Rosa by Any Other Name: Chapters 61–75

by Hailey Alcaraz
This Romeo and Juliet-inspired historical novel tells the story of Rosa, a Mexican-American girl who is passing as white at her high school until a tragedy forces her to choose between her community and her future.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Prologue–Chapter 12, Chapters 13–27, Chapters 28–44, Chapters 45–60, Chapters 61–75
15 words 7 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. inconceivable
    totally unlikely
    But his composure quickly fell away as our eyes met, and I saw a rosy tint creep up his neck and to his cheeks, a pinkish tinge to his brown skin. It was so inconceivable to me—Marco Montoya blushing.
  2. inscrutable
    difficult or impossible to understand
    His face was inscrutable as ever, not a trace of fear in his gold-flecked eyes or the firm set of his jaw.
  3. reverent
    feeling or showing profound respect or veneration
    “Peaceful,” Verón said. “Reverent. Let our actions speak for themselves.”
  4. foolhardy
    marked by defiant disregard for danger or consequences
    If I hadn’t seen it all firsthand, I would’ve seen this as reckless and foolhardy too.
  5. resilience
    the ability to recover readily from adversity or change
    Marco was a half step behind me, head cast downward as he walked, careful to let me lead but still deliberately close. I stole a glance at him out of the corner of my eye; I could feel his presence with every bit of me without looking at him. His warmth, his resilience. Our togetherness.
  6. transcend
    go beyond the scope or limits of
    “Not on anyone’s home turf. We must transcend our traditional boundaries. From the south side, downtown. Together. Not an act of vengeance but a recognition that what happened impacted two communities and needs to be addressed accordingly.”
  7. tangible
    perceptible by the senses, especially the sense of touch
    My parents, scared but hoping for more. More for Blanca, more for me. More than this. More, more, more. The sheriff, shielded by his car door. The kids at school, everyone at the press conference, all the people here now. Watching. Gawking. Silent witnesses. The sheriff, his eyes finally on me. His gaze firm, so unyielding it was almost tangible.
  8. absolve
    excuse or free from blame
    That didn’t absolve him—could never absolve him—though it did explain it a little bit.
  9. impetus
    a force that makes something happen
    It had been the whole impetus behind our plan.
  10. mundane
    found in the ordinary course of events
    “The sheriff came to see me this morning.”
    Blanca snapped her head up, dark eyes wide. “Why?” It was barely more than a gasp.
    “To write me a letter of recommendation for college,” I said dryly, as if it were some mundane piece of gossip.
  11. reedy
    thin and high-pitched in tone
    “But,” I said, my voice reedy and hoarse, “he was the one who was hurt.”
  12. tarry
    leave slowly and hesitantly
    Behind him, a red Thunderbird honked as the car in front of it tarried at a green light.
  13. substantive
    having a firm basis in reality and therefore important
    There was an air of speculation, maybe a trace of scandal about his motives, but nothing substantive.
  14. mutable
    capable of or tending to change in form or quality or nature
    Death was one of the few things in this mutable world that was permanent, after all.
  15. rebuttal
    the speech act of refuting by offering a contrary argument
    I searched for some logical rebuttal, some way to refute the way my pulse quickened as soon as our fingers had touched.
Created on Wed Aug 12 08:40:43 EDT 2026 (updated Tue Sep 01 15:14:29 EDT 2026)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.