City Spies: Chapters 1–5

by James Ponti
This first book in the series introduces five kids, born on different continents and ranging in age from twelve to fifteen, who are recruited by the United Kingdom's MI6 for their abilities to carry out missions where adult spies cannot succeed.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–5, Chapters 6–10, Chapters 11–16, Chapters 17–23, Chapters 24–37
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. duration
    the period of time during which something continues
    “For how long?”
    “For the duration of your sentence. Maybe longer as a condition of your release. That’ll be up to the judge.”
  2. impeccable
    without error or flaw
    His suit was impeccable. His tie matched his pocket square.
  3. counsel
    a lawyer who pleads cases in court
    “Except, according to this Substitution of Counsel form, she’s my client,” the other man replied as he showed Stubbs a piece of paper.
  4. privilege
    the right to refuse to divulge confidential information
    Attorney-client privilege forbids me from telling anyone what you say in here.
  5. bespoke
    custom-made
    “What kind of computer is this?”
    “Bespoke,” he answered.
    “I thought I knew all the computer companies, but I’ve never heard of that one.”
    “It’s not a company,” he said. “‘Bespoke’ means something has been tailor-made to the specific needs of an individual.”
  6. barrister
    a British lawyer who speaks in the higher courts of law
    “Gerald Anderson. That sounds like a proper barrister. Dull. Boring. Imminently forgettable. Which is exactly what we want. That’s my name, Gerald Anderson.”
  7. preposition
    a word before a noun or pronoun connecting to another word
    “I pointed out that Puerto Rico was already part of America, that I’d spent almost my entire life in Brooklyn, and that if he really wanted to speak English well, he shouldn’t end sentences with prepositions.”
  8. cheeky
    offensively bold
    “Cheeky.”
    “I’m not exactly sure what ‘cheeky’ means, but his cheeks turned red, so I guess so,” she replied.
  9. bailiff
    officer of the court employed to execute writs and processes
    The bailiff stood and announced the judge’s entrance.
  10. preliminary
    preceding or in preparation for something more important
    “I had preliminary discussions with Ms. Martinez’s original attorney, but no agreement was reached.”
  11. inclined
    having a preference, disposition, or tendency
    “But like I said, there was no official agreement. And now that there’s an admission of guilt in open court, I’m not inclined to let her off so easy.”
  12. compromise
    expose or make liable to danger, suspicion, or disrepute
    “My client compromised highly secure computer files. And, although it’s not listed among the charges, she also hacked into the financial records of a multinational bank.”
  13. assent
    agreement with a statement or proposal to do something
    Finally, she nodded her assent.
  14. intently
    with strained or eager attention
    Sara watched the second hand intently.
  15. facility
    a building or place that provides a particular service
    “It’s a specialized facility that houses a handful of juvenile offenders,” he replied.
  16. accommodation
    living quarters provided for public convenience
    We don’t reward criminal behavior with luxury accommodations. Ms. Martinez broke the law, and she will be going into a supervised group home when we’re done here.
  17. alias
    a name that has been assumed temporarily
    “Paris, Rio, and Kat. When you join the team, you have to create an entirely new identity. It’s hard to keep track of all the aliases and fake names, so we just call each other by where we’re from. That way we still have a small connection to our past.”
  18. espionage
    the systematic use of spies to obtain secrets
    “It means that in addition to your studies at Kinloch,” he said, “you’ll receive instruction in espionage, counterintelligence, self-defense, code-breaking, and other assorted goodies.”
  19. duly
    in an appropriate or proper manner
    “This isn’t my home,” she corrected. “It’s a house where I lived. There’s a huge difference.”
    “Duly noted,” he said.
  20. devise
    come up with after a mental effort
    “You know the inner workings of the house. All you have to do is break down the variables and devise a scheme. For example, who’s inside right now?”
  21. surveillance
    close observation of a person or group
    Leonard was always on the lookout for the “surveillance drones” he claimed flew nightly missions over Brooklyn. “They’re spying on us,” he’d say angrily. “Our own government is spying on us.”
  22. unbridled
    not restrained or controlled
    It was this suspicion, combined with the Clarks’ unbridled greed, that formed the basis of Sara’s plan.
  23. stoop
    small porch or set of steps at the front entrance of a house
    The limo driver parked around the corner, and the girls hid across the street behind a car, while Mother went up the stoop and rang the bell.
  24. drawl
    a slow speech pattern with prolonged vowels
    “Are you Leonard Clark?” Mother asked, using a Texas drawl and doing his best to project FBI cool and calm.
  25. substantial
    fairly large
    “Be that as it may,” said Mother, “it has come to our attention that she recently hacked into a bank and made a substantial withdrawal.”
  26. procure
    get by special effort
    The money was procured from the bank’s currency reserves.
  27. premises
    land and the buildings on it
    We have reason to believe she hid the cash here on the premises.
  28. devious
    characterized by insincerity or deceit
    “So that’s where she hid it,” said Clark. “Up on the roof. Clever girl. Devious, but clever.”
  29. feign
    make believe with the intent to deceive
    Mother played the part beautifully as he feigned frustration and pretended to call a superior.
  30. noncompliant
    boldly resisting authority or an opposing force
    “The homeowner is noncompliant,” he said into his phone. “Activate drone retrieval.”
  31. appeal
    attractiveness that interests or pleases or stimulates
    And, while I see the appeal of locking them on the roof, it probably wasn’t the best thing to do.
  32. defiant
    boldly resisting authority or an opposing force
    Her defiant attitude melted away and tears began to stream down her face.
  33. infiltrate
    enter a group or organization in order to spy on the members
    Mother had spent more than a year trying to infiltrate Umbra, a global crime syndicate made up of mercenaries, terrorists, and former intelligence agents.
  34. avid
    marked by active interest and enthusiasm
    Little was known about him, although it was believed that, in addition to being a master criminal, he was also an avid art collector.
  35. grandiose
    pretentious or excessively fancy
    On the second floor Mother found a row of offices that had once housed Confiserie Royale S.A.—or the Royal Candy Corporation—a grandiose name for a company that manufactured low-quality gummies and lollipops.
  36. concede
    admit or acknowledge, often reluctantly
    “If I told you, it would not be a secret.”
    “Fair enough,” Mother conceded.
  37. protocol
    code of correct conduct
    According to MI6 protocol, Mother had three options: cancel the operation, move to a different location, or use intimidation to get rid of Paris.
  38. pique
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
    He couldn’t imagine what the Englishman was planning, but his curiosity was piqued.
  39. assume
    take to be the case or to be true
    He assumed the guard with the gun had shot at the truck and broken its windshield, but when he opened his eyes, everyone was looking up at the building.
  40. writhe
    move in a twisting or contorted motion
    He writhed on the floor, trying to break free, his face covered in sweat from the heat of the nearby flames.
Created on Mon Apr 29 11:13:01 EDT 2024 (updated Tue Apr 30 08:40:46 EDT 2024)

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