Payback: Chapters 1–5

by Gordon Korman
In this final book of the Masterminds trilogy, the clones don't know whether they can trust each other, themselves, or their DNA donors as they fight to bring down Project Osiris.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–5, Chapters 6–11, Chapters 12–18, Chapters 19–27
40 words 37 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. testament
    strong evidence for something
    It’s a testament to what we’ve been through since escaping Serenity that neither of us thinks twice about scaling a thirty-foot oak.
  2. compensate
    adjust for
    “Jump early,” I advise. “You know, to compensate for the motion of the—”
  3. unyielding
    resistant to physical force or pressure
    We lie flat, pressing our hands and feet against unyielding metal.
  4. brooch
    a decorative pin
    To be honest, it all looks pretty expensive to me—rings, necklaces, earrings, and brooches; gold, platinum, gemstones.
  5. spree
    a brief indulgence of your impulses
    Don’t get me wrong; we didn’t bust out of Serenity to go on a crime spree.
  6. amiably
    in a friendly manner
    They walk to his car, chatting amiably.
  7. genuinely
    in accordance with truth or fact or reality
    That might be because her fake parents genuinely loved her—not like my dad, the ringleader of Osiris, who never had any use for me except as a lab rat.
  8. pry
    move or force in an effort to get something open
    “You’re denting it.”
    “I’m not too worried about the resale value,” I grunt, prying with all my might.
  9. brandish
    exhibit aggressively
    She brandishes the scissors from the glove compartment first aid kit.
  10. ratchet
    move by degrees in one direction only
    But instead of raising the body of a car, the expanding device is forcing the chain apart. As the loop is stretched to its limit, the ratcheting action becomes tighter, until I can barely budge it.
  11. impediment
    any structure that makes progress difficult
    The padlock is intact, but we can remove the impediment any time we want to.
  12. upholster
    provide furniture with comfortable padding or covers
    There’s a small office area with better lighting, upholstered furniture, and even a TV in the break room.
  13. array
    an impressive display or assortment
    “Things are finally starting to go our way,” she mumbles, her mouth full.
    “Definitely,” I agree, scanning the array of cartons on the shelf. Thin Mints, Caramel deLites, Peanut Butter Patties, Cranberry Citrus Crisps, Rah-Rah Raisins, Toffeetastic—it goes on and on.
  14. lofty
    of imposing height; especially standing out above others
    I take in the lofty heights of the storage units, boxes upon boxes, all the way to the forty-foot ceiling.
  15. evasion
    the deliberate act of failing to pay money
    He still has eleven years to go on the tax evasion charge they finally hung on him.
  16. thrum
    a low, continuous sound
    I can tell it’s a lot bigger and more happening than Denver, the other major city we’ve been in. You can just feel the energy in the sights and sounds and sheer thrum of the place.
  17. pore
    direct one's attention on something
    We pore over the material, searching for the one thing we need to know.
  18. underlying
    located beneath or below
    It’s the busiest place I’ve ever seen in my life, noisier even than the train station, with an underlying thrumming caused by hundreds of fingers on computer keyboards.
  19. wheedle
    influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering
    “Look, kid, for what it’s worth, I believe you. I’ve pulled some of the old mug shots on Alabaster, and you could be the guy’s twin. But it’s department policy. We can’t pass out confidential information.”
    “Not even to immediate family?” Amber wheedles.
  20. consolation
    the comfort you feel when soothed in times of disappointment
    Laska feels so bad for me that she slips her hand into mine. I drop it like a hot potato. I don’t need consolation; I need an address.
  21. modest
    limited in size or scope
    “No one needs a house that big,” she says disapprovingly. “And it’s even worse to put it on a modest little street to rub it in people’s faces how much richer he is than everybody else.”
  22. deadpan
    speak in a deliberately impassive or serious manner
    “We’re here to see Mr. Alabaster,” Amber announces.
    “That’s not going to happen,” the shorter guard deadpans.
  23. discreet
    unobtrusively perceptive and sympathetic
    At the far end there’s an old man in a wheelchair surrounded by medical equipment—tubes, wires, and a heart monitor flashing graphs and numbers. A uniformed nurse stands at a discreet distance.
  24. lope
    run easily
    A large German shepherd lopes into the room, galloping straight for me.
  25. futile
    unproductive of success
    The dog leaps and I put up my hands in a futile attempt to protect myself.
  26. grizzled
    having gray or partially gray hair
    The shepherd lands with a huge paw on each of my shoulders and proceeds to lick my face, his grizzled muzzle tickling my chin, his tail wagging.
  27. contemptuous
    expressing extreme scorn
    “You’re family, all right. Counselor hates everybody.”
    As if to prove this point, the dog stops licking me for a moment to throw a contemptuous bark at Baldy.
  28. bray
    laugh loudly and harshly
    All at once, Alabaster brays a raspy laugh that finishes in a spasm of coughs.
  29. amend
    make revisions to
    “I never knew who my real father was until my mom heard on TV that you were—about your medical situation.”
    “That I’m about to croak,” the old gangster amends. “Pointless to sugarcoat it.”
  30. reedy
    thin and high-pitched in tone
    “It is my problem,” Alabaster shoots back with surprising force. The voice is still reedy, but there’s authority, even vigor behind it.
  31. vigor
    active strength of body or mind
    The voice is still reedy, but there’s authority, even vigor behind it. For the first time, I see how this weakened shell of a person used to be what the newspapers called the most successful gangster in American history.
  32. sidle
    move unobtrusively or furtively
    As Lenny leads us down the hall of gold-framed mirrors, Amber sidles up to me.
  33. usher
    accompany or escort
    Her protest goes no further than that, because Lenny opens the door and ushers us into the room, and she’s face-to-face with a dying crime boss.
  34. loathing
    hate coupled with disgust
    She pulls it off, somehow making her expression of loathing come across as respect.
  35. appraise
    consider in a comprehensive way
    Alabaster appraises her critically and turns to me.
  36. prim
    affectedly dainty or refined
    It’s a very punk look after a dunk in the river and an eighty-mile-an-hour blow-dry on top of a speeding camper. What a change from the prim and proper Serenity girl she used to be.
  37. dolly
    a wheeled handcart for moving heavy objects
    Obviously, I can’t bring the whole warehouse with me. But Eli found a loading dolly that we piled up, and I’ve been selling the stuff around the neighborhood.
  38. keen
    demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
    For sure, the keen powers of observation I’m so proud of were useful to Yvonne-Marie in casing banks and finding weak spots in security systems.
  39. elaborate
    marked by complexity and richness of detail
    He taunted the police with clues to the killings in the form of elaborate crossword puzzles.
  40. exhort
    spur on or encourage especially by cheers and shouts
    Come on, Eli! I exhort myself. Faster!
Created on Mon Mar 11 16:00:34 EDT 2024 (updated Tue Mar 12 12:35:10 EDT 2024)

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