Chapter 4 - Vocabulary

auspicious (adj.): favorable
melancholy (adj.): sad and gloomy
quelling (of) nausea: (v. + n.): To quell something is to quiet or pacify it. Nausea is the feeling you get when your stomach is upset and you feel as if you're about to vomit. Scout is trying to quell her nausea, or make her stomach settle down.
scuppernongs (n.): a sweet table grape, grown chiefly in the Southern United States. See a picture of scuppernongs.

Chapter 5 - Vocabulary

asinine (adj.): stupid; silly
benevolence (n.): in this case, a generous or thoughtful gift
benign (adj.): kind and gentle
bridgework (n.): Unlike dentures, which replace the upper or lower sets of teeth, bridgework is made up of sections of replacement teeth that can be inserted and removed from one's mouth.
chameleon (adj.) In nature, chameleons are tree-dwelling lizards that have the unusual ability to change the color of their skin in order to blend into their surroundings. By calling Miss Maudie a chameleon lady, Scout points out the fact that her neighbor's appearance was as changeable as one of the lizards. Learn more about chameleons, and see some pictures of chameleons.
cordiality (n.): sincere affection and kindness
edification (n.): education; instruction
gaped (vb.): To gape at someone is to stare at that person with your mouth open. See a rather extreme example of gaping.
inquisitive (adj.): questioning; prying
mimosa (n): Also called a silk tree, a mimosa can be either a tree or a shrub. Look at a picture of a mimosa flower.
morbid (adj.): gruesome; horrible
placidly (adv.): calmly; quietly
Protestant (adj.): Protestant is the name applied to any number of Christian churches, such as Baptist, Methodist, and Lutheran.
pulpit Gospel (adj. + n.): A pulpit is the raised platform or lectern from which a preacher speaks in church. The Gospel refers to the teachings of Jesus Christ, specifically the first four books of the New Testament. Scout says that her faith in what she's heard about the teachings of Christ from the pulpit(preacher) in her own church has been shaken a bit.
quibbling (vb.): a type of arguing where you avoid the main point by bringing up petty details
tacit (adj.) An agreement, or, in this case, a "treaty" that is tacit is one that has been silently agreed upon. Thus, the children know that they can play on Miss Maudie's front lawn even though she never directly told them that it was all right to do so.


Chapter 6 - Vocabulary
collards (n.): a type of cabbage with very coarse leaves. It would be difficult to walk quietly through a patch of collards. See a picture of a collard patch.
dismemberment (n.): To dismember someone is to tear or cut that person's limbs (arms and legs) off. Although it is unlikely that anyone would have actually pulled off Dill's arms and legs, Lee uses the word to point out how outraged Miss Rachel must have been to discover that the children had been playing strip poker.
eerily (adv.): weirdly; mysteriously
ensuing (adj.): Something that ensues is something that comes immediately after something else.
Franklin stove (n.): a cast iron heating stove, invented by Benjamin Franklin. See a picture of a Franklin stove.
kudzu (n.): a quick-growing vine with large leaves, often found in the Southern United States. See a picture of kudzu.
lattice-work (adj.): A lattice is an openwork structure of crossed strips or bars, as in a screen. (See a picture of a lattice screen.) Light that passes through any kind of a lattice -work would produce lattice-work shadows.
malignant (adj.): dangerous; evil
prowess (n.): superior ability or skill
ramshackle (adj.): loose or rickety; about to fall apart
respiration (n.): breathing
rigid (adj.): stiff
waning (adj.): becoming less bright, intense, or strong. The moonlight is waning because it's getting closer to morning, and the moon is changing its position in the sky.

Chapter 7 - Vocabulary

cleaved (vb.): stuck
gnats (n.): small, two-winged insects that can bite or sting. [Pronounced: NAT] See a picture of a gnat.
meditative (adj.): To meditate is to reflect upon something, or think about it. When Jem give the patch on the tree a meditative pat, he does so in a thoughtful manner.
palate (n.): the roof of one's mouth
perpetual embalming (adj. + n.): Something that is perpetual lasts forever. Embalming is the process of preserving a dead body. Think of Egyptian mummies, or unwrap a virtual mummy. As Atticus later says, Jem would do well to get rid of the adjective (perpetual) . The Egyptians invented a type of paper (not toilet paper), as well as embalming (which, by its very nature, is perpetual) .
rendered (her) speechless: (vb. + n.): made her unable to speak
vigil (n.): a watch. Jem is waiting and watching for Mr. Nathan to appear.
whittles (vb.): To whittle is to use a knife to cut away thin shavings of wood. Sometimes, a whittler may actually end up carving a recognizable object.