will be here tonight. More men in the morning, if he says so.” She looked sated.
  13. imminent
    close in time; about to occur
    The boys had arrived at the prospect of imminent supper and talk of the police coming soon.
  14. faze
    disturb the composure of
    My mother had been nurse to all of us through so many mishaps and sicknesses that not much fazed her, but I had to put down my fork.
  15. pact
    a written agreement between two states or sovereigns
    He put out his hand and I shook it, as if we’d made a pact.
    Then he climbed down the ladder, crossed the threshing floor, and walked out through the big open doors.
  16. tussle
    fight or struggle in a confused way at close quarters
    “Hey, that’s my Treasure Island,” James said, and in an instant they were tussling over the old book.
  17. migration
    the movement of persons from one locality to another
    The house trembled with a migration to the mudroom door, the entrance of the big trooper, the excitement of my brothers, who must have forgotten, in the fray, that Toby had never done them any harm.
  18. arrogant
    having or showing feelings of unwarranted importance
    “Do you think you’re God?” she said impatiently. “Do you think you control things? Well, you do not. And it’s arrogant to think that you do.”
  19. crypt
    a cellar or vault or underground burial chamber
    I pictured someone coming upon that well, years later, and filling it in with earth, burying her old bones deep in that accidental crypt.
  20. aback
    by surprise
    The way he said it, the way he looked at me, took me aback.
  21. scour
    examine minutely
    “We decided to wait here for the others to catch up before we go back out,” the constable said. “We already scoured the area around the smokehouse. So much scent there that we went in circles, but the dogs finally decided on this direction.”
  22. whet
    make keen or more acute
    “No, it’s Annabelle, Mrs. Gribble. Can you put me through to the Woodberrys please? It’s very important.” I knew that would whet her appetite.
  23. bogus
    fraudulent; having a misleading appearance
    People often complained about her eavesdropping and swore they didn’t listen to her gossip, but the stories she spread had always proven true (except one April Fool’s Day when someone fed her a bogus tale about a wagon train of gypsies setting up camp in Bocktown), and she was widely regarded as the county crier.
  24. gumption
    fortitude and determination
    “Not angry at all,” my grandfather said. He smiled at me from his end of the table. “Gumption’s a good thing, if you ask me.”
  25. industry
    persevering determination to perform a task
    “So is industry,” my mother said as she slid a pan of pork chops into the oven. “Annabelle, those carrots aren’t going to peel themselves.”
  26. fractious
    easily irritated or annoyed
    “Easy, Lily,” my father said, as if she were a fractious horse. “It’s been a long day.”
  27. inkling
    a slight suggestion or vague understanding
    An inkling told me to go back to bed before she saw me.
  28. grapple
    work hard to come to terms with or deal with something
    I slipped my hands in the big pockets of my grandfather’s coat and, as I watched her grapple with her revelations, made a fresh discovery of my own.
  29. revelation
    an enlightening or astonishing disclosure
    I slipped my hands in the big pockets of my grandfather’s coat and, as I watched her grapple with her revelations, made a fresh discovery of my own.
  30. valor
    courage when facing danger
    I unbuttoned the coat so I could work with both hands.
    And unpinned what turned out to be a gold star with a face engraved on the middle, set inside a wreath. At the top was an eagle perched on a bar that had the word valor on it.
  31. scrutinize
    look at critically or searchingly, or in minute detail
    She scrutinized the medal, looking for a way out, but there was none.
  32. hatchling
    a young bird or animal that has just emerged from an egg
    A spider had left an egg sac in a web above where he’d slept, and I pictured the hatchlings cascading down into his nest of pine boughs when the thaw came next spring.
  33. cascade
    rush down in big quantities
    A spider had left an egg sac in a web above where he’d slept, and I pictured the hatchlings cascading down into his nest of pine boughs when the thaw came next spring.
  34. strew
    spread by scattering
    And when we passed by the graveyard the next day there was nothing but a raised bed of bare earth, strewn with tattered flowers and leaves, where Betty had last been.
  35. capricious
    determined by chance or impulse rather than by necessity
    And I could not help but think of the hollow as a dark place, no matter how bright its canopy, no matter how pretty the flowers that grew in its capricious light.
Created on Mon Mar 23 19:48:06 EDT 2020 (updated Tue Mar 31 16:10:48 EDT 2020)

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.