I Survived the Nazi Invasion, 1944: Chapters 7–13

by Lauren Tarshis
In this ninth book of the historical fiction I Survived series, eleven-year-old Max Rosen is in a Polish forest, hiding from Nazis, when planes start to fly by and drop bombs.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–13
35 words 55 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. frothy
    emitting or filled with bubbles
    There was nothing fancy, just bread, cheese, apples, and a pitcher of frothy milk.
  2. bookish
    characterized by diligent study and fondness for reading
    His round glasses gave him a shy and bookish look.
  3. base
    a station from which missions start and end
    To destroy the train, Aunt Hannah, Lev, and Martin had carried a fifty-pound explosive from their base in the forest.
  4. smolder
    burn slowly and without a flame
    Max could picture it all in his mind—the train’s dive from the bridge, the smoldering wreckage, the Nazi flag bursting into flames.
  5. slight
    small in quantity or degree
    They stayed hidden, avoiding towns, ducking into bushes at the slightest sound—a dog barking, a baby crying, a wagon clattering down a distant road.
  6. defiantly
    in a rebellious manner
    “But they’ll never find us,” Martin said defiantly.
  7. brim
    be completely full
    Her face was twisted in pain, her eyes brimming with tears.
  8. grit
    clench together
    Zena gritted her teeth as Aunt Hannah peeled away her blood-soaked sock.
  9. lurch
    move abruptly
    Max’s stomach lurched at the sight of her big toe—the skin was torn away, the nail almost completely ripped off.
  10. flinch
    draw back, as with fear or pain
    Aunt Hannah didn’t flinch.
    “It’s just that your boot is too small,” she said. “It’s not bad at all.”
  11. cringe
    draw back, as with fear, pain, or embarrassment
    “Barbed wire,” she said, pointing at a purple, jagged scar. “We set fire to a bullet factory, and I got caught on our way out.”
    Max cringed.
  12. canteen
    a flask for carrying water; used by soldiers or travelers
    Aunt Hannah opened her canteen and poured some water over Zena’s toe.
  13. whine
    make a high-pitched, screeching noise
    There was a whining sound, and then a massive explosion behind them.
  14. piercing
    very perceptive
    Max had seen them in the weeks after the invasion, streaking over Esties, low enough that he could see their pilots’ piercing eyes.
  15. fleet
    group of aircraft operating under the same ownership
    Papa told him they were the fastest bombers in the Nazi fleet, with six machine guns. Each plane could carry thousands of pounds of bombs.
  16. flush
    force to come into the open, as from a place of concealment
    I’m sure the Nazis have the forest surrounded now. They’re trying to flush us out so they can capture us as we try to escape.
  17. hoist
    raise
    So Martin grabbed her arms and hoisted her up onto his back.
  18. frantic
    excessively agitated; distraught with violent emotion
    Above him, Max heard footsteps and voices frantically calling his name.
  19. muffled
    being or made softer or less loud or clear
    He screamed for help, but his voice was a muffled whisper.
  20. grope
    feel about uncertainly or blindly
    He groped around with his fingers, until he found a rock.
  21. agonize
    suffer anguish
    Max jammed the rock into the side of the ditch, scraping and digging. The work was agonizingly slow at first, and it was broiling hot.
  22. raw
    hurting
    His entire body ached; his fingertips were raw and bleeding.
  23. sneer
    smile contemptuously
    The man who had been aiming the gun was enormous. He looked Max up and down and sneered at him, the way Goliath must have first looked at David.
  24. fumble
    handle clumsily
    Martin fumbled with it, tugging at the lever and cursing under his breath.
  25. searing
    intense or sharp
    A split second later, the bullet tore into Max’s side with a searing, blinding pain.
  26. gape
    be wide open
    Max stared down in shock as blood gushed from the gaping wound.
  27. wince
    draw back, as with fear or pain
    He winced in pain as he hoisted himself out the door.
  28. grisly
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
    The purple, puckered scar was even grislier than the ones Aunt Hannah and Martin had shown them.
  29. eerie
    inspiring a feeling of fear; strange and frightening
    They stopped in a cluster of dead trees that rose from the water like twisted skeletons. The forest glowed eerily around them, machine-gun fire pounded in the distance.
  30. bustle
    move or cause to move energetically or busily
    Soon he and Zena were swept into the bustling life of the camp.
  31. cautious
    avoiding excess
    The partisans spoke with cautious hope about the end of the war, about returning home.
  32. wrestle
    engage in deep thought, consideration, or debate
    Was it right to forget?
    Could Max really start a new and happy life after all that had happened?
    For months before this voyage, he’d wrestled with these questions.
  33. linger
    be about
    His eyes lingered on his scar.
  34. pucker
    become wrinkled or drawn together
    Sometimes the wound ached a little, but it had healed. Max ran his fingers across the puckered skin.
  35. wisp
    a thin tuft, piece, or amount of something
    All they could see at first was a thin black wisp on the horizon.
Created on Tue Oct 24 17:51:58 EDT 2023 (updated Fri Oct 27 11:54:29 EDT 2023)

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