Slam!: Chapters 1–6

by Walter Dean Myers
Seventeen-year-old Greg Harris of New York's South Bronx must learn to work with others both on and off the basketball court to improve his game and his math grades.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–13, Chapters 14–21
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. glisten
    be shiny, as if wet
    The way she said it was firm, but her eyes were glistening and I knew she was hurt by what he was saying.
  2. rebound
    securing possession of the basketball after a missed shot
    But he was diving on the ball when it was on the floor and jumping for rebounds even when he didn’t get close.
    "Rebound" is used as a noun here to refer to a specific basketball play, but it can also be a verb about the same action. The description of how the rebounds are secured suggests how the character's nature might connect to other definitions of "rebound": "a reaction to a crisis or setback or frustration" that often is a "return to a former condition."
  3. prima donna
    a vain and temperamental person
    Mr. Goldstein asks him about me and I hear him saying something about not needing any prima donnas on the team.
    "Prima donna" is an Italian phrase that translates as "first lady" (usually the leading woman singer in an opera company)—this meaning makes the rejection even more insulting to a male basketball player.
  4. righteous
    morally justified
    I wasn’t sure if I was getting up right but when I see the rim I know I’m not only right but righteous. I slammed it down as hard as I could.
  5. callous
    a skin area that is thick or hard from continual pressure
    We’re not really tight but he’s okay and he can play a whole mess of guitar. One time he showed me the callouses on his hands.
  6. desperation
    hopeless recklessness
    He’s real serious. But everything’s like desperation time with him.
  7. snarl
    make an angry, sharp, or abrupt noise
    But as for basketball, the Panthers will be doing a lot more purring than snarling.
  8. stoop
    small porch or set of steps at the front entrance of a house
    It was warm out for the first of December and a lot of people were out on their stoops when I reached the neighborhood.
  9. deliberately
    with intention; in an intentional manner
    “You hurt my feelings walking down the street with Ice and deliberately looking as sweet as you can look.”
  10. pitiful
    inspiring mixed contempt and sorrow
    “Last year Carver beat them something pitiful.”
  11. gutter
    a channel at the edge of a street for carrying off surface water
    We’ve stepped over the bodies in the hallways, seen strong guys turn weak and cops spread sheets over brothers in the gutter.
  12. insist
    be emphatic or resolute and refuse to budge
    “I told Greg he didn’t have to come but he insisted on seeing his grandmother,” Mama lied.
  13. liable
    likely to be or do something
    “You know, when you reach my age things don’t work like they supposed to. You liable to wake up in the morning and have an arm fall off, or maybe one leg don’t want to walk right.”
  14. tumor
    an abnormal new mass of tissue that serves no purpose
    “She had a tumor, but now it’s spread,” she said.
  15. legitimate
    in accordance with accepted standards or principles
    Trip and Nick took turns picking me and driving past Ducky. But they weren’t making legitimate picks. They were stepping out and blocking me so I couldn’t get past.
  16. latitude
    scope for freedom of action or thought
    “How come Nick and Trip don’t have to do it the same way I do?” I said.
    “Because he wants to give the starters more latitude,” Mr. Goldstein said.
  17. prejudiced
    showing bias or bigotry or influenced by preconceived ideas
    That was all good because I liked shy girls. And it was okay that she was white, too. I’m not prejudiced or anything like that.
  18. constitution
    law determining the fundamental principles of a government
    So it’s Friday morning and I'm sitting in history listening to Mr. Penny, the history teacher, talk about all the arguments they had before they set up the Constitution.
    When capitalized, it refers to the American Constitution—its Latin root and related words in English emphasize the fixed nature of constitutional law: "statuere" means "to set up" and can be seen in "statue" and "statute" (which is a synonym for "law").
  19. draft
    draw up an outline or sketch for something
    “Isn’t it the Constitution that’s important?” Joe asked. “Not what they said on the way to drafting it?”
  20. counsel
    give advice to
    “The Guardians volunteer some of their time to tutor and counsel young African Americans. I’ve talked it over with Richie, and with your mother, and we think that you can benefit quite a bit by having Richie tutor you in math.”
  21. foundation
    education or instruction in the fundamentals of a field
    “The point is you need to improve your grades, pure and simple. If you expect a decent life—nice family, house, car, couple of kids—then you have to get a good foundation. And here’s where you start. Right here in Latimer.”
  22. offensive
    for the purpose of attack rather than defense
    Trip brought the ball in to Nick and the Panthers had their first offensive play.
    "Offensive" can also mean "unpleasant or disgusting especially to the senses" or "causing anger or annoyance" or "violating or tending to violate"—these definitions don't fit the example sentence and should not fit offensive plays in sports, if they're completed according to the rules.
  23. deuce
    two
    The center went up, made the deuce, and got the foul.
    In basketball, a deuce is the standard two-point shot (from the Latin "duo" which means "two").
  24. violation
    an act that disregards an agreement or a right
    Jimmy was standing around the paint so much he got called for two three-second violations, and our forwards looked like they were just throwing the ball toward the backboards and hoping for the best.
    In this case, Jimmy was guilty of violating the three-second rule, which is intended to prevent players from hogging the most valuable position on the floor: the area under the basket (known as "the paint").
  25. foul
    break the rules
    Then, when one of their players got fouled, the coach took out both Glen and Frank, moved Jimmy over to forward, put Jose at center and put Trip at the other forward.
  26. interior
    the inner or enclosed surface of something
    The car was a tough-looking silver Benz. It had a leather interior and a wood dashboard.
  27. portable
    easily or conveniently transported
    She went through her bag and pulled out a portable tape player.
  28. fumble
    handle clumsily
    She leaned over the front seat, fumbled with the radio and got it on.
  29. sedative
    a drug that reduces excitability and calms a person
    “When we put the tubes down her nasal passages she was gagging on them,” the nurse said. “So we gave her a sedative. She can use the rest anyway.”
  30. comeback
    return by a celebrity to some previously successful activity
    He was the man before I got on the scene and he was looking to make a comeback, or maybe he was just looking to prove something to himself.
    A comeback could be for anyone who had lost prestige and is trying to regain it. "Comeback" also means "a quick reply to a question or remark"—this definition does not fit the example sentence but it's suggested by the possibility of needing to prove oneself: the comeback could be a comeback to silence questions about skill and manliness.
Created on Thu Feb 20 22:27:10 EST 2014 (updated Fri Aug 25 09:38:08 EDT 2023)

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