Beasts of Prey: "Remarkable Things"–Chapter 9

by Ayana Gray
Koffi, a sixteen-year-old indentured worker at the Night Zoo, joins forces with Ekon, the son of a decorated hero, to hunt down a dangerous creature that is threatening their home.

This list covers "Remarkable Things"–Chapter 9.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4, List 5
40 words 11 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. behest
    an authoritative command or request
    My parents have come from all the way across the city at the behest of the messenger boy Father Masego sent for them.
  2. imperceptibly
    in a manner that is difficult to discern
    As though he can read my thoughts, he gives me a wary look and moves imperceptibly to the left, putting slightly more space between us.
  3. affinity
    a natural attraction or feeling of kinship
    “What it means,” he says, “is that because you have such a distinctly strong affinity for the splendor, you’re going to have to work very, very hard to learn how to channel it properly and safely. You’re going to have to study harder, practice longer—”
  4. profound
    of the greatest intensity; complete
    Another surge of profound relief overtook Koffi as her bandaged hands finally found purchase on the ledge, a flat stone surface just wide enough for her to heave onto and perch like a bird.
  5. denizen
    a person who inhabits a particular place
    The cheerful din that had filled the city earlier was gone, and the few denizens still outside shop fronts did not wave or cheer as the warriors passed.
  6. uncanny
    surpassing the ordinary or normal
    Of course, he’d heard about the zoo—every Lkossan child grew up with stories of its wonders and terrors—but he’d never actually visited it or dared to come so close. It bore an uncanny resemblance to a prison: a large, bricked-in compound with walls at least twice his height.
  7. seasoned
    rendered competent through trial and experience
    He pointed to several seasoned warriors.
  8. ordinance
    a statute enacted by a city government
    There should be a well somewhere inside the zoo—city ordinance requires it. You, Shomari, and Fahim will be in charge of refilling water buckets to hand off to the runners.
  9. render
    cause to become
    They rendered him immobile, helpless, as the familiar voice rose from the back of his mind.
  10. palpable
    capable of being perceived
    The sensation came quietly at first, a low hum, like something rumbling just beneath his feet. It grew palpable in the air, heating it.
  11. coffer
    the funds of a government, institution, or individual
    “You must appeal to the Kuhani tonight and tell him I need immediate relief and financial aid from the temple’s coffers! I’m a gods-fearing man, I pay my tithes—”
  12. fiduciary
    relating to or of the nature of a legal trust
    “You’ll have to lodge a formal request with the temple’s Fiduciary Committee, Baaz.”
  13. disbursement
    the act of spending or distributing money
    We are not responsible for the disbursement of its funds.
  14. indignation
    a feeling of righteous anger
    “Do you mean to tell me,” Baaz finally said in indignation, “that Sons of the Six now break the law without consequence?”
  15. smolder
    burn slowly and without a flame
    The world seemed to slow as Father Olufemi ambled across the Night Zoo’s smoldering lawns.
  16. abet
    assist or encourage, usually in some wrongdoing
    “You have willfully abetted the escape of a legally indentured servant, and in doing so you have stolen from this man a debt fairly and rightfully owed. This is both a crime and an act of sin. There is no place for either among the Sons of the Six.”
  17. deluge
    the rising of a body of water and its overflowing onto land
    To cry now would be to unleash something, a deluge she wasn’t sure she’d be able to dam once released.
  18. vitriol
    abusive or venomous language to express blame or censure
    Koffi flinched away from the accusation in her head, from the vitriol in it.
  19. ostracize
    expel from a community or group
    People stopped looking at darajas as resources and instead saw them as threats. Over the years, they became ostracized, hunted down like—
  20. throng
    a large gathering of people
    Someone barreling through the throngs bumped her hard to the right, which caused someone else to yell at her to watch where she was going.
  21. feign
    give a false appearance of
    Brother Ugo pointed a gnarled finger at him, feigning hurt.
  22. unmitigated
    not diminished or moderated in intensity or severity
    “It was a disaster.” Ekon massaged his temples. “An absolute, unmitigated nightmare.”
  23. vanquish
    defeat in a competition, race, or conflict
    "Nightmares hunt like beasts of prey, vanquished in the light of day.”
  24. inscrutable
    difficult or impossible to understand
    His brother’s face was inscrutable.
  25. mulish
    unreasonably stubborn or rigid
    “Ekon, listen to me, you can’t—”
    “You know, I’m not as incompetent as you think,” said Ekon mulishly.
  26. furtive
    secret and sly
    Kamau shot a furtive look over his shoulder. “You can speak to no one of this.”
  27. contend
    be engaged in a fight
    “If you go into the Greater Jungle looking for the Shetani, you need to understand that you won’t just be contending with what’s already in there. The Sons of the Six will be hunting too, the Yaba way.”
  28. intimate
    thoroughly acquainted through study or experience
    He was the boy who intimately knew what it had been like to lose two parents, because he’d lost them too.
  29. fealty
    the loyalty that one owes to a country, sovereign, or lord
    His brother had sworn a holy oath of fealty; this half promise was the very best he could offer him as an anointed warrior.
  30. incite
    provoke or stir up
    He blamed her—rightfully—for not securing Diko’s lead and inciting panic in the Hema, but it seemed he didn’t know about the candle.
  31. preclude
    keep from happening or arising
    “It means,” said Baaz, “that it will be added to your debts. By my own quick calculations, you should be able to pay it back in approximately thirty-five years, precluding interest.”
  32. fathom
    come to understand
    She’d always known the punishment for what she’d done was going to be bad, but this was far worse than anything she could have fathomed.
  33. undulate
    move in a wavy pattern or with a rising and falling motion
    Still, as Koffi stared at the piece, a strange sort of grief undulated inside her.
  34. demure
    suggestive of modesty or reserve
    Koffi bowed her head, trying to look demure.
  35. ominously
    in a manner suggesting something bad will happen
    “A massive, terrible beast,” she said ominously.
  36. stipulation
    a restriction insisted upon as a condition for an agreement
    “I think what we need here are some stipulations,” he said cheerfully.
  37. parameter
    any factor defining a system and determining its performance
    “Clearly set parameters,” said Baaz. “Your little hunt will have a time limit. You have until the start of the monsoon season to find the Shetani and bring it back here. If you do not, I will add an inconvenience fee of seven hundred fedhas to your debts.”
  38. incur
    make oneself subject to
    “Finally, if you do not return to this zoo at all,” Baaz continued, “the new debts you have incurred and the inconvenience fees will fall to Jabir...and to your mother.”
  39. salve
    a preparation applied externally as a soothing remedy
    She took in wafts of homemade salves, healing herbs, the distinct smell of bandaging linen and ointments.
  40. fateful
    ominously prophetic
    She told him everything that had happened, from the fateful moment with the candle to what she’d seen on the other side of the Night Zoo’s wall.
Created on Wed Apr 20 08:41:27 EDT 2022 (updated Mon Apr 25 13:15:11 EDT 2022)

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