Out of the Dust Vocabulary Section by section

Out of the Dust Vocabulary Section by section

Bawling (V) Page 3 To cry or wail lustily She started bawling when her husband left for Iraq.

Scowl (n) Page 29 A threatening look or expression She gave him a scowl across the room when she read my note that said, “YOU ARE MEAN!”

Riled (V) Page 11 To irritate or vex; often followed by “up” Justin got his brother all riled up when he was hiding his teddy bear around the house.

Testy (adj) Page 12 Irritably impatient; touchy The lawyer started to get testy as he waited for the defendant to say his alibi.

Pestering (v) Page 32 To bother persistently with petty annoyances Sophia pestered her parents by asking them if she could have her ears pierced. How is this different than riled? Riled on purpose Pestering not REALLY purposeful

Dazzled (V) Page 24 To impress deeply Anyone that can perform any musical talent dazzles me beyond belief because it is such a talent.

Spindled (V) Page 26 To grow tall and slender, like a plant After not seeing her daughter for 20 years, she was surprised at how she spindled into such a wonderful young lady.

Ratcheted (V) Page 32 Cause of something to rise or fall, irreversibly During Hurricane Sandy, many trees ratcheted from the ground, never to be alive again.

Dazed (v) Page 39 To stun or stupify with a blow; shock The hurricane was so intense that I was dazed and couldn’t take my eyes off of the damage.

Bittering (adj) Page 41 Characterized by intense antagonism or hostility (hatred) He was bittering as he watched the person key his car in the parking lot from inside the restaurant.

Quaking (v) Page 41 To shake or tremble from cold, weakness, anger, etc. The small dog started to quake form the cold air outside during the blizzard.

Simmering (v) Page 41 To be in a state of restrained activity, development, excitement, anger The little girl was simmering with excitement as she opened up the gift she wanted on her birthday; She tried hard to not get out-of-

Grumble (v) Page 40 To murmur or mutter in discontent. I heard a student grumble under her breath as I told the class that they are going to have a pop quiz.

Gripe (v) Page 49 To complain naggingly or constantly The beauty pageant winner griped the entire camping trip about the weather, food, and activities.

Wisp (n) Page 39 A person or thing that is small, delicate, or barely discernable Babies’ hair can be described as wisps because they are so fine and delicate.

Withered (v) Page 39 To shrivel; fade; decay To dry up from loss of moisture Christmas trees often wither very quickly after being cut down from lack of water.

Kerosene (n) Page 60 Petroleum used as fuel, cleaning solvent, etc. Many people use kerosene in order to light their grill for cooking.

Chafed (V) Page 63 To make sore by rubbing Many marathon runners’ legs chafe together and create painful blisters and burns while running long distances

Carcassess (n) Page 73 The dead body of an animal On the way to school this morning I saw a deer carcass on the side of the road I don’t have a picture for this word (use your imagination)

Cereus Plant (n) Page 81 Of the cactus family, having large, white, funnel-shaped flowers Cereus plants are beautiful, but require a lot of maintenance.

Scorched (V) Page 66 To parch or shrivel from the heat No matter how much I try to stop it, the sun scorches the grass in my yard every summer.

Squirrelled (V) Page 67 To store or hide away (money or valuables) usually for future use I’ve been squirrelling away some money for awhile now; I may have enough for a down-payment on a house!

Quench (V) Page 67 To satisfy (thirst, desires, goals, etc.) Some people say that Gatorade quenches your thirst, but I think it makes me more thirsty.

Writhed (v) Page 73 To twist the body about, or squirm, as in pain When Lindsay was home with the flu, she writhed in her bed.

Stupor (N) Page 71 Mental torpor; suspension of sensibility caused by intoxicants. He was in such a stupor from the anesthesia that he couldn’t remember his name.

Grime (N) Page 104 Dirt, soot, or other filthy matter

Muck (N) Page 105 Moist farmyard dung, decaying vegetable matter

Revue (N) Page 91 A form of theatrical entertainment in which recent events are parodied

Thistle (N) Page 102 A prickly plant with purple flowers

Wager (N) Page Something risked or staked on an uncertain event

Infantile Paralysis (N) Page 115 Motor paralysis, eventually leading to atrophy and deformity

Migrant (N) Page 121 A person who moves from place to place to get work, especially a farm laborer

Forsaken (adj) Page 104 ** Abandoned, forlorn, deserted Forsaken towns are always pretty creepy; there’s no one around, and they feel like a dust town.

Parched (adj) Page 135 Extremely, excessively, or completely dry (or thirtsy) After climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, I was pretty parched from not having enough water breaks. My tongue felt like sandpaper and my lips were cracked.

Brittle (adj) Page 148 Easily damaged or destroyed; fragile; frail I always thought it would be funny if a package came and it said “brittle” instead of “fragile” on it. It’s more fun to say.

Bleary (adj) Page 113*** Blurred or dimmed; indistinct; unclear The old photograph of the grandparents was so bleary and blurry that I couldn’t tell which was the grandma and which was the grandpa!

Warped (adj) Page 157 Bent or twisted out of shape The warped fork was unable to pick up any of my spaghetti noodles since the prongs were no longer in the correct shape.

Rickety (adj) Page 161 Likely to fall or collapse; shaky; TOTTERY The rickety rocking chair from the 1500s did not seem like it could hold my weight, so I didn’t even attempt to sit.

Sulking (v) Page 163 To remain silent or hold oneself aloof in a dreary mood After a poor test grade, Susie found herself sulking and unable to speak with her friends for the rest of the day.

Desperation (n) Page 164 The state of being in urgent or dire need of something Billie Jo’s town was in such a state of desperation, they used the sugar from the moonshiners to make

Hospitality (n) Page 165 The friendly reception and treatment of guests and strangers Phoebe did not think that Sal had exceptional hospitality at her house until Sal offered her own bed for Phoebe.

Charred (adj) Page 157 Burnt or reduced to charcoal; burn or scorched slightly (an object) Once graduated from high school, my brother and his friends had a bonfire, turning their notes into charred rubble.

Staggered (V) Page 162 To walk, move, or stand unsteadily After going on the teacups for the fourth time, Shanli staggered around Disney World for 4 hours.

Procession (n) Page 163 The act of moving along in an orderly succession or ceremonial manner Walking down the aisle in a wedding procession is something that many girls dream about for their whole lives.

Bitterness (n) Page 195 Resentment; a feeling of deep anger The bitterness he felt after his father sold the land out from under him cause the son to not speak to his father for 10 years.

Tumbleweed (n) Page 202 Like a detached thistle blowing in the wind. The epiphany of a western movie is seeing a tumbleweed blowing across the screen.

Mottled (adj) Page 209 Of diversifying color or shade; spotted, blotched The mottled skin of the young woman showed that she went through a horrific house fire when she was younger.

Diversification (n) Page 226 The act or process of varying or changing The amount of diversification of a science experiment can change the outcome immensely.

Betrothal (adj) 226 Normally a noun, but in the book it is an adjective. This term is now very outdated. Engagement (gift) Giving a woman a ring shows the promise to marry or wed that woman. It is also known as a betrothal.