Rules: Pages 145–200

by Cynthia Lord
To help her younger brother make sense of life in Maine (and avoid embarrassment), twelve-year-old Catherine writes down a list of rules.

This list covers pages 145–200 in the 2006 Scholastic Press edition.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4
12 words 563 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. surge
    rise or move forward
    Jason positions his hand on the joystick, and the chair surges — a foot forward, then back.
  2. preen
    clean with one's bill
    At the long town wharf, a seagull stands on twig legs, facing the wind, shaking his feathers dry. He reaches around to preen his wing as a group of preschoolers leans over the wharf railing, dropping rocks off the side.
  3. tempt
    dispose, incline, or entice to
    Kneeling in front of the poster board, there’s so much whiteness, I’m tempted to find a soft-lead pencil and draw tiny footprints, maybe two sets, walking through a windswept field of snow.
  4. flushed
    reddened as if with blood from emotion or exertion
    For a change I’m glad to see David standing there, his face flushed from swinging.
  5. acoustic
    relating to music or instruments that are not electronic
    Four guitars rest against the side of the drums.
    Elliot shows them to me, and I can almost afford the cheapest acoustic one.
  6. sprawling
    spreading out in different directions
    On Saturday Mom parks our car in front of a sprawling modern house with tall windows and a long wooden ramp leading to the front door.
  7. muted
    being or made softer or less loud or clear
    My pulse beats with my footsteps on the ramp, and as I get closer to Jason’s front door, I hear a thumping bass line and muted laughter.
  8. linger
    remain present although waning or gradually dying
    I lay it across his wheelchair and he traces his fingers across the strings. It sounds rich and mysterious, lingering in the air even after his hand moves away.
  9. strict
    characterized by severity or restraint
    I throw David a strict look as he picks a bite of cake off his plate with his fingers.
  10. fleeting
    lasting for a markedly brief time
    David stops rocking and gives me a fleeting look.
  11. bleachers
    set of tiered seats from which an audience watches an event
    Alone on the bleachers I run my hands over my knees to wipe the sweat away.
  12. groove
    a long narrow furrow cut by a natural process or a tool
    My fingers trace a cut in the wood of the bleacher beside me, over and over. I slide my fingers along the groove, feeling every bump.
Created on Sun Jul 27 20:37:09 EDT 2014 (updated Mon Aug 04 15:51:25 EDT 2025)

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