To All the Boys I've Loved Before: Chapters 28–40

by Jenny Han
Sixteen-year-old Lara Jean writes letters to the boys for whom she has romantic feelings — letters she never intends to send. When someone starts secretly mailing the letters out, Lara Jean and one of the recipients, Peter, decide to team up and fake a relationship to make their current crushes jealous.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–10, Chapters 11–27, Chapters 28–40, Chapters 41–72
35 words 110 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. appease
    cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of
    This seems to appease Kitty a tiny bit. Knowing something first, before Margot, is a big deal.
  2. bound
    move forward by leaping
    I let out the breath I’ve been holding the whole way over, and Kitty is already untangling herself from me and bounding out of the car.
  3. beeline
    the most direct route
    Peter makes a beeline for the table, but at the last second I chicken out.
  4. blatantly
    in a completely obvious manner
    “Just—please.” I think fast. “Because, you see, it would be too blatantly jerky of you to bring a girl to the table after you’ve only been broken up for, like, a minute. And this way Genevieve can watch from afar and wonder for just a little bit longer.”
  5. barge
    push one's way
    Kitty barges in at one point and says, “Are you sick? Why are you still lying in bed like you have cancer like Brielle’s mom did?”
  6. wily
    marked by skill in deception
    We both get an allowance—Kitty gets five dollars a week and I get twenty, but Kitty always has more money than me. She saves everything like a wily squirrel.
  7. broach
    bring up a topic for discussion
    We have sausage and mushroom pizza for dinner, and when I broach the idea of Pizza Mondays, Daddy is quick to agree.
  8. iota
    a tiny or scarcely detectable amount
    I search his face for some sign of embarrassment or shame at having cheated, but I don’t see even an iota.
  9. flush
    turn red, as if in embarrassment or shame
    I can feel my face get flushed. “It wasn’t that funny.” I squint at him. “Is everything a joke to you?”
  10. ascot
    a tie with wide square ends
    He wore an ascot to school yesterday.
  11. fervently
    with strong emotion or zeal
    I shake my head fervently.
  12. render
    give or supply
    “Sounds good to me. Lara Jean, bring me one of these tomorrow morning, will you? For services rendered.”
  13. falter
    speak haltingly
    “So you’re probably wondering what this is all about,” I begin. And then I immediately falter. “It’s um, well, I wrote it a long time ago, and—”
  14. explicitly
    in a clearly expressed manner
    But Peter and I made that pact: we explicitly said we would never tell anyone. I don’t want to be the one to break it.
  15. cravat
    a scarf or band of cloth worn around the neck
    At homecoming, you wore a cravat and it suited you so well I think you could wear one all the time and get away with it.
  16. keen
    demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
    I guess the one remotely real thing I know about you is you’re a good writer, which must mean you have deep reserves of emotion. Like that short story you wrote in creative writing about the poisoned well and it was from a six-year-old boy’s perspective. It was so sensitive, so keen!
  17. naive
    marked by or showing unaffected simplicity
    Quit being so naive, Lara Jean.
  18. dollop
    a soft lump or portion of something, especially food
    I rub another dollop of green face mask onto my cheeks.
  19. bemused
    deeply absorbed in thought
    All the guys laugh. Peter’s smiling in a bemused way.
  20. incredulous
    not disposed or willing to believe; unbelieving
    “Then we’ll just go to the party after.” Peter shoots me an incredulous look. “That was in the note I wrote you today! God, why do I even bother?”
  21. jovial
    full of or showing high-spirited merriment
    “One of the old gang,” my dad says jovially, and I cringe.
  22. ensemble
    a coordinated outfit (set of clothing)
    When I hear his footsteps walking away, I scramble and try a cream polka-dot blouse with the shorts-suspenders ensemble.
  23. commission
    charge with a task
    “We’re all dying to know...what’s the story with you and Kavinsky?” I know she’s been commissioned by Gen to ask.
  24. dismissive
    showing indifference or disregard
    Peter makes a dismissive sound. “You’re too dreamy-eyed.”
  25. haphazard
    marked by great carelessness
    When I get inside the house, I go look in the kitchen first to check on the cupcakes. They’re packed away in Tupperware and my cupcake carrier. The frosting’s a little messy and the sprinkles are haphazard, but overall they look pretty good.
  26. morbid
    suggesting an unhealthy mental state
    “God, you’re morbid.” He shudders. “Didn’t know you had that side to you.”
  27. contrite
    feeling or expressing pain or sorrow
    “Sorry,” he says contritely. “We have to go early before all the good stuff gets snatched up.”
  28. placidly
    in a quiet and tranquil manner
    Peter has a serene look on his face, like he is a fishing-boat captain and we are floating placidly along in the middle of the sea.
  29. aggrieve
    cause to feel distress
    I let out an aggrieved sigh.
  30. wrought
    shaped to fit by altering the contours of a pliable mass
    I was expecting a mansion with a wrought iron gate and maybe a gargoyle or two, but this just looks like a normal house.
  31. vanity
    low table with a mirror where one sits while dressing
    I hold up a hot pink reindeer. It’s glass, with an electric blue nose. “This would look great on my vanity. Will you ask the man how much it costs?”
  32. spiteful
    showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt
    “No, you have it. It’s yours. She couldn’t even be bothered to help me move, so.” He gives a spiteful nod. “Is there anything else you want to take? I’ve got a trunk full of her old clothes.”
  33. heathen
    a person who does not acknowledge your god
    She puts another piece of pizza on Owen’s plate and says, “You’re heathens. Wild animals. I bet Lara Jean and her sisters are angels.”
  34. haughty
    having or showing arrogant superiority
    And then, because Peter’s looking at me like he feels sorry for me, I straighten up and say in a haughty voice, “I’m very mature, you know.”
  35. refined
    cultivated and genteel
    “Oh, yes, I’m very refined, Peter.”
Created on Tue Apr 09 09:24:16 EDT 2019 (updated Tue Apr 09 13:14:45 EDT 2019)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.