Aviva vs. the Dybbuk: Chapters 4–8

by Mari Lowe
First appearing after her father's death, the dybbuk is a spirit that eleven-year-old Aviva Jacobs believes is causing trouble within her Jewish neighborhood.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: "Before"–Chapter 3, Chapters 4–8, Chapters 9–14, Chapters 15–19
40 words 11 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. aback
    by surprise
    Ema looks taken aback, suddenly overwhelmed, and I say quickly, "You don't have to go. You have a lot of work to do at the mikvah, and you might be busy that day—"
  2. ovation
    enthusiastic recognition
    I messed up my lines onstage and started laughing and wasn't able to stop until I ran offstage. When I got home, I told Ema that I got a standing ovation.
  3. ruefully
    in a manner expressing pain or sorrow
    “Gavi and Avi, together again,” Mrs. Reisman says, shaking her head ruefully.
  4. speculative
    showing curiosity
    Ema is sitting behind the desk, carefully putting away Mrs. Reisman's check in the flat metal cash box that sits in the top drawer, and the dybbuk is lurking near her, eyeing the check speculatively.
  5. havoc
    violent and needless disturbance
    Some days are like this, when the dybbuk seems to feed off of my bad mood and wreaks extra havoc.
  6. blare
    make a loud noise
    I wake up, still shaking from the dream, the sirens still blaring in the back of my mind.
  7. grim
    harshly uninviting or formidable in manner or appearance
    “Unacceptable!" someone is saying. “This isn't the first incident—"
    “No," a police officer says grimly.
  8. frail
    physically weak
    He’s supporting a stooped elderly man—Mrs. Feigenbaum’s husband, I recognize from Shabbos at the shul—who looks frail and cold as he stares down at the pavement.
  9. unnerve
    disturb the composure of
    He looks just like Ema looks, like I feel: unnerved and afraid, brought to this only by a strange symbol on the sidewalk.
  10. cumbersome
    difficult to handle or use, especially because of size or weight
    My arms feel too stiff at my sides, cumbersome and awkward as everyone turns to me.
  11. cacophony
    loud confusing disagreeable sounds
    Yesterday's machanayim mishap seems all but forgotten, and my classmates crowd around me, asking a dozen questions at once in a cacophony of curiosity.
  12. solidarity
    a union of interests or purposes among members of a group
    “It's not fair,” Esther is quick to agree. “It was an accident. And see? Rikki's okay!” The other girls burst into noises of solidarity, mostly around Kayla.
  13. bemused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    Still, I watch them, bemused. I don't think I’ve ever had so many of my classmates on my side for something.
  14. strident
    unpleasantly loud and harsh
    This time, no one laughs except Shira with a strident titter, and there are a few uncomfortable glances at me.
  15. scoff
    laugh at with contempt and derision
    Kayla scoffs. "No. You come to me. You have criminals at your house."
  16. confidant
    someone to whom private matters are told
    Ema was every student's confidant, outgoing and motherly.
  17. gingerly
    in a manner marked by extreme care or delicacy
    Ema steps into the flooded bathroom, moving gingerly to me, and she kneels for a moment to press a kiss to my forehead.
  18. bashful
    self-consciously timid
    I shrug, bashful.
  19. muse
    reflect deeply on a subject
    “It's like magic water,” she muses.
  20. retort
    answer back
    “If you drown, I’m going to tell everyone it was your idea,” I say, yanking off my uniform as well.
    Kayla just grins daringly. “I’ll tell everyone you pulled me down,” she retorts, pulling down her knee-high socks.
  21. reverence
    a feeling of profound respect for someone or something
    There's a care to her movements, a reverence as her fingers touch the water.
  22. plaque
    a tablet that commemorates a person or achievement
    Her voice trails off, and I stare at the wall of the mikvah, reading the plaque with the blessing over and over again.
  23. stilted
    stiff and strained; lacking natural ease
    Instead, we have conversations in Hebrew, stilted but enthusiastic.
  24. oppressive
    weighing heavily on the senses or spirit
    Principal Axelrod examines us from behind her desk, eyebrows raised and the scent of her perfume suddenly oppressive.
  25. scrawl
    write carelessly
    She motions me inside, a steaming coffee cup in one hand and a student's scrawled essay in the other.
  26. omit
    leave undone or leave out
    I tell her the story, omitting the part where I might have been really angry when I threw the ball at Kayla.
  27. tentative
    hesitant or lacking confidence; unsettled in mind or opinion
    There’s a knock at the door, a tentative noise that must be a student and not another teacher, and Mrs. Leibowitz nods to the girl peeking in from the window.
  28. dawdle
    hang or fall in movement, progress, development, etc.
    Kayla dawdles at the door, hesitant, and I nod to the empty chair next to me, impatient at the tension in the room.
  29. chagrin
    cause to feel shame
    “Oh. Sorry,” she says, chagrined.
  30. conspiratorial
    relating to or characteristic of a secret plot or agreement
    “There must be something out there that gets you excited.”
    “Pool parties,” Kayla says, and she shoots me a conspiratorial grin.
  31. trebuchet
    a heavy war engine for hurling projectiles such as stones
    “I'm trying to think of something too, but the only thing that's gotten you girls excited lately in class has been the guillotine.” My eyes light up, and she stabs a finger at me. “No.”
    “We liked the trebuchet too,” Kayla says impishly.
  32. cul de sac
    a street with only one way in or out
    I've never been inside the house Kayla moved into a few years ago, a cozy little ranch house on a cul-de-sac.
  33. futon
    mattress consisting of a pad of cotton batting
    My bed takes up most of the room, and there is a chair next to it that I usually use as a nightstand. Today it's folded up to make space for the futon that Ema and I set up for Kayla.
  34. intently
    with strained or eager attention
    The dybbuk hovers, watching me intently, and I try my best not to imagine him as a rotting body.
  35. spry
    moving quickly and lightly
    The front door opens, and we both scream. So does Mrs. Feigenbaum, who is spry enough to stay upright but looks as though she might topple over from the force of two girls screaming at the top of their lungs at her.
  36. avid
    marked by active interest and enthusiasm
    She's been watching us avidly, Mrs. Feigenbaum leaning on her cane and talking to Ema as though she's a little girl.
  37. flounder
    have difficulties; behave awkwardly
    Kayla flounders, at a loss for words.
  38. acquired
    gotten through environmental forces
    Mrs. Feigenbaum is an acquired taste, but Kayla does okay.
  39. nostalgic
    unhappy about being away and longing for familiar things
    She looks around our little room for a moment, nostalgic. "There was a time when this was the only mikvah that Beacon had, and all the women would crowd in here for appointments. Then they turned it into a Shabbos mikvah only."
  40. immodest
    violating standards of propriety in conduct or appearance
    “He won’t go in there when a woman is in there,” I explain to Kayla. “It’s immodest.”
Created on Sat Sep 23 12:46:24 EDT 2023 (updated Sun Sep 24 11:34:54 EDT 2023)

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