What Beauty There Is: Chapters 20–33

by Cory Anderson
Idaho teenager Ava Bardem, daughter of a murderous thief, opposes her father by helping the sons of his imprisoned accomplice.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–9, Chapters 10–19, Chapters 20–33, Chapters 32–25, Chapters 24–∞
40 words 6 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. prone
    lying face downward
    He lay behind the rifle, prone, and nestled the stock into the pocket of his shoulder.
  2. suspension
    a mechanical system of springs or shock absorbers
    He walked along the edge of the road, studying the abandoned truck: a rebuilt Bronco with a lifted suspension and off-road tires.
  3. gauge
    an instrument for measuring and indicating a quantity
    The needle of the gas gauge pointed to empty.
  4. skein
    coils of worsted yarn
    Above him, snow drifted in powdery skeins through charred holes in the roof.
  5. obsidian
    glass formed by the cooling of lava without crystallization
    His eyes landed on Jack. Lustrous, like wet obsidian.
  6. toll
    ring slowly
    Dull pain tolled like a bell inside Jack.
  7. indifferent
    showing no care or concern in attitude or action
    Leland hunched casually in his chair, looking at Doyle. His eyes hooded, indifferent. He just sat there staring.
  8. appraise
    consider in a comprehensive way
    “You ought not lie to me, Leland.”
    Leland appraised him.
  9. opaque
    not transmitting or reflecting light or radiant energy
    A dull expression in his eyes. Opaque. Like a drawn curtain.
  10. acute
    experiencing a rapid onset and short but severe course
    A wave of relief spread through him, so acute he had to bend and hold the edge of the bed.
  11. permeate
    spread or diffuse through
    The glowy light of the television permeated the room.
  12. tentative
    hesitant or lacking confidence; unsettled in mind or opinion
    She dampened a towel with warm water and rewet his hair with it. Her touch tentative.
  13. mull
    reflect deeply on a subject
    She stood in front of him with the scissors, considering his hair, mulling over her choices.
  14. transient
    lasting a very short time
    Everything transient in the light. Everything fleeting.
  15. fleeting
    lasting for a markedly brief time
    Everything transient in the light. Everything fleeting.
  16. tinge
    color lightly
    He lay there in the small paradise, tinged in blue light.
  17. divination
    the art or gift of prophecy by supernatural means
    There was smoke in the air, and on the table sat a big bowl filled with loose incense. It burned on coals, to assist her divinations.
  18. pungent
    strong and sharp to the sense of taste or smell
    Coriander, hemp, fennel. A pungent smell. Spicy, bitter.
  19. dainty
    delicately beautiful
    On the table, a dainty porcelain tea set stood with lemon wedges and homemade shortbread cookies cut into heart shapes.
  20. ornate
    marked by complexity and richness of detail
    On the table, her ornate phone sparkled in the candlelight.
  21. incense
    a substance that produces a fragrant odor when burned
    With jeweled fingers, Bev pinched fresh incense from a nearby jar and sprinkled it over the coals.
  22. convex
    curving or bulging outward
    Then she moved the incense aside and lifted the dark mirror. It fit in the palm of her hand, round in shape and framed in black pewter. The glass slightly convex, like an eye.
  23. fervently
    with strong emotion or zeal
    “No,” Red said fervently.
  24. idle
    run disconnected
    At the end of the street, the truck slowed. It stirred up the snow and idled in a billow of white.
  25. incompetence
    lack of physical or intellectual ability or qualifications
    He tried to think of something to say. What could he say? No words for this. He felt his incompetence bitterly and jabbed at his eyes and kissed Matty’s head.
  26. gait
    a person's manner of walking
    His gait had been odd, maybe injured.
  27. encumbered
    loaded to excess or impeded by a heavy load
    His gait had been odd, maybe injured. Or encumbered. After a few steps the smaller prints disappeared.
    So he’d carried the little one.
  28. untainted
    (of reputation) free from blemishes
    We all come into this world untainted by experience. Pure.
  29. impeccable
    without error or flaw
    Without defect. Six trillion cells of impeccable biology. Molecules and protein.
  30. immaculate
    free from stain or blemish
    Dreams break, hopes shatter. Love is lost. That immaculate luster dims. There’s the damage, Ava. The weakness. Life breaks the perfect mold we started from, and we dull, and we tarnish.
  31. halcyon
    idyllically calm and peaceful; suggesting happy tranquility
    He looks at her. The blue eyes clear as water. Halcyon.
  32. impervious
    not admitting of passage or capable of being affected
    “You become impervious.”
  33. fluster
    behave in a confused manner
    She flusters. “How do you do that?”
  34. conifer
    a type of tree or shrub bearing cones
    He burrows down between the dark trunks of conifer trees, and she mimics his every movement.
  35. consistency
    uniformity or stability in arrangement, behavior, or quality
    “You will practice holding the same position. Steady. Solid. Stable. The same position each time, changing nothing. Accuracy is a function of consistency. Understand?”
  36. dappled
    having spots or patches of color
    As she lies there, looking out across the snow-mantled field and into the dark line of trees, a brief shape bounds through dappled sunlight.
  37. lithe
    moving and bending with ease
    It’s a deer. Lithe, graceful.
  38. tousle
    disarrange or rumple; dishevel
    He drained the water and wrapped Matty in a towel and tousled his hair to dry it.
  39. matinee
    a theatrical performance held during the daytime
    He wished he could take Matty to a library somewhere and read him a book or draw pictures on white sheets of paper, or maybe take him to see a matinee. Get popcorn and sodas.
  40. scrawl
    poor handwriting
    He switched on the little lamp and sat and studied the handwriting. Scrawl of watersplotched words, slanting to the right.
Created on Thu Jun 13 09:45:10 EDT 2024 (updated Fri Jun 14 10:47:42 EDT 2024)

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