Chapter 1-20 Vocabulary

The wrestler struggled to grapple his opponent to the ground.

 

What does the word 'grapple' mean?

• having or showing the attitude of people who speak and

  behave in a very formal and serious way because they believe that they are better,

  smarter, or more important than other people

• to try to solve a problem : to deal with a problem

• decayed with usually a very bad or disgusting smell

• to make (someone) feel very ashamed or foolish

I have verified the signatures to be those of Samuel W. Westing and his two witnesses:

Julian R. Eastman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Westing Paper Products

Corporation, and Sidney Sikes, M.D., Coroner of Westing County. Although the will

you are about to hear may seem eccentric, I pledge my good name and reputation

on its legality.”

What does the word eccentric mean in this sentence?

• not having enough of something (such as money or food) for

  comfort or happiness

• decayed with usually a very bad or disgusting smell

• very pleasant to taste

• tending to act in strange or unusual ways

She was more interested in the two men entering the room: the burly male nurse and

that creep of a lawyer, Plum.

What does the word burly mean in this sentence?

• very pleasant to taste

• tending to act in strange or unusual ways

• strong and heavy

• not having enough of something (such as money or food) for

  comfort or happiness

Then one day (it happened to be the Fourth of July), a most uncommon-looking

delivery boy rode around town slipping letters under the doors of the chosen tenants-

to-be.

What does the word tenants mean in this sentence?

• a person, business, group, etc., that pays to use another person's

  property : someone who rents or leases a house, apartment, etc., from a landlord

• the act of carefully examining something especially in a critical

  way : the act of scrutinizing something

• the quality or state of being weak or ill especially because of old

  age

• a food served in small portions before the main part of a meal

“When I saw the invitation in the elevator I suggested to Mr. Hoo that he call the

judge to see if she needed hors d’oeuvres; and sure enough, he got an order for six

dozen.”

What does the word hors d'oeuvre mean in this sentence?

• the act of carefully examining something especially in a critical

  way : the act of scrutinizing something

• a person who tries to win something in a contest especially : a

  person who has a good chance of winning

• very pleasant to taste

• a food served in small portions before the main part of a meal

“Not so bad. I picked up odd jobs here and there after I got fired from the Westing

plant for trying to organize the union, but mostly I boxed. I wasn’t no middleweight

contender, but I wasn’t bad, either.

What does the word contender mean in this sentence?

• to select or choose (someone or something) from a group

• a person who tries to win something in a contest especially : a

  person who has a good chance of winning

• the quality or state of being weak or ill especially because of old

  age

• a person, business, group, etc., that pays to use another person's

  property : someone who rents or leases a house, apartment, etc., from a landlord

In it he painstakingly entered the information culled from reports the private

detective delivered each day to Judge Ford’s office: photostats of birth

certificates, death notices, marriage licenses, drivers’ licenses, vehicular accident

reports, criminal records, hospital records, school records. To these the doorman

added the results of his own snooping.

What does the word cull mean in this sentence?

• to laugh loudly

• to make (someone) feel very ashamed or foolish

• to try to solve a problem : to deal with a problem

• to select or choose (someone or something) from a group

Theo leaned closer. “And high above the putrid corpse a crystal chandelier is

tinkling. It tinkles and twinkles, but not one breath of air stirs in that gloomy tomb of

a room.”

What does the word putrid mean in this sentence?

• decayed with usually a very bad or disgusting smell

• not having enough of something (such as money or food) for

  comfort or happiness

• tending to act in strange or unusual ways

• having or showing the attitude of people who speak and

  behave in a very formal and serious way because they believe that they are better,

  smarter, or more important than other people

“Then we are still waiting for one, no, two more,” the lawyer said, fumbling with

his papers, his hands shaking under the strict scrutiny of the judge.

What does the word scrutiny mean in this sentence?

• the quality or state of being weak or ill especially because of old

  age

• a food served in small portions before the main part of a meal

• the act of carefully examining something especially in a critical

  way : the act of scrutinizing something

• the fact or state of being involved in or connected to something

  (such as a crime)

Oh, it wasn’t just that. It wasn’t even the humiliation of her mother chiding her about

the “twin” costume (in front of everybody) and sending her back to their apartment

to change clothes. It was more than that, it was everything.

What does the word humiliate mean in this sentence?

• to make (someone) feel very ashamed or foolish

• to laugh loudly

• to select or choose (someone or something) from a group

• to try to solve a problem : to deal with a problem