Hummingbird: Chapters 1–6

by Natalie Lloyd
Eleven-year-old Olive Miracle Martin searches the Tennessee woods for a magical hummingbird to grant her wish for stronger bones so that she could be a normal middle schooler.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–15, Chapters 16–23, Chapters 24–34
40 words 43 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. fateful
    having momentous consequences; of decisive importance
    The first thing I remember about that fateful morning is Uncle Dash swerving my family’s van into the parking lot of New River Church.
  2. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    He’d barely spoken that last word when Luther Frye hobbled past the car wearing his best white shirt and overalls.
  3. plumb
    completely
    “Like my heart’s too full. Something’s up today. I’m plumb sick over it. I don’t even know if we should go inside.”
  4. prodigal
    recklessly wasteful
    Back when I was a baby, Dash left town and entered a season my family refers to as “the prodigal years.” He came home tattooed, broke, and brokenhearted.
  5. swanky
    impressively fashionable and elegant
    Also, I get to hang out with Mama most days, and she’s entirely swanky.
  6. custom
    made according to the specifications of an individual
    In case you’re curious, I have two wheelchairs. They both have names: Dolly and Reba. Dolly’s my sparkly, custom-fitted, go-to set of wheels.
  7. amble
    walk leisurely
    Then he ambled around back so he could unload my wheelchair.
  8. foyer
    a large entrance or reception room or area
    “Wait here,” I said to Dash when he paused inside the foyer.
  9. fellowship
    an association of people who share beliefs or activities
    Before we begin this morning, would you take some time to greet your neighbor? Shake their hand. Give them a hug. And let them know why you’re glad they’re here. Miss Melba, would you come play us a fellowship tune while we mingle?
  10. considerable
    large in number, amount, extent, or degree
    “I mean, I’m only eleven. Life’s bound to change considerably.”
  11. neutral
    lacking distinguishing quality or characteristics
    “My wheelchair isn’t terrible. It’s just a wheelchair. It’s neutral. It’s like a bicycle. Like a plane. Like a skateboard with a seat. Minus the half-pipes.”
  12. premonition
    an early warning about a future event
    Dash’s head was nearly between his knees on account of the premonitions.
  13. brittle
    not annealed and consequently easily cracked or fractured
    All it takes is a little fall for me to break a leg. A too-tight squeeze to crack a rib. I was born with brittle bones and that’s never gonna change.
  14. hull
    dry outer covering of a fruit or seed or nut
    But that moment—that prayer—had left me feeling as hollow as an acorn hull.
  15. patella
    a small flat triangular bone in front of the knee
    Candy bones,
    Glass bones,
    OI is the reason I am fragile.

    Femur.
    Patella.
    Socket.
    Tibia.
    Fibula.

    More magic-sounding words that are only bones,
    Bones that are built to connect and grow and build a body.
  16. shaft
    a column of light
    If I lived in a novel,
    I could have bones made of lace,
    or ribbon,
    or icy spiderwebs,
    or sharp shafts of rainbow light.
  17. addled
    confused and vague; used especially of thinking
    By the looks of things, however, I wasn’t nearly as addled by the encounter as she’d been.
  18. lurch
    move suddenly or as if unable to control one's movements
    She tapped the brakes just enough to make us both lurch forward.
  19. audacity
    aggressive or outright boldness
    “I can’t believe some random stranger had the audacity to waltz up and pray for you to be healed. As if there’s something wrong with you. BACON!”
  20. partial
    being or affecting only a segment
    I squealed, partially out of fear but a little bit out of excitement, too.
  21. divine
    resulting from heavenly providence
    But Mama didn’t name me Miracle because she was hoping for a divine bone transformation.
  22. gauzy
    so thin as to transmit light
    “Whoa” was all I could manage before we were engulfed by a thick cloud of gauzy white.
  23. molt
    cast off hair, skin, horn, or feathers
    I had no clue where the birds were from. Or why they were molting all over the van at exactly the same time.
  24. engulf
    flow over or cover completely
    The song was only on the third verse when the cloud that engulfed us blew away.
  25. yurt
    a circular domed dwelling that is portable
    And then there’s Jupiter, who lives about forty-five feet away from our back door in a yurt.
  26. hodgepodge
    a motley assortment of things
    I think every family’s glued together in its own hodgepodge way.
  27. articulate
    express or state clearly
    “I’ve got one chance to articulate the deepest dream of my soul,” I told Felix.
  28. deluge
    a heavy rain
    Tiny raindrops turned into a rushing deluge of sound.
  29. quirky
    strikingly unconventional
    Maybe that’s not super weird: We’ve all got quirky habits.
  30. meander
    move or cause to move in a winding or curving course
    For as long as he’s lived here, in rain or snow or gross humidity, he grabs a flashlight and goes meandering into the darkness.
  31. alma mater
    a school you graduated from
    He’s the PE teacher at Macklemore Middle School, my future alma mater.
  32. cue
    a reminder for some action or speech
    “Is something on your mind, Olive?”
    At last! My cue!
  33. flourish
    make steady progress
    As I’ve mentioned once or twice, I want to go to Macklemore Middle School. Not just go visit. But actually be a student there. A sixth-grade student. I can feel it in my soul: Macklemore is the place where I’ll flourish and bloom.
  34. tangent
    a message that departs from the main subject
    This was a tangent I hadn’t anticipated. Hatch never pays attention to what I say.
  35. abject
    most unfortunate or miserable
    I would describe the look in them as utter and abject fear.
  36. frustration
    the feeling of being thwarted in attaining your goals
    “Then it never will be,” I said. Frustration rang out like a soft explosion in my soul.
  37. oriented
    adjusted or located in relation to surroundings
    “Just look out for her?” Coach Malone said. “You’d be in the same class. Help her get oriented, maybe.”
  38. overwhelm
    overcome, as with emotions or perceptual stimuli
    The sudden urge to fling a handful of spaghetti at Hatch Malone’s face overwhelmed me.
  39. decree
    decide with authority
    To my great shock, Mama decreed: “Maybe it’s time.”
  40. delicate
    easily broken or damaged or destroyed
    We watched the feathers land on the window, then tremble for a heartbeat before they faded to dust. In the seconds before they disappeared, they were beautiful: sparkling and icy-white, delicate as butterfly bones on the glass.
Created on Mon Apr 03 09:51:59 EDT 2023 (updated Tue Apr 04 13:29:29 EDT 2023)

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