Persepolis Vocab Part 2

Ms. Seward (United States of America)
20 words 262 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. imperative
    requiring attention or action
    "It's imperative that you be back by 9:30" (Persepolis 159).
  2. discreet
    marked by prudence or modesty and wise self-restraint
    "She was gentle and discreet. In fact, a little too much so. Compared to my mother, she lacked authority" (Id. 181; see also 163).
  3. volition
    the act of making a choice
    "I ... decided to leave the boarding house of my own volition" (Id. 179).
  4. nostalgia
    a longing for something past
    "She understood my nostalgia for the Caspian Sea" (Id. 181; see also 280).
  5. platonic
    free from physical desire
    "They worked together, were both divorced, and carried on a platonic relationship" (Id. 182).
  6. fickle
    liable to sudden unpredictable change
    "It's good to remember the fickle spinning of that wheel" (TIB, Pizza Dude; see also Persepolis 191).
  7. epitome
    a standard or typical example
    "Ms. Seward, you are the epitome of grace and beauty," said Ms. Reville with the deepest admiration (and jealousy). (See also Persepolis 195).
  8. infantile
    of or relating to babies
    "Even today this infantile joke brings tears to our eyes" (Id. 205).
  9. chaste
    abstaining from unlawful sexual intercourse
    "This chaste love affair frustrated me more than it satisfied me" (Id. 214).
  10. carnal
    of or relating to the body or flesh
    "I had grasped the necessity of a carnal relationship" (Id. 216).
  11. nonchalance
    the trait of remaining calm and seeming not to care
    "You know what I love about you, your rebellious side and your natural nonchalance" (Id. 219, 236).
  12. deplorable
    of very poor quality or condition
    "The usage of certain substances does not have the same effect on everyone, in certain individuals, it can lead to deplorable consequences" (Id. 225).
  13. destiny
    the ultimate agency predetermining the course of events
    "This must be destiny's sign that I should celebrate turning eighteen with him" (Id. 231).
  14. prostrate
    stretched out and lying at full length along the ground
    "For almost a month I lived at this rhythm: the night prostrate and the day letting myself be carried away across Vienna by sleep and the tramway" (Id. 238).
  15. banal
    repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
    "And it's a banal story of love that almost carried my away) (Id. 241).
  16. sordid
    foul and run-down and repulsive
    "What did you think of Tehran?" "Sordid" (Id. 252).
  17. blase
    nonchalantly unconcerned
    "Despite my father sounding motivated, I didn't feel any real conviction in his voice. He seemed to me as blase as my mother" (Id. 257).
  18. anecdote
    short account of an incident
    "Next to my father's distressing report, my Viennese misadventures seemed like little anecdotes of no importance" (Id.)
  19. qualm
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
    "During combat, you don't have time for qualms" (Id. 278).
  20. melancholy
    a constitutional tendency to be gloomy and depressed
    "The breakfast that my mother had prepared just like she used to, the melancholy atmosphere of the beginning of autumn, my uniform ... everything reminded me of the beginning of school" (Id. 292).
Created on Sat Sep 05 11:45:05 EDT 2015 (updated Sat Sep 05 12:16:25 EDT 2015)

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.