Unit 8: Vocabulary from Readings 3

This list covers "The Cow of No Color," "The Living Kuan-yin," and "The Affair of the Horns."
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. execute
    kill as a means of socially sanctioned punishment
    Bring me a cow of no color in three days’ time—or you will be executed without delay!
  2. delay
    time during which some action is awaited
    Bring me a cow of no color in three days’ time—or you will be executed without delay!
  3. ponder
    reflect deeply on a subject
    The boy turned and left the palace, while the chief sat speechless on his stool, to ponder the words of Nunyala, wise woman of the Ewe.
  4. destitute
    poor enough to need help from others
    He had a deep sense of compassion for anyone in distress of body or spirit: a poor man had only to hold out his hand, and Po-wan poured gold into it; if a destitute widow and her brood of starvelings but lifted sorrowful eyes to his, he provided them with food and lodging and friendship for the rest of their days.
  5. dwindle
    become smaller or lose substance
    His resources so dwindled that finally he scarcely had enough food for himself; his clothes flapped threadbare on his wasted frame; and the cold seeped into his bone marrow for lack of a fire.
  6. extravagant
    recklessly wasteful
    ‘Why am I so poor?’ he wondered. ‘I have never spent extravagantly...'
  7. inadvertently
    without knowledge or intention
    Inadvertently, during the exchange of stories, Po-wan revealed the purpose of his journey.
  8. amiable
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
    ‘I have a beautiful daughter,’ he said, ‘wonderfully amiable and pleasing of disposition. But although she is in her twentieth year, she has never in all her life uttered a single word...'
  9. covet
    wish, long, or crave for
    Only the rabbit had been favored with such a marvelous means of defense, and the deer coveted those antlers.
  10. adorn
    make more attractive, as by adding ornament or color
    “Oh, yes. How handsome you are with those horns adorning your head,” the deer said.
  11. stingy
    unwilling to spend
    “How stingy they were with me that they didn’t give me something as valuable as your gift.”
  12. preen
    dress or groom with elaborate care
    The deer, preening himself, raised his head and asked, “How do I look now, friend rabbit?”
  13. consent
    permission to do something
    The deer ran very fast without waiting for the rabbit’s consent.
  14. incessant
    uninterrupted in time and indefinitely long continuing
    The incessant begging of the rabbit led the Shaper to reconsider his decision.
Created on Tue Feb 16 12:55:17 EST 2021 (updated Fri Feb 19 13:38:41 EST 2021)

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