Black Girl Unlimited: Lessons 1–4

by Echo Brown
As Echo moves between the gritty neighborhood she calls home and the privileged neighborhood in which she attends school, she is affected by both the magic and the danger that surrounds her.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Lessons 1–4, Lessons 5–9, Lessons 10–14, Lessons 15–19
35 words 181 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. ecstatic
    feeling great rapture or delight
    We are ecstatic to be dressed up and leaving class one hour early.
  2. frazzle
    exhaust physically or emotionally
    Frazzled and exhausted, she walks us outside to where our parents are waiting.
  3. antic
    a playful, attention-getting act done for fun and amusement
    My brothers and I enjoy my father’s drunken antics, but we know they won’t last long.
  4. prod
    poke or thrust abruptly
    We sit quietly at the table poking and prodding one another.
  5. wreak
    cause to happen or to occur as a consequence
    Nobody can stop Bébé's kids from wreaking havoc and destruction wherever they go.
  6. saunter
    walk leisurely and with no apparent aim
    We peek through our fingers and watch Danielle, who lives down the street and has five kids, saunter up the sidewalk.
  7. disheveled
    in disarray; extremely disorderly
    Her clothes and hair are disheveled.
  8. quantum
    the smallest discrete quantity of some physical property
    She spiraled those prayers so far and deep into the universe, she felt like she left her body altogether and traveled to the in-between: the quantum field of infinite possibility where miracles originate, where the ancestors live, and which exists between this world and the beyond.
  9. lament
    express grief verbally
    When Sam Cooke cries, “A change is gonna come,” or when Marvin Gaye asks, “What’s going on?” my parents and their friends lament their own conditions.
  10. raucous
    unpleasantly loud and harsh
    They also recount raucous tales from when they were young.
  11. prodigious
    great in size, force, extent, or degree
    Everyone at the table nods in prodigious agreement.
  12. plume
    anything that resembles a feather in shape or lightness
    Others slow-dance also or sit smoking cigars and cigarettes, watching the slow dancers while blowing large plumes of thick smoke up toward the ceiling.
  13. procession
    the action of a group moving ahead in regular formation
    Soon after the bird leaves, the procession in and out of the bathroom, where the adults kneel and pray to their white rocks, starts.
  14. indulge
    enjoy to excess
    Everyone trickles in slowly to indulge in this before-church feast.
  15. astray
    away from the right path or direction
    “And finally, Lawd, watch ova us. Clean us, Lawd. So many of us done gone astray. Bring us back in yo favor and grace. Bring us back. Tho we know da end of times may be upon us, restore all those who suffer ta health and good fortune. In yo name I pray, amen.”
  16. strew
    be dispersed over
    The cards lie strewn about the table, some wrinkled, some folded.
  17. hallowed
    worthy of religious veneration
    Our father who art in heaven.
    Hallow’ be thy name.
  18. furtively
    in a secretive manner
    I watch the blood furtively slip out and run down the blade.
  19. ethereal
    of heaven or the spirit
    Her eyes are dull and glazed over, but the rest of her is glowing. All the light in the room bends toward her. She looks ethereal, like she is possessed with fury and rage.
  20. ward off
    repel or turn away
    The prayers are supposed to float to people who need the blessings the most and in the process ward off evil spirits that may be surrounding them.
  21. sow
    place seeds in or on the ground for future growth
    And so, as a man soweth the seeds in the Earth, so he must sow the seeds of light in his own heart to prevent darkness from washing over him, and he must submerge himself in the holiest of waters to ensure his safe passage into the Kingdom of Heaven.
  22. pomp
    ceremonial elegance and splendor
    Per usual, she looks irritated with the pomp and circumstance of church rituals.
  23. smattering
    a small number or amount
    I stare up and watch as the smattering of black balloons scatter across the big, open blue sky.
  24. transfixed
    having your attention fixated as though witchcraft
    As soon as I look back at it, I become paralyzed and transfixed again.
  25. sprawl
    sit or lie with one's limbs spread out
    Once we get there, we sprawl out in the prickly dead grass and begin spiraling our prayers.
  26. unrelenting
    never-ceasing
    Outside the unrelenting gaze of our parents, the field is the only place where we feel free to dream and talk about whatever we want.
  27. ambiguity
    unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning
    Even though everyone knows Jessie is mixed with black and white, people still regularly call him the little Mexican, little Hispanic, or little Indian boy to highlight the racial ambiguity of his features.
  28. wryly
    in a humorously sarcastic or mocking manner
    "Betta say yo prayers...,” he says, laughing wryly to himself.
  29. trajectory
    a progression or course of events, actions, or developments
    I try to think of ways to get Dre and Rone to follow me, to understand that what they do now will affect the trajectory of their lives, but they cannot seem to connect their current actions to their future realities.
  30. stint
    an unbroken period of time during which you do something
    I can’t yet imagine the pain that will befall my brothers: the long stints in prison, addiction to the white rocks, schizophrenia, intense bouts of depression....
  31. bout
    a period of indeterminate length marked by some condition
    I can’t yet imagine the pain that will befall my brothers: the long stints in prison, addiction to the white rocks, schizophrenia, intense bouts of depression....
  32. hysterical
    marked by excessive or uncontrollable emotion
    I glance over at Rone, Dre, Jessie, Tiffany, and Davante laughing hysterically while bouncing up the sidewalk, with the nine stray dogs following closely behind.
  33. decisive
    characterized by resoluteness and firmness
    My mother raises and lands the belt decisively against our bare arms and legs several times.
  34. wallow
    roll around
    Tiffany, Rone, and Davante all join Dre playing while the dogs wallow in the dry, brittle grass.
  35. paradox
    a statement that contradicts itself
    I realize the paradox of the shell: that it keeps out all the bad stuff, but it also keeps out all the good stuff.
Created on Mon Sep 13 12:27:03 EDT 2021 (updated Mon Sep 20 14:02:55 EDT 2021)

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