"The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" Vocab Review

nebulae

• a cloud of gas and dust in outer space, visible in the night sky either as an indistinct bright patch or as a dark silhouette against other luminous matter
• agitated or confused
• spread through and be perceived in every part of
• creased, ruffled, or disheveled in appearance

dimension

• an expression for a derived physical quantity in terms of fundamental quantities such as mass, length, or time, raised to the appropriate power; an aspect or feature of a situation, problem, or thing
• hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something
• showing or suffering from nervousness, fear, or a lack of confidence
• meeting at a point; coming together

horizon

• the line at which the earth's surface and the sky appear to meet; the limit of a person's mental perception, experience, or interest
• the quality of being logically or factually sound; soundness or cogency
• conforming to the law or to rules
• a feeling of being perplexed and confused

reflective

• relating to or characterized by deep thought; thoughtful
• in spite of that; nevertheless
• high-pitched and piercing
• deriving from or affected by uncontrolled extreme emotion

intelligible

• able to be understood; comprehensible
• full of or showing a disposition to challenge, resist, or fight
• a feeling or thought that something is possible, likely, or true
• scatter among or between other things; place here and there

wonderment

• a state of awed admiration or respect
• in a way that cannot be explained or accounted for
• a mode of behavior or way of thought peculiar to an individual
• a complicated or confused situation

flustered

• agitated or confused
• a change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one, by natural or supernatural means
• an unofficial court held by a group of people in order to try someone regarded, especially without good evidence, as guilty of a crime or misdemeanor
• covered or enveloped so as to conceal from view

optimism

• hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something
• stretched or pulled tight; not slack; (especially of muscles or nerves) tense; not relaxed
• a person or thing that is likely to cause harm; a threat or danger
• cast or show (someone or something) as a dark shape and outline against a lighter background

validity

• the quality of being logically or factually sound; soundness or cogency
• intelligently analytical and clear-thinking
• a person who is blamed for the wrongdoings, mistakes, or faults of others, especially for reasons of expediency
• of uncertain, indefinite, or unclear character or meaning

nonetheless

• in spite of that; nevertheless
• put oneself deliberately into a place or situation where one is unwelcome or uninvited
• something that became actual fact; happened
• the adverse side effects or results of a situation