Words to Know: "Taming the Fear Monster"

Words to Know: "Taming the Fear Monster"

Let's review some of the terms you'll encounter during your paired text study of "Taming the Fear Monster" and "Conquering Fear"

Term 1: Cower

[COW-er] verb

To cower is to crouch down or curl up because you are very scared of something. If your dog is frightened by loud noises, she might cower under the bed during a thunderstorm.

Open Ended

Write a caption for this photo using the term cower

Term #2: Dissipate

[DIS-uh-peyt] verb

If something dissipates, it breaks up and disappears or fades away. If you bump your funny bone, it hurts a lot, but the pain dissipates quickly. The image shows fog dissipating. You can also use dissipate to mean “to cause something to break up and disappear or fade away.”

Open Ended

Use the term "dissipate" in your own, original sentence.

Term #3: Elder

[EL-der] adjective or noun

As an adjective, elder means “older.” If your sister is older than you, she is your elder sister.

As a noun, elder means “a person who is older than you are.” All adults are your elders. Elder is also used to mean “a person who has authority because of their age and experience.”

Multiple Choice

Photo A shows Sophie's best friends from school. Photo B shows Sophie's grandparents. Which photo shows Sophie's elders?

Term #4: Hover

[HUHV-er] verb

Hover can mean “to fly or float in the air without moving very far in any direction.” You might see a helicopter hovering over the highway.

Hover can also mean “to stay very near to a person, place, or level.” Your dog might hover around the table while you eat, hoping you’ll drop something.

Multiple Choice

That's Alison in the photo. She just said this to her sister: "Faith, please stop hovering!" What is Faith doing?

• making a lot of noise

• cleaning

• following Alison around at a close distance

• swinging her arms around like a helicopter

Term #5: Irrational

[ih-RASH-uh-nl] adjective

Something that is rational is based on reason. It is logical and based on facts, not on emotions. Something that is irrational is exactly the opposite: It is not based on reason or facts. If Ben is absolutely terrified of spiders even though he knows in his mind that most spiders will not hurt him, he has an irrational fear of spiders.

Multiple Choice

Which is irrational?

• being afraid to swim in the ocean at a beach where sharks have recently been spotted

• being afraid to swim in a pool because maybe somehow a shark got in there

Term #6: Orb

[awrb] noun

An orb is an object that is shaped like a ball. An orange, a basketball, and the Earth are orbs.

Multiple Choice

Which yard decoration could be described as an orb?

Term #7: Sneer

[sneer] verb or noun

To sneer is to smile or laugh in a fake, unkind way that shows dislike and disrespect. Sneer can also mean “to speak or write in a way that expresses dislike and disrespect.”

As a noun, sneer can refer to the expression on a person’s face when they are sneering, as in, “Jake had a sneer on his face.”

Multiple Choice

Brian's sister just suggested having a family sing-along. Brian sneered at the idea. What did Brian say?

• “Sure, that sounds really fun!”

• “A family sing-along? That’s the worst idea ever.”

Term #8: Trepidation

[trep-ih-DAY-shuhn] noun

Trepidation is a feeling of fear, nervousness, and uncertainty about something bad that you think is going to happen. You might feel trepidation as you walk down the stairs into a dark, creepy basement. In this video, the dog feels trepidation about getting close enough to the cat to grab his toy.

Fill in the Blank

Complete the sentence: I approached the ___ with trepidation.

Poll

Rate your understanding of the vocabulary terms in this slideshow.

• 1 - I read the definitions, but I don't understand how to use these terms in a sentence.

• 2 - I understand the definitions of the terms, but I don't think I could use them in a sentence yet.

• 3 - I have a basic understanding of each term, and could use them in a complete sentence.

• 4 - I really understand these words! I could teach them to someone else, or use them in my everyday speech.