Love, Hate & Other Filters: Chapters 8-11

by Samira Ahmed
Maya Aziz thinks her biggest problem is convincing her traditional parents to allow her to study filmmaking in New York City — but when a terrorist attack is committed near her hometown, she must also confront prejudice in her community.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1-2, Chapters 3-7, Chapters 8-11, Chapters 12-17, Chapter 18-Epilogue
35 words 16 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. uncanny
    surpassing the ordinary or normal
    She has this uncanny gift of delivering guilt tied up in a bow, and without fail, I accept it.
  2. knell
    the sound of a bell rung slowly to announce a death
    My spirits sink a little lower. He’s trying too hard. Death knell.
  3. stark
    devoid of any qualifications or disguise or adornment
    At least the texts, while not exactly a deus ex machina, reveal a stark truth: Kareem isn’t the one.
  4. desiccated
    thoroughly dried out
    The buds on a weeping spruce cascade over a small embankment—a little hint of life beneath the desiccated vines and leaves.
  5. vista
    the visual percept of a region
    When we reach the foot of the bridge, Phil pauses, sweeping his hand over the vista as he talks about the vision of Taro Otsuka, Fabyan’s private gardener who designed this place.
  6. diorama
    a three-dimensional representation of a scene
    This time, this space between me and Phil, it’s like this perfect, intricate diorama, and when I say her name, it reminds me that we’re just paper figures taped inside a shoe box.
  7. gist
    the central meaning or theme of a speech or literary work
    “That sucking marrow part went over my head, but yeah, that’s the gist of it.”
  8. hallowed
    worthy of religious veneration
    I can imagine how difficult it must’ve been for him to show me this hallowed piece of paper.
  9. cacophony
    loud confusing disagreeable sounds
    This is the moment when she feels most at peace, before she makes breakfast for her husband, before they drive together to their small grocery store, before the shop fills with the cacophony of women searching for fava beans, cumin, apricots, dried lentils, rose water, pistachios, cardamom, pickled eggplants in vinegar.
  10. haggle
    wrangle, as over a price or terms of an agreement
    Even after many years in this country, some still try to haggle as if they are in the bazaar back home.
  11. respective
    considered individually
    My last day with Phil before school starts again on Monday—when we return to the respective corners of our social cliques.
  12. clique
    an exclusive circle of people with a common purpose
    My last day with Phil before school starts again on Monday—when we return to the respective corners of our social cliques.
  13. cadence
    a recurrent rhythmical series
    He tries the cadence of a movie voice-over: “It’s senior year. She’s a beautiful budding filmmaker. He can swim and fix cars. They don’t know where the path beyond the stone cottage will lead.”
  14. kameez
    a long tunic worn by people from South Asia
    “Umm, you’re wearing one of your favorite shalwar kameez and the necklace you wore to Ayesha’s wedding.”
  15. effusive
    uttered with unrestrained enthusiasm
    My mom thanks him effusively, going on and on about how he shouldn’t have and congratulating his parents on raising such a wonderful son.
  16. posterity
    all future generations
    I lead Kareem out through the screen door into the yard, past my old wooden swing set (my parents insist on keeping it for posterity), to the weathered red picnic table underneath the weeping willow in the corner.
  17. garbled
    lacking orderly continuity
    My words are garbled; they bang and smash into each other.
  18. chutney
    a spicy relish usually made with fruit, vinegar, and spices
    I tear off a section of the buttery warm bread, dip it in the chutney, and stuff my mouth while gesturing for Kareem to do the same.
  19. vestibule
    a large entrance or reception room or area
    Explain why every adult is called auntie or uncle despite familial link (a sign of respect), why we always take off our shoes at the vestibule (we pray in the house, so the home is holy), or why the major Muslim holidays are on different days every year (Islam follows a lunar calendar).
  20. imperceptibly
    in a manner that is difficult to discern
    His body sways gently, almost imperceptibly.
  21. ambient
    completely enveloping
    One image of Phil fades into another—the ambient light in the shots shifts and casts shadows across his brow, his cheekbones, his lips.
  22. empirical
    derived from experiment and observation rather than theory
    I’m trying to convince myself that I’m searching for the best shots, empirically speaking, but I’m not.
  23. inflection
    the modification of pitch, tone, or volume when speaking
    I catch Hina’s eyes. No time like the present. “Dad?” I ask, inflection rising.
  24. adamant
    impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason
    “Dad, I’m sorry. I should’ve told you. But I made a spur-of-the-moment decision to apply. I didn’t dream I’d get in. And you’re so adamantly against it... I did tell Hina, and—” The blurter emerges; it’s a mistake to implicate my aunt.
  25. implicate
    bring into intimate and incriminating connection
    “Dad, I’m sorry. I should’ve told you. But I made a spur-of-the-moment decision to apply. I didn’t dream I’d get in. And you’re so adamantly against it... I did tell Hina, and—” The blurter emerges; it’s a mistake to implicate my aunt.
  26. pious
    having or showing or expressing reverence for a deity
    “Oh, don’t you start, as if you are so pious,” Mom snaps.
  27. cardinal
    serving as an essential component
    Laughing would definitely not be appropriate right now, but I’m not sure how the apparently cardinal sin of eating pork equates with the kind of trouble you can get into with boys...but in my mom’s logic, it does.
  28. savvy
    the ability to shrewdly understand or judge things
    “Because it’s important. Because a marriage certificate doesn’t bestow maturity. And even you have to admit that Maya is much savvier than you were at her age. Let her find her new world, too, as you did all those years ago.”
  29. wistful
    showing pensive sadness
    As Hina speaks, my parents’ faces relax, grow wistful, as they remember when they were young and full of dreams.
  30. compulsive
    having obsessive habits or irresistible urges
    Hina puts her hand on my knee to stop my compulsive talking.
  31. bleary
    tired to the point of exhaustion
    It’s clear in our bleary eyes and sluggish movements and hesitant syllables.
  32. preemptive
    designed to prevent an anticipated situation or occurrence
    My whole life, any time I had any sort of school achievement, or even when I get what my mom refers to as “compliments of envy,” or especially when I would suddenly get sick, my mom would take the nazar off. Sometimes preemptively.
  33. assuage
    cause to be more favorably inclined
    Hina would quietly give my mom this little victory to assuage her concerns.
  34. sacrilege
    blasphemous behavior
    I can imagine my mom’s freak-out if she’d witnessed this sacrilege, so I quickly wash off in the sink and sweep up any remaining eggshell and dump it into the sink.
  35. collateral
    accompanying; following as a consequence
    A small, dark-haired girl holding her mother’s hand, looking up at her, a smile like sunshine, her dress red as a poppy bursting against green grass.
    Collateral damage.
Created on Thu May 10 09:34:01 EDT 2018 (updated Thu May 10 15:16:11 EDT 2018)

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