Unit 1: English Language Development Texts

This list covers "How to Create Suspense" and "Inside the House."
12 words 102 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. suspense
    apprehension about what is going to happen
    The feeling of excitement or nervousness people feel when they do not know what is going to happen is called suspense. People feel suspense when watching a scary movie.
  2. plausible
    apparently reasonable, valid, or truthful
    Readers need to care about the characters. Also, the characters and their actions need to be plausible, or believable.
  3. anticipate
    make a prediction about; tell in advance
    For suspense to happen, readers need to anticipate what is going to happen. Readers can’t guess what unbelievable characters will do.
  4. asteroid
    a small celestial body composed of rock and metal
    For example, some stories might have a bomb that is going to explode in 60 minutes or an asteroid that will hit Earth in 24 hours.
  5. frustrated
    disappointingly unsuccessful
    She is frustrated, but not scared.
  6. predictable
    capable of being foretold
    The killer is always already inside the house! Nice try, Tina. But that ending was so predictable.
  7. interrupt
    make a break in
    CRISTINA [looks at her watch and interrupts]: Speaking of sleep, it’s bedtime.
  8. sarcastic
    expressing or expressive of ridicule that wounds
    CRISTINA [sarcastic]: Yeah, that’s it. I am just too scared—and too tired.
  9. anxious
    causing or fraught with or showing nervousness
    FERNANDO [anxious and embarrassed]: I don’t know. I heard something. A scratching. Over there. By the window.
  10. embarrassed
    feeling or caused to feel uneasy and self-conscious
    FERNANDO [anxious and embarrassed]: I don’t know. I heard something. A scratching. Over there. By the window.
  11. scratching
    a harsh noise made by scraping
    FERNANDO [anxious and embarrassed]: I don’t know. I heard something. A scratching. Over there. By the window.
  12. suspicious
    openly distrustful and unwilling to confide
    CRISTINA [suspicious]: You did not. You are trying to scare me.
Created on Mon Apr 12 09:44:04 EDT 2021 (updated Wed Apr 14 09:56:23 EDT 2021)

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