Sheine Lende: Chapters 5–9

by Darcie Little Badger
In this prequel to Elatsoe, Shane and her mother are known for their skill in finding missing persons, but when Shane's mother goes missing, Shane must learn to use her skills alone to find her.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–4, Chapters 5–9, Chapters 10–14, Chapters 15–23, Chapters 24–33
15 words 9 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. biome
    major ecological community with distinct climate and flora
    Her family’s traditional lore rarely happened in deep green biomes; they’d been forged from a long history among the mountains of Big Bend, surrounded by the rattle of mesquite and the sway of vast green and yellow plains.
  2. diffuse
    spread out; not concentrated in one place
    Over the course of a game, the grease would smudge, becoming diffuse and smoky, almost like a mask around their eyes.
  3. macabre
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
    Fear and macabre anticipation, combined.
  4. cusp
    the point of transition when something happens or changes
    Fueled by the oxygen in her breath, the embers glowed bright orange, on the cusp of flame.
  5. zilch
    a quantity of no importance
    Although she knew zilch about Maxine’s personal life, everyone needed luck with something.
  6. bigwig
    the most important person in a group or undertaking
    It would be a diplomatic nightmare to reject the fae’s gift, especially since our royalty, diplomats, and bigwigs had been asking for ring transport since the Dark Ages.
  7. contemporaries
    all the people living at the same time or of the same age
    Shane wondered if his contemporaries shared his opinion on Longfire.
  8. bemused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    With a bemused snort, he turned on the radio, fiddling with the dial until a saxophone blared and a woman mournfully sang, “Who loves me like I love you?”
  9. gesticulate
    show, express, or direct through movement
    In a field in the distance, several men in button-up shirts watched the sky with their hands on their hips, and two people in white suits gesticulated adamantly, as if directing an orchestra.
  10. gangly
    tall, thin, and awkward
    The gangly young woman wriggled over the conjoined front seats, awkwardly twisting, her hands landing on Shane’s lap.
  11. rivulet
    a small stream
    “In the old days, when people saw blood trickling down the rivulets in their bark, they thought it belonged to the trees, like sap. They learned the truth fast, I bet.”
  12. hypoallergenic
    unlikely to cause a harmful immune system reaction
    At the very least, she thought, ghosts were hypoallergenic.
  13. deftly
    in an agile manner
    “What about him?” Amelia asked, while deftly pinning the corsage to Shane’s red blouse.
  14. tentative
    hesitant or lacking confidence; unsettled in mind or opinion
    But as they’d continued to work side-by-side in companionable silence, she’d come to a tentative understanding: she’d acknowledged that she cherished Amelia’s company.
  15. manifest
    reveal its presence or make an appearance
    You couldn’t force an animal’s ghost to manifest on Earth, either.
Created on Wed Aug 26 08:40:02 EDT 2026 (updated Tue Sep 08 12:23:04 EDT 2026)

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