Old Yeller: Chapters 13-16

by Fred Gipson
When their father goes off on a cattle drive, a family survives with a little help from a beloved pet dog. Learn these words from the classic novel by Fred Gipson.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1-4, Chapters 5-8, Chapters 9-12, Chapters 13-16
30 words 225 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. tote
    carry with difficulty
    Just like Bud Searcy said, she was a big help. She could tote water from the spring.
  2. poultice
    a medical dressing spread on a cloth and applied to the skin
    She could feed the chickens, pack in wood, cook cornbread, wash dishes, wash Little Arliss, and sometimes even change the prickly-pear poultice on my leg.
  3. nettle
    plant having stinging hairs that cause skin irritation
    It was hot work, and the corn shucks made my skin itch and sting till sometimes I’d wake up at night scratching like I’d stumbled into a patch of bull nettles.
  4. solemn
    dignified and somber in manner or character
    I said, “Cows don’t ever get hydrophobia, do they?”
    I saw Lisbeth start at the word. She stared at me with big solemn eyes.
  5. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    I’d hobbled out to sit in a chair beside Old Yeller, where I could scratch him under his chewed-off ear.
  6. ragged
    having an irregular outline
    His hackles stood up in a ragged ridge along the back of his neck and shoulders.
  7. quiver
    shake with fast, tremulous movements
    He pulled till I saw the big muscles of his haunches flatten and start quivering.
  8. stench
    a distinctive odor that is offensively unpleasant
    The heat and the stench of burnt hair and scorching hide drove us back.
  9. scorch
    burn slightly and superficially so as to affect color
    The heat and the stench of burnt hair and scorching hide drove us back.
  10. lure
    provoke someone to do something through persuasion
    This was because of the howling and snarling and fighting of the wolves lured to the place by the scent of the roasting meat.
  11. hideous
    grossly offensive to decency or morality; causing horror
    But that didn’t keep them from gathering for miles around and making the nights hideous with their howlings and snarlings.
  12. bay
    bark with prolonged noises, of dogs
    And all night long, both nights, Old Yeller crippled back and forth between the fire and the cabin, baying savagely, warning the wolves to keep away.
  13. savagely
    in a vicious manner
    And all night long, both nights, Old Yeller crippled back and forth between the fire and the cabin, baying savagely, warning the wolves to keep away.
  14. dread
    fearful expectation or anticipation
    I lay there, feeling shivery with a fearful dread that brought up pictures in my mind of Bud Searcy’s uncle.
  15. frayed
    worn away or tattered along the edges
    Arliss was racing around the cabin, dragging a short piece of frayed rope.
  16. pounce
    move down on as if in an attack
    The pup was chasing the rope. Now and then he’d get close enough to pounce on it.
  17. rage
    feel intense anger
    It was the sort of raging yell he let out when he was in a fight to the finish.
  18. keen
    intense or sharp
    Then I heard Jumper snorting keenly and Mama calling in a frightened voice.
  19. recollect
    recall knowledge from memory
    I couldn’t think at first what would make the sort of light I needed, then recollected a clump of bear grass that Mama’d recently grubbed out, where she wanted to start a new fall garden.
  20. snatch
    grasp hastily or eagerly
    I ran and snatched up four bunches of the half-dried bear grass.
  21. flicker
    shine unsteadily
    A little flame started, flickered and wavered for a moment, then bloomed suddenly and leaped high with a roar.
  22. waver
    move or sway to and fro
    A little flame started, flickered and wavered for a moment, then bloomed suddenly and leaped high with a roar.
  23. clatter
    a rattling noise
    I heard Jumper snort and the clatter of his hoofs as he went galloping in a wide circle to come up behind the cabin.
  24. heave
    breathe noisily, as when one is exhausted
    Then, about the time I bent over him, he heaved a big sort of sigh and struggled up to start licking my hands and wagging that stub tail.
  25. relieve
    free from a burden, evil, or distress
    I was so relieved that it seemed like all the strength went out of me.
  26. slump
    fall or sink heavily
    I slumped to the ground and was sitting there, shivering, when Mama came and sat down beside me.
  27. shudder
    tremble convulsively, as from fear or excitement
    I shuddered at the thought of what could have happened without Old Yeller.
  28. muzzle
    the open circular discharging end of a gun
    I stuck the muzzle of the gun against his head and pulled the trigger.
  29. whelp
    young of any of various canines such as a dog or wolf
    “Why, you thieving little whelp!” she cried out. Then I heard a shrieking yelp, and out the kitchen door came the speckled pup with a big chunk of cornbread clutched in his mouth.
  30. frazzle
    a state of extreme exhaustion
    I sat there and laughed till I cried. When all the time I knew that I ought to go beat them to a frazzle for messing up our drinking water.
Created on Tue Aug 15 19:37:23 EDT 2017 (updated Wed Aug 23 10:24:03 EDT 2017)

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