The School for Good and Evil: Chapters 17–22

by Soman Chainani
Sweet, angelic Sophie and moody Agatha are shocked when Agatha is sent to the School for Good and Sophie is sent to the School for Evil. Did the School Master make a mistake or does he know the two girls better than they know themselves?

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–4, Chapters 5–10, Chapters 11–16, Chapters 17–22, Chapters 23–30
40 words 23 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. bodice
    part of a dress above the waist
    Sophie sashayed into the Clearing, dumpy black sack refashioned into a strapless bodice dress, F shimmering over her chest with devil-red sequins.
  2. vermilion
    of a vivid red to reddish-orange color
    Her face was painted geisha white, her eyelids pink, her lips vermilion, and her glass shoes had not only been repaired but heeled even taller, which together with the extremely short dress, showed off long, creamy legs.
  3. tedious
    so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
    With spell casting set to begin, the teachers’ tests were based less on talent now and more in tedious recall.
  4. complement
    make perfect or supply what is wanting
    Her heels were a full inch taller, her face shimmering bronze, her eye shadow provocative periwinkle, her lips delicious crimson, and the glittering F on the front of her dress was now complemented by sequins on the back that read: “...is for Fabulous.”
  5. fetching
    very attractive; capturing interest
    “F is for ‘Forever.’ Mmm, a bit heady. How about ‘Flirty’? Or ‘Fetching’?”
  6. drab
    lacking brightness or color; dull
    By the third day on her stump, Sophie had 30 freshly bathed Nevergirls attend “Just Say No to Drab.”
  7. admonish
    scold or reprimand; take to task
    But just as he was booed away—
    “We welcome everyone,” Sophie admonished as she swept to her stump.
  8. fete
    have a celebration in someone's honor
    Gavaldon would erect statues of them in the square, fete them in sermons, stage a musical about their lives, and teach schoolchildren about the two girls who saved them from the curse.
  9. grovel
    show submission or fear
    Her mother would have a thousand new patients, Reaper fresh trout every day, and she would have her pictures in the town scroll and anyone who had ever dared to mock her would now grovel at her—
  10. throng
    press tightly together or cram
    Agatha turned to Beatrix, who was watching Nevers throng around Sophie in a revealing black sari and sharp-heeled fur booties for her lecture on “How to Be the Best at Everything (Like Me!).”
  11. berate
    censure severely or angrily
    “And you’re still ranked 68, so pay attention!” berated the roach on her book, swan crest glistening on abdomen.
  12. paroxysm
    a sudden uncontrollable attack
    Agatha exploded in a paroxysm of hacks.
  13. rife
    excessively abundant
    Time evaporated when she studied Evil, so rife with power and possibility, she could never get bored.
  14. chastise
    scold or criticize severely
    After chastising her for slipping in the Ever ranks, explaining every assignment thrice, and berating her to cover her mouth when she coughed, Pollux finally left in a circus of hops and falls.
  15. scalloped
    decorated with a margin or border of semicircles
    So had her black-robed fashions, bolder and more extravagant than before, in a grand pageant of scalloped plumage, fishnet bodices, faux monkey fur, sequined burkas, leather pantsuits, powdered wigs, and even a chain-mail bustier.
  16. carapace
    hard outer covering or case of certain organisms
    Agatha nearly burst her carapace.
  17. ensemble
    a coordinated outfit (set of clothing)
    Look at these glasses. Aren’t they chic? Saves your eyes from the sun. You know, these Evergirls sneak me all sorts of things like this now, pearls, jewels, makeup to add to my ensembles.
  18. lucid
    transmitting light; able to be seen through with clarity
    Agatha met Sophie’s lucid, beautiful eyes.
  19. cede
    give over
    “You will each have a flag of surrender. If you find yourself in mortal danger, drop it to the ground and you will be rescued unharmed from the Blue Forest. You will learn more about the rules in your various classes, but now I cede the floor to the Forest Group leaders, who will announce this season’s Trial competitors.”
  20. brocade
    thick expensive material with a raised pattern
    The next day, the challengers spent their first two sessions being fitted for their Trial uniforms: dark blue tunics of silky iron mesh, and matching hooded wool cloaks lined with red brocade.
  21. spurious
    plausible but false
    “This is why you send a girl to risk her life? Because you believe your spurious prophecy?”
  22. deft
    skillful in physical movements; especially of the hands
    With the deftest care, she undid the flower in the lap of her dress.
  23. succumb
    be fatally overwhelmed
    Antennae whisking right and left, Agatha tracked Sophie’s perfume down crooked stairs and dank halls (nearly succumbing to a shifty male roach along the way), until she found its source in the common room.
  24. wheedle
    influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering
    All week, the students had tried to wheedle out of their teachers what obstacles the challengers would face but they professed ignorance.
  25. traipse
    walk or tramp about
    With wind rumpling her curtains, Agatha couldn’t hear the rest, but soon the door thumped and Tedros traipsed away.
  26. imposing
    impressive in appearance
    “We’ve heard rumors that unqualified students may try to sneak into the Trial,” Pollux said next to Castor, an imposing two-headed shadow in waning light.
  27. ruddy
    inclined to a healthy reddish color
    “And I don’t put it past any of those villains,” Tedros said, golden cheeks ruddy with cold.
  28. sentinel
    a person employed to keep watch for some anticipated event
    But the sapphire trees stood sentinel along the trail, long dangling branches glittering like chandeliers.
  29. ecstatic
    feeling great rapture or delight
    Ecstatic, the dove kept warbling, more off-key with every note—
  30. exultant
    joyful and proud especially because of triumph or success
    Exultant, she collapsed into big, blue flowers and inhaled their scent, reviving instantly.
  31. ashen
    pale from illness or emotion
    Slowly the waters delivered Sophie’s lovebird into ashen hands as the shadow pulled back its hood.
  32. bludgeon
    strike with a club
    He bludgeoned the stabbing head and leg with his shield, but an arm sank a dagger into his thigh.
  33. sternum
    the breastbone
    Dazed, Tedros stared at the shallow wound in his chest muscle, the bloody knife on his sternum.
  34. depraved
    deviating from what is considered moral or right or proper
    Every inch of the black wall behind him was covered in posters, banners, graffiti—CONGRATULATIONS, CAPTAIN! TRIAL TRIUMPHANT! READER TO THE RESCUE!—accompanied by depraved cartoons of Evers suffering miserable deaths.
  35. fawn
    try to gain favor through flattery or deferential behavior
    “What a genius trick,” Hort fawned, trying on the cape.
  36. wryly
    in a humorously sarcastic or mocking manner
    “But those feelings are wrong,” said Anadil. “No matter how strong they are.”
    “That’s why this one’s special,” Hester said wryly. “She almost convinced us they were right.”
  37. leery
    openly distrustful and unwilling to confide
    He thought of her tramping through halls with leery bug eyes—
  38. missive
    a written message addressed to a person or organization
    While Professor Dovey sent unanswered missives to the School Master, Lady Lesso took careful notice of Sophie’s growing distance with her roommates, the fact Sophie was no longer shivering in her iced classroom, and her brutal desecration of Tedros’ name on her book covers.
  39. simper
    smile in an insincere, unnatural, or coy way
    “Or what?” she simpered. “You’ll catch me?”
  40. tentative
    hesitant or lacking confidence; unsettled in mind or opinion
    With a tentative smile, she held out her hand across the wolves to him.
Created on Thu Apr 22 13:27:19 EDT 2021 (updated Thu Apr 29 15:27:49 EDT 2021)

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