White Fang: Part 2

by Jack London
Half dog, half wolf, White Fang struggles to survive in the wilderness — and to navigate the complicated world of humans. Read the full text here.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5
15 words 604 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. loath
    unwilling to do something contrary to your custom
    The pack had been loath to forego the kill it had hunted down, and it lingered for several minutes, making sure of the sounds, and then it, too, sprang away on the trail made by the she-wolf.
  2. grizzled
    having gray or partially gray hair
    On her other side ran a gaunt old wolf, grizzled and marked with the scars of many battles.
  3. placate
    cause to be more favorably inclined
    They turned their shoulders to her most savage slashes, and with wagging tails and mincing steps strove to placate her wrath.
  4. rebuff
    an instance of driving away or warding off
    He was plainly expectant of a rebuff, and he was just as plainly surprised when her teeth did not flash out at him in anger.
  5. myriad
    too numerous to be counted
    But to their nostrils came the myriad smells of an Indian camp, carrying a story that was largely incomprehensible to One Eye, but every detail of which the she-wolf knew.
  6. reproof
    an act or expression of criticism and censure
    She sank her fangs into her mate’s shoulder in reproof; and he, frightened, unaware of what constituted this new onslaught, struck back ferociously and in still greater fright, ripping down the side of the she-wolf’s muzzle.
  7. quandary
    a situation from which extrication is difficult
    It was his mate who relieved him from the quandary in which he found himself.
  8. apprehensive
    in fear or dread of possible evil or harm
    He was worried and apprehensive, yet the camp lured his mate and she was loath to depart.
  9. fitful
    intermittently stopping and starting
    Though he lay down in the entrance and slept, his sleep was fitful.
  10. progeny
    the immediate descendants of a person
    Of her own experience she had no memory of the thing happening; but in her instinct, which was the experience of all the mothers of wolves, there lurked a memory of fathers that had eaten their new-born and helpless progeny.
  11. incur
    make oneself subject to
    Thus he learned hurt; and on top of it he learned to avoid hurt, first, by not incurring the risk of it; and second, when he had incurred the risk, by dodging and by retreating.
  12. antecedent
    preceding in time or order
    Without any antecedent knowledge, without any warning whatever that such existed, he found himself an explorer in a totally new world.
  13. expedient
    serving to promote your interest
    He found it expedient to be cautious all the time, except for the rare moments, when, assured of his own intrepidity, he abandoned himself to petty rages and lusts.
  14. furtive
    marked by quiet and caution and secrecy
    He no longer sprawled and straddled, and already he was developing the gait of his mother, slinking and furtive, apparently without exertion, yet sliding along with a swiftness that was as deceptive as it was imperceptible.
  15. volubly
    in a chatty manner
    His desire to kill strengthened with the days, and he cherished hungry ambitions for the squirrel that chattered so volubly and always informed all wild creatures that the wolf-cub was approaching.
Created on Mon Dec 16 16:35:48 EST 2019 (updated Mon Jun 23 19:09:45 EDT 2025)

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