Son: Book I

by Lois Lowry
Weaving together the stories from the last three books, this final installment in The Giver Quartet follows Claire as she attempts to find the son who was taken from her.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Book I, Book II: Chapters 1-5, Book II: Chapters 6-16, Book III

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. meticulously
    in a manner marked by extreme care of details
    The Vessels were all being meticulously nourished.
  2. requisition
    demand and take for use or service
    Her schoolbooks were requisitioned by the school and would be used for another student the following year.
  3. intermittent
    stopping and starting at irregular intervals
    She could hear them, when her mind was able to focus through the surging intermittent pain.
  4. taut
    pulled or drawn tight
    Their hands and tools were on her taut middle.
  5. tentatively
    in a hesitant manner
    She turned tentatively, assessing the emptiness of the room with her eyes, and then tried to lift her head but was forced back by the pain the attempt caused.
  6. suffuse
    become overspread as with a fluid, a color, or light
    She was suffused with a desperate feeling of loss.
  7. interim
    serving during an intermediate interval of time
    After the first week they were moved to an interim place, where they amused themselves with talk and games before returning two weeks later to the large, familiar group of Vessels.
  8. nonchalant
    marked by casual unconcern or indifference
    “How did it go?” someone would ask, and the reply would be a nonchalant shrug, and “All right. Fairly easy.”
  9. wry
    humorously sarcastic or mocking
    Or a wry “Not too bad,” with a face indicating that it had not been pleasant.
  10. apprehensive
    mentally upset over possible misfortune or danger
    But she was apprehensive about her own future.
  11. solicitous
    full of anxiety and concern
    They were kind, solicitous.
  12. affable
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
    “I meant that it’s fine. The medical difficulties didn't affect it.
    “You'll be fine too, Claire,” she added, affably.
  13. surreptitiously
    in a secretive manner
    A small girl with hair ribbons grinned at Claire from the exercise routine, and waved surreptitiously; Claire smiled back, remembering her own beribboned days, but an instructor called sharply to the child, who made a face and turned back to the assigned calisthenics.
  14. calisthenics
    light exercises designed to promote general fitness
    A small girl with hair ribbons grinned at Claire from the exercise routine, and waved surreptitiously; Claire smiled back, remembering her own beribboned days, but an instructor called sharply to the child, who made a face and turned back to the assigned calisthenics.
  15. camaraderie
    the quality of affording easy familiarity and sociability
    It had been that way with the other Vessels, and Claire found herself missing, already, the easy camaraderie among them.
  16. prune
    cultivate, tend, and cut back the growth of
    “I was late once," Claire told them, “because a groundskeeper sliced his hand when he was pruning the bushes over by the central offices, I stopped and watched while they bandaged him and took him off to the infirmary for stitches.
    “I used to hope I'd be assigned Nursing Attendant,” she added.
  17. prim
    exaggeratedly proper
    “Well, the committee knows best," Edith commented primly as she passed sandwiches around.
  18. terse
    brief and to the point
    “It’s pointless to speculate,” she said in her terse, businesslike tone.
  19. facetious
    cleverly amusing in tone
    Rolf, attaching the basket to his bike by its transportation straps, commented, “It might be nice to travel on the river, though, just for the trip. Fun to see new things. Even,” he added facetiously, “if you haven't wondered about them.”
  20. indoctrination
    teaching someone to accept beliefs uncritically
    "That's a help. There will be a group of volunteers starting indoctrination, and the visual aids make things easier.”
  21. chastise
    scold or criticize severely
    “And they'll chastise the teacher," he added, with a malicious chuckle, as he stood.
  22. sterile
    free of pathological microorganisms
    “We can't go in this one without changing to sterile uniforms. But we can look at them.”
  23. relinquish
    release, as from one's grip
    The man took Thirty-six from Claire, who relinquished him reluctantly.
  24. clout
    special advantage or influence
    “Too late for that. Yes, I have a spouse—she works over at Law and Justice. But we already have our complete family: boy first, then girl. And it was quite a while ago that we got them. I was just an assistant then. No clout.”
  25. reconvene
    meet or cause to meet again
    Then they would reconvene for the beginning of the Advance in Age and the rituals of growing older.
  26. awry
    away from the correct or expected course
    There was not much, really, for her to do; she was simply required to be there, to be certain nothing went awry.
  27. moor
    secure in or as if in a berth or dock
    She glanced through a window at the supply boat that was moored at the dock.
  28. inflection
    the patterns of stress and intonation in a language
    And they spoke with a slight accent, an inflection that was unfamiliar.
  29. barge
    a flatbottom boat for carrying heavy loads
    The barge that was now moored by the Hatchery must have barely fit beneath.
  30. nonplussed
    filled with bewilderment
    “And the boy she skipped? Number Nineteen? I could see him from where I was sitting. He was completely nonplussed!”
  31. listless
    marked by low spirits; showing no enthusiasm
    She had read the manual pages listlessly several times, guiltily aware of her own disinterest.
  32. galley
    the area for food preparation on a ship
    “Yes, they want to see the galley, and the wheelhouse, all of it. Very curious. The captain is proud to show them around. Or a crew member can. We have a crew of ten."
  33. winch
    a lifting device consisting of a cylinder turned by a crank
    “Mind your feet, Marie!” a crew member called as he passed her on the deck, guiding a thick package that swayed in a net as the winch moved it up and outward.
  34. impish
    naughtily or annoyingly playful
    Impishly, he wrinkled his nose and thrust his tongue into his cheek, making the funny face that Claire had taught him.
  35. skewed
    having an oblique or slanting direction or position
    She made the same skewed face in reply and they both laughed.
  36. unobtrusive
    not undesirably noticeable
    But this undistinguished rectangle had only an unobtrusive, meaningless label on the door. ANNEX.
  37. derisive
    expressing contempt or ridicule
    But those who were young, as Claire was, shared small jokes, sometimes slightly derisive of the older workers, how methodical and orderly they were, how dutifully they went home each evening to their spouses and family units.
  38. taper
    diminish gradually
    “I sort of tapered off,” another girl explained.
  39. distend
    swell from or as if from internal pressure
    The other girls agreed, touching their own distended middles.
  40. superficial
    of little substance or significance
    And that was why, she realized, their conversation was always lighthearted, superficial, essentially meaningless.
Created on Tue Apr 03 14:48:31 EDT 2018 (updated Tue May 31 12:44:05 EDT 2022)

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