The Ice Cream Machine: Story II

by Adam Rubin
In this collection, all six stories feature an ice cream machine with different characters and situations, from a five-armed robot to an alien space lab.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Story I, Story II, Story III, Story IV, Story V, Story VI
40 words 6 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. maneuver
    move skillfully, as around obstacles or into a position
    As a human who wasn’t quite fully grown, Penelope found the old mower difficult to maneuver, but this was the third time she’d cut the elderly owl’s lawn since moving to town that fall, and she was starting to get the hang of it.
  2. pristine
    immaculately clean and unused
    When she finished, the grass looked pristine.
  3. squelch
    suppress or crush completely
    Penelope struggled to squelch a squeal.
  4. shorn
    having the hair, fur, or wool cut short
    Picnicking pandas, sunbathing sheep (freshly shorn), a family of crabs playing volleyball: It was a veritable menagerie of beachside recreation.
  5. veritable
    being truly so called; real or genuine
    Picnicking pandas, sunbathing sheep (freshly shorn), a family of crabs playing volleyball: It was a veritable menagerie of beachside recreation.
  6. striking
    having a quality that thrusts itself into attention
    Wally insisted his stand was not designed to look like a toilet, but even he had to admit that there was a striking resemblance.
  7. advisable
    worthy of being recommended or suggested; prudent or wise
    It is not advisable to run while holding something as delicate and valuable as a Five-Dollar Fudgey Plop (let alone two of them).
  8. delicate
    easily broken or damaged or destroyed
    It is not advisable to run while holding something as delicate and valuable as a Five-Dollar Fudgey Plop (let alone two of them).
  9. delinquent
    a young offender
    “Let’s go throw rocks at cars,” said Ian, and the three delinquents slunk down the block, leaving Penelope alone.
  10. prod
    poke or thrust abruptly
    Each held a poking stick for prodding the piles of random stuff that had fallen from the boardwalk above.
  11. collective
    done by or characteristic of individuals acting together
    The animals breathed a collective sigh of relief and resumed chatting happily.
  12. impound
    take temporary possession of by legal authority
    If anyone parked in the wrong place at the wrong time, their vehicle got towed to the impound lot.
  13. pique
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
    All the talk about brain freeze had piqued Penelope’s curiosity.
  14. scrounge
    collect or look around for
    After another hour of searching for coins under the boardwalk, the Perez sisters managed to scrounge up enough change to buy a Cruncheroo.
  15. skeptical
    marked by or given to doubt
    “I don’t get brain freeze.”
    Wally looked skeptical.
  16. hideous
    so extremely ugly as to be terrifying
    The packaging was a hideous combination of green, red, yellow, and orange.
  17. zesty
    having an agreeably pungent taste
    The design looked like an explosion of confetti, and the only thing that Penelope could read through the frost was ZESTY!
  18. monstrosity
    something hideous or frightful
    “If you can eat this iced monstrosity without freezing your brain, I’ll sign you up for the contest myself.”
  19. frilly
    having decorative ruffles or similar ornamentation
    She rummaged around in some dusty boxes and found a frilly pink dress, a fuzzy winter hat, and a feather boa.
  20. commerce
    transactions supplying goods and services
    “This year’s ice cream eating contest is sponsored by our local chamber of commerce and, of course, Wally’s Ice Cream Pot.”
  21. menagerie
    a collection of live animals for study or display
    An exotic menagerie of misfits paraded across the stage: a poodle wearing ski goggles, a pelican in a cape, and a hedgehog covered in glitter, among others.
  22. bound
    move forward by leaping
    He bounded onstage, effortlessly lifted the giant trophy, and held it as if it were a guitar.
  23. wince
    draw back, as with fear or pain
    He just laughed and pointed at the hippo, who was lying on the stage, wincing with pain.
  24. sludge
    any thick, viscous matter
    He lifted his carton, tipped back his head, and let the ice cream pour down his throat without even swallowing. It was like dumping sludge into a garbage chute.
  25. globule
    a small drop or ball of something
    The pig shook loose the remaining globules from the bottom of the container and slurped them away and licked his lips.
  26. bask
    derive or receive pleasure from
    He tossed the empty carton aside and stood, ready to bask in his victory.
  27. feedback
    the process in which output of a system is returned to input
    The microphone screeched with feedback.
  28. assume
    take to be the case or to be true
    The audience simply assumed Professor Freeze was having tummy troubles. He had just eaten an entire gallon of ice cream, after all.
  29. usher
    accompany or escort
    Just then, Wally waddled over and ushered the girls outside.
  30. indifferent
    showing no care or concern in attitude or action
    Pam, who was indifferent to spiders, searched by her feet.
  31. saunter
    walk leisurely and with no apparent aim
    Brock sauntered up to the Ice Cream Pot and took off his sunglasses.
  32. vamoose
    leave suddenly
    “Why did he vamoose before the trophy presentation?”
  33. confiscate
    take temporary possession of a security by legal authority
    Though it had given him great pleasure to confiscate the thing from the pig at the impound lot, now he was almost tempted to throw it away.
  34. behemoth
    someone or something that is abnormally large and powerful
    It was hard to get any work done with the behemoth prize distracting him.
  35. lumber
    move heavily or clumsily
    Wally was surprised and a bit nervous to see the giant pig lumbering toward his stand on the boardwalk.
  36. indomitable
    impossible to subdue
    “I was wondering if you had any information about your indomitable friend Professor Freeze.”
  37. rig
    arrange the outcome of by means of deceit
    “No one can know you won the contest! They’ll accuse us of cheating.” He pleaded with the girls. “They’ll think it was rigged—that we’re in cahoots! Everyone will be furious!”
  38. reminisce
    recall the past
    Folks were laughing and patting him on the shoulder, reminiscing about past ice cream eating contests.
  39. regale
    occupy in an agreeable, entertaining or pleasant fashion
    They would sit in the park while the pig regaled them with thrilling stories of past battles and events, acting out the parts and even doing different accents.
  40. queasy
    feeling nausea
    He revealed his secret tummy trouble and admitted how afraid he was of being teased for it. He wanted to be an ice cream eating champion too, but he couldn’t even take a whiff of the stuff without feeling queasy.
Created on Tue Nov 28 16:03:57 EST 2023 (updated Wed Nov 29 14:21:50 EST 2023)

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