The Scarlet Letter

Shaina J. (United States of America)
12 words 7 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. self-torment
    self-imposed distress
    She goes to Chillingworth and asks him to stop adding
    to Dimmesdale’s self-torment.
  2. customhouse
    a government building where customs are collected and where ships are cleared to enter or leave the country
    The
    nameless narrator was the surveyor of the customhouse in Salem,
    Massachusetts.
  3. scarlet
    a variable vivid red color, sometimes with an orange tinge
    T he Scarlet Letter opens
    with a long preamble about how the book came to be written.
  4. impish
    naughtily or annoyingly playful
    Hester supports herself by working as a seamstress, and Pearl
    grows into a willful, impish child.
  5. reprieve
    postpone the punishment of a convicted criminal
    In the meantime, Hester’s charitable deeds and
    quiet humility have earned her a reprieve from the scorn of the community.
  6. preamble
    a preliminary introduction, as to a statute or constitution
    T he Scarlet Letter opens
    with a long preamble about how the book came to be written.
  7. harangue
    a loud bombastic declamation expressed with strong emotion
    On this day Hester is led to the town scaffold and harangued by
    the town fathers, but she again refuses to identify her child’s
    father.
  8. humility
    a lack of arrogance or false pride
    In the meantime, Hester’s charitable deeds and
    quiet humility have earned her a reprieve from the scorn of the community.
  9. scorn
    lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
    In the meantime, Hester’s charitable deeds and
    quiet humility have earned her a reprieve from the scorn of the community.
  10. wearing
    the mechanical process of wearing or grinding something down
    Many years later, Hester returns alone, still wearing the
    scarlet letter, to live in her old cottage and resume her
    charitable work.
  11. flee
    run away quickly
    The former lovers decide to
    flee to Europe, where they can live with Pearl as a family.
  12. policy
    a plan of action adopted by an individual or social group
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Created on Sun Nov 08 19:24:30 EST 2009

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