The Partition Project: Chapters 13–23

by Saadia Faruqi
Growing up in America, middle-schooler Mahnoor knows little of her Pakistani heritage. Dadi, her Pakistani grandmother, comes to visit and shares with Mahnoor her own childhood, passing on her lived experience of the Partition of India and Pakistan.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–4, Chapters 5–12, Chapters 13–23, Chapters 24–30, Chapters 31–39
15 words 8 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. drone
    talk in a monotonous voice
    In English class, Ms. Turner drones on about an author’s purpose, but I don’t pay any attention.
  2. coddle
    treat with excessive indulgence
    “It’s just her style. That’s how parents were in the old days. Tough and unfeeling. They still loved you, but they didn’t coddle you or spend time with you.”
  3. swanky
    impressively fashionable and elegant
    The Sugar Land Commons is basically a rectangular area surrounded by swanky hotels and shops.
  4. ambiance
    the atmosphere of an environment
    I look around. It’s true. I’ve never noticed it, but the place has a very quaint—what do you call it?—ambiance. “You’re right. It is pretty.”
  5. adamant
    impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason
    Ammi and Abba were on one side of the argument. They wanted to leave Ludhiana. My grandparents were adamant that they wanted to stay.
  6. philanthropist
    someone who makes charitable donations
    There’s a project on the best campsites in Texas; one on how ice cream is made; and another on the life story of Mattress Mack, a popular Houston-area mattress store owner and philanthropist.
  7. comprise
    include or contain
    “With more than seventy-five years passed, the generation of eyewitnesses to the Partition is in danger of dying out. It comprises keepers of an important South Asian historical heritage. ”
  8. snarky
    rudely sarcastic and mocking in tone or manner
    She gives me a disapproving look. “You don’t know how to make chai?”
    I have two choices. I can make a snarky comment, something about nobody in our house drinking South Asian tea, thank you very much. Or I can be nice to her, since she’s the last generation to carry my historical heritage or whatever.
  9. drudgery
    hard, monotonous, routine work
    I finish my cereal and clean up the mess my brother made on the counters. He sits on a stool and smirks like he’s enjoying my drudgery, so I drop some onion skins on his head.
  10. traumatic
    psychologically painful
    What they went through was so traumatic, and I worry that it’s left a mark on their souls.
  11. suppress
    put out of one's consciousness
    Victims of violent events often have these huge feelings that they suppress because they don’t want to think about them.
  12. fester
    gnaw into; make resentful or angry
    Yet, these emotions fester inside and hurt them.
  13. harried
    troubled persistently, especially with petty annoyances
    Ms. Turner looks up with a harried expression.
  14. saccharine
    overly sweet
    Still, I’m committed to being the best at everything, and Ramzan is no different. So, I just give Tiffany a mysterious, saccharine smile.
  15. undertone
    a subdued or implied meaning of an utterance
    There’s a low undertone in her voice that drives me bonkers.
Created on Wed Jul 01 15:35:43 EDT 2026 (updated Mon Aug 03 18:16:03 EDT 2026)

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