Undercover Latina: Chapters 21–28

by Aya de León
As an agent of the International Alternative Intelligence Consortium, fourteen-year-old Andréa Hernández-Baldoquín is assigned to befriend the son of a suspected terrorist in order to prevent a possible attack somewhere in the southwestern U.S.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–13, Chapters 14–20, Chapters 21–28, Chapters 29–35
40 words 16 learners

Learn words with Flashcards and other activities

Definition First
Print Flashcards

Other learning activities

Answer a few questions about each word. Use this to prep for your next quiz! Compete with other teams in real time to see who answers the most questions correctly! Test your spelling acumen. Read the definition, listen to the word and try spelling it!

Teaching tools

Create and assign quizzes to your students to test their vocabulary. Assign learning activities including Practice, Vocabulary Jams and Spelling Bees to your students, and monitor their progress in real-time.

Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. deploy
    use or distribute systematically or strategically
    “From the beginning, I’ve always been taught that you have to stay detached. It’s why they never deploy kids younger than us. They’re not mature enough to compartmentalize.”
  2. compartmentalize
    keep separate; separate into isolated categories
    “From the beginning, I’ve always been taught that you have to stay detached. It’s why they never deploy kids younger than us. They’re not mature enough to compartmentalize.”
  3. frivolous
    not serious in content, attitude, or behavior
    Girls are taught that we’re shallow and frivolous and boy crazy. We try so hard not to be that.
  4. mortified
    made to feel uncomfortable because of shame or wounded pride
    “People get crushes. Sometimes the person likes you back. It’s nothing to be ashamed of, whether you’re a spy or not.”
    “So when you have a crush, you don’t feel half mortified, half elated?” I asked.
  5. elated
    full of high-spirited delight
    “So when you have a crush, you don’t feel half mortified, half elated?” I asked.
  6. integrity
    moral soundness
    “And I don’t believe in shooting colleagues.”
    “Darn your integrity,” I said.
  7. dapper
    marked by up-to-dateness in dress and manners
    I gazed at him through the video screen. Same neat and close-cropped hair. Same three-piece suit, the vest making him look dapper and old-timey.
  8. testament
    strong evidence for something
    “But an almost kiss?” he asked. “That is no problem at all. And that the subject came out to you? A testament to your spycraft.”
  9. dispatch
    send away towards a designated goal
    They had dispatched Operative 5571 (my mom!) to do surveillance on Heather’s house.
  10. stance
    standing posture
    He had a shorter beard than in the surveillance video Jerrold had shown me, but there was something about his stance—it was definitely him.
  11. melancholy
    grave or even gloomy in character
    She disappeared back into the kitchen and Kyle came in, looking even more melancholy than usual.
  12. understatement
    something said in a restrained way for ironic contrast
    “She said she was out late,” Kyle said.
    That was an understatement.
  13. pucker
    become wrinkled or drawn together
    His face puckered like he was trying not to cry.
  14. apprehend
    take into police custody
    “But we shouldn’t try to apprehend Summer at the café. Too many civilians around.”
  15. divert
    send on a course different from the planned or intended one
    “But the FBI isn’t in place yet. Apparently, there was a mass shooting in Phoenix, and they diverted some of their agents. Their backup team is on the way now.”
  16. ordeal
    a severe or trying experience
    Mostly, I just saw Emily standing at the closed door, taking deep breaths as if to prepare herself for an ordeal.
  17. insistent
    demanding attention
    His voice was calmer now than it had been when he talked to Heather. More patient. Like he expected she would be upset, like he thought it was reasonable. The night before, he had been more insistent.
  18. entitled
    qualified for by right according to law
    His voice had a really different tone. Entitled.
  19. corroborate
    support with evidence or authority or make more certain
    I texted the team that I was sure. That Imani corroborated.
  20. fend
    try to manage without help
    “You going on about white men and their burden and how everything is against them. Really? So you just leave your family to fend for themselves, and you think you’re the victim here?”
  21. wary
    openly distrustful and unwilling to confide
    Kyle looked at his dad with wary eyes.
  22. phishing
    the act of sending deceptive emails to trick internet users
    “This is obviously a phishing scam,” Kyle said. “See? They say I’m sick and you need to click this link to send money.”
  23. grim
    harshly uninviting or formidable in manner or appearance
    In the FBI office in Phoenix, Kyle’s dad—the real John Summer—sat in the interrogation room, a grim little box with harsh lighting.
  24. allegedly
    according to what has been declared but not proved
    We didn't know much more about Dave. Only two sketches of what he looked like, two eyewitnesses, and the fact that he was allegedly in Las Vegas when Heather texted him.
  25. limbo
    a period of prolonged uncertainty
    After we realized John Summer wasn’t the real terrorist, our operation went into limbo.
  26. immersion
    complete attention; intense mental effort
    I texted Imani, but she said she was in Kreyol language immersion class, because her family might be needed for an operation in Haiti.
  27. xenophobia
    a fear of foreigners or strangers
    “Sometimes patriotism and xenophobia go hand in hand.”
  28. pore
    direct one's attention on something
    But our team has been poring over it for months now. Maybe it’s time for some new eyes.
  29. propaganda
    information that is spread to promote some cause
    She didn’t want me to see any of the white nationalist propaganda unless it was absolutely necessary.
  30. intercept
    receive or gain possession of information secretly
    I picked up the top page, which was the email they’d recently intercepted.
  31. ideology
    an orientation that characterizes the thinking of a group
    “He would be the big hero for Team Racism.”
    “Can you give me a list of other characters or words that would be part of that ideology?”
  32. supersede
    take the place or move into the position of
    “Our contract with Jerrold doesn’t supersede my authority as a mother to consent or not consent to your activities as a minor.”
  33. patronizing
    characteristic of those who treat others with arrogance
    “It’s my job to protect you—”
    Now my eyes were blazing, too. Why couldn’t she see how patronizing this was?
  34. barrio
    a Spanish-speaking quarter in a town or city
    “I didn’t grow up like you. In a nice house. Visiting hotels on vacation. I lost both my parents. I grew up in the roughest barrio. Taking risks as a spy was nothing to me. Your dad was the same.”
  35. subdued
    restrained in style or quality
    Our team was meeting again at the great-aunt’s house, where we were subdued and somber.
  36. somber
    serious and gloomy in character
    Our team was meeting again at the great-aunt’s house, where we were subdued and somber.
  37. prosecute
    conduct legal proceedings against a defendant
    “But the FBI keeps raising the bar on the kind of evidence they need to detain and prosecute these guys. A positive ID from the man whose identity he stole? Plus two teen agents as eyewitnesses? That would probably do the trick.”
  38. astute
    marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
    You two showed up in town at the most random of times, clearly saying you’re one thing and then suddenly becoming another? These kids are very astute. They'll start asking questions.
  39. reestablish
    bring back into original existence, function, or position
    “We need you to reestablish contact with Kyle and Ramón,” Jerrold said. “You’ll need to suggest that you all go to the Con.”
  40. jar
    affect in a disagreeable way
    “Hey, ANN-drea,” Kyle said, coming into the living room. It was so jarring to hear my cover name again.
Created on Mon Nov 13 09:40:19 EST 2023 (updated Tue Nov 14 11:28:59 EST 2023)

Sign up now (it’s free!)

Whether you’re a teacher or a learner, Vocabulary.com can put you or your class on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement.