The Hiding Place: Chapters 1–2

by Corrie ten Boom, John Sherrill, Elizabeth Sherrill
Holland native Corrie ten Boom had an unremarkable life until Nazi Germany invaded her family's world during World War II. Corrie became a Resistance heroine and survived Hitler's concentration camps in her true life story of faith triumphing over evil.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–4, Chapters 5–7, Chapters 8–11, Chapter 12–Since Then
15 words 66 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. wizened
    lean and wrinkled by shrinkage as from age or illness
    Christoffels was the third and only other employee in the shop, a bent, wizened little man who looked older than Father though actually he was ten years younger.
  2. itinerant
    traveling from place to place to work
    It turned out that Christoffels belonged to an almost vanished trade, the itinerant clockmender who trudged on foot throughout the land, regulating and repairing the tall pendulum clocks that were the pride of every Dutch farmhouse.
  3. threadbare
    thin and tattered with age
    What he did with his wages we never knew; he had remained as tattered and threadbare as ever.
  4. resplendent
    having great beauty
    The door opened and all of us gasped. Christoffels was resplendent in a new black suit, new checkered vest, a snowy white shirt, flowered tie, and stiff starched collar.
  5. auspicious
    indicating favorable circumstances and good luck
    “Christoffels, my dear associate,” Father murmured in his formal, old-fashioned way, “What joy to see you on this—er—auspicious day.”
  6. careen
    move at high speed and in an uncontrolled way
    Today I careened onto the sidewalk and burst through the door with never a knock. “Nollie, the Beje’s jammed already! You ought to see! We need the cups right now!”
  7. ponderous
    having great mass and weight and unwieldiness
    He sank his ponderous bulk into a chair beside Father, fixed one eye on me, the other on the ceiling, and said, “Five lumps, please.”
  8. reprovingly
    in a disapproving, disappointing, or critical manner
    Father, however, was distressed. “Not competitors, Peter!” he said reprovingly. “Colleagues!”
  9. scrimp
    be very thrifty or frugal
    He had scrimped and saved enough money to build a home for elderly Jews in Hilversum—for the elderly of all faiths, in fact, for Willem was against any system of segregation.
  10. deluge
    fill quickly beyond capacity, as with a liquid
    But in the last few months, the home had been deluged with younger arrivals—all Jews and all from Germany.
  11. humdrum
    not challenging; dull and lacking excitement
    I didn’t know that then—nor, indeed, that there was any new future to prepare for in a life as humdrum and predictable as mine.
  12. pernicious
    working or spreading in a hidden and usually injurious way
    At thirteen, Betsie seemed almost an adult to me. Of course Betsie had always seemed older because she couldn’t run and roughhouse the way other children did. Betsie had been born with pernicious anemia.
  13. baleful
    threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments
    “Corrie!” Nollie was genuinely shocked. “That wouldn’t be honest!” And with a baleful glance at the big brown hat, she picked up the little fur one and started after Betsie round the stairs down to breakfast.
  14. governess
    a woman who cares for and instructs a child in a household
    For thirty years she had worked as a governess in wealthy families and she continually compared our behavior with that of the young ladies and gentlemen she was used to.
  15. remonstrate
    present and urge reasons in opposition
    “And yet, Jans,” Father remonstrated gently, “medicine has prolonged many a life.”
Created on Wed Jan 21 19:48:54 EST 2026 (updated Tue Mar 17 10:41:15 EDT 2026)

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