Seedfolks: List 1

by Paul Fleischman
Author Paul Fleischman coined the term seedfolks to describe ordinary people whose lives are connected by a community garden.

This list covers "Kim"–"Leona."

Here are links to our lists for the novel: List 1, List 2, List 3
15 words 8990 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. altar
    a raised structure on which sacrifices to a god are made
    I stood before our family altar.
  2. incense
    a substance that produces a fragrant odor when burned
    The candles and the incense sticks, lit the day before to mark his death anniversary, had burned out.
  3. vacant
    not containing anyone or anything; unfilled or unoccupied
    I walked half a block, then crossed the street and reached the vacant lot.
  4. sprout
    produce buds or branches; germinate
    My class had sprouted lima beans in paper cups the year before.
  5. thrive
    grow vigorously
    And I vowed to myself that those beans would thrive.
  6. parole
    a conditional release from imprisonment
    And after twenty years typing for the Parole department, I just about knew what she'd buried.
  7. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    Then I took an old butter knife and my cane and hobbled down all three flights of stairs.
  8. hack
    chop or cut away
    I hacked and dug, but didn't find anything, except for a large white bean.
  9. wilt
    become limp
    They were wilted. Leaves flopped flat on the ground.
  10. bodega
    small shop selling groceries, especially in a Hispanic area
    He would only buy food at the bodega down the block.
  11. trowel
    a small hand tool with a handle and metal blade
    Where my mother changed busses she'd gone into a store and bought him a trowel and four packets of seeds.
  12. obituary
    a notice of someone's death
    She kept a scrapbook with the obituaries of all the doctors she outlived and could recite the list of names by heart, like a chapter out of Genesis.
  13. detector
    a device that receives a signal and responds to it
    I thought maybe they were looking for money. Turned out they had shovels, not metal detectors.
  14. receptionist
    an office worker who answers calls and greets visitors
    That morning I took a bus downtown and walked into the Public Health Department. Told about the trash all over again to this dolled-up receptionist.
  15. maggot
    fly larva commonly found in decaying organic matter
    The smell that came out of it made you think of hog pens and maggots and kitchen scraps from back when Nixon was president.
Created on Wed Jul 08 19:33:56 EDT 2015 (updated Fri Aug 08 14:52:08 EDT 2025)

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