The Boy Who Met a Whale: Chapters 25–36

by Nizrana Farook
On the island of Serendib, twelve-year-old Razi has not been in the water since his father died in a fishing accident, but then he meets a young stranded sailor who needs his help.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–6, Chapters 7–15, Chapters 16–24, Chapters 25–36
40 words 8 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. peal
    a deep prolonged sound
    The three of them looked at each other and broke into peals of laughter.
  2. tarnish
    make or become dirty or dull, as by exposure to air
    It was the Dagger of Serendib, the hilt carved and topped by a roaring lion head, now tarnished by time.
  3. trinket
    a small cheap ornament, knickknack, or piece of jewelry
    The rest of the box was full of roughly shaped coins and a few small trinkets.
  4. engrossed
    giving or marked by complete attention to
    They’d been so engrossed in the treasure they’d forgotten to look out for the men.
  5. bemused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    Marco and Cook stopped and watched Razi run away, bemused. “What are the fools doing now?” said Marco.
  6. grimace
    contort the face to indicate a certain mental state
    Marco grimaced and pulled harder on his boat.
  7. sleek
    designed to offer the least resistance while moving through air
    All sleek and smart, not like the traditional fishing boats Razi was used to, the ones his grandfather and great-grandfather had used before them.
  8. wastrel
    someone who squanders resources or time
    “Let’s get rid of this wastrel. He’s not worth the effort.”
  9. utter
    complete
    But to Razi’s utter shock and dismay Marco flicked a hand, and Cook threw Zheng overboard.
  10. writhing
    moving in a twisting or snake-like or wormlike fashion
    The two children watched as the men chased after Nathan’s boat, Marco groaning and writhing in the back.
  11. capsize
    overturn accidentally
    Marco and Cook were thrown out like rag dolls and the boat smashed back into the sea with a massive thud. It landed well away from its capsized passengers.
  12. mauve
    a moderate purple
    Far below him on the seabed the corals reached up in tentacles of red and buds of thorny mauve.
  13. overwhelm
    overcome, as with emotions or perceptual stimuli
    The hair on his back rose as a creepy sensation overwhelmed him.
  14. shenanigan
    reckless or malicious behavior that causes annoyance
    Maalu was coming toward them now, gliding through the water as if to see what they thought of her shenanigans with Marco.
  15. unparalleled
    radically distinctive and without equal
    This couldn't be real. Sure, he’d been on a lot of adventures, but this one was unparalleled.
  16. bedraggled
    limp, untidy, and soiled
    A clump of sand fell off her bedraggled hair.
  17. trudge
    walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud
    Zheng trudged to the piece of ground surrounded by coconut trees where Shifa had spread out a waterproof sheet and was taking some food out of a round-bottomed cane basket.
  18. cormorant
    large, dark-colored, long-necked seabird
    Early the next morning Zheng was awoken by the sound of cormorants whistling and thrashing around in the water.
  19. flank
    be located at the sides of something or somebody
    Coconut palms swayed in their wiry gentleness, flanking the row of modest fishermen’s houses facing the beach.
  20. promptly
    with little or no delay
    “What’s that?” said Nathan’s father, pointing to the box in Zheng’s hand.
    Zheng promptly shoved it behind his back.
  21. jostle
    make one's way by pushing or shoving
    A curly-haired figure jostled into the crowd and swiped the box from Marco’s hands.
  22. sprawling
    spreading out in different directions
    Cook ran into a tree and knocked himself to the ground, then Marco tripped over his sprawling body.
  23. consignment
    the delivery of goods for sale or disposal
    A carter had just finished loading a consignment of coconuts and was sitting by his cart, eating spicy chickpeas from a paper cone.
  24. yoke
    join with stable gear, as two draft animals
    The ox yoked to it looked fed up and tired, as if it were sick of life itself.
  25. condone
    excuse, overlook, or make allowances for
    “Well, yes. But I-I don’t think slapping is a good thing. I don’t condone it or any—”
  26. rein
    one of a pair of long straps used to control a horse
    Razi jumped on the cart and took the reins. He had very little experience driving oxcarts but how hard could it be?
  27. plod
    walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud
    With a slow, plodding movement, the cart started grinding down the path back toward the beach.
  28. materialize
    come into being; become reality
    They rode on the main road, keeping within sight of the beach so that Marco would see them if he was still there.
    And, sure enough, within minutes, Marco and Cook had materialized.
  29. trundle
    move along on or as if on wheels or a wheeled vehicle
    Now that they’d been seen, Razi flicked the reins and the cart trundled away.
  30. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    Razi flicked the reins again and the ox hobbled forward, reluctant to move after its break.
  31. coax
    influence or persuade by gentle and persistent urging
    “Come on, friend,” he said to the ox. “You can do it.” He pulled the ropes and tried to coax the ox into going faster.
  32. obliging
    showing a cheerful willingness to do favors for others
    The ox trotted up obligingly at once, kicking up dust from the road.
  33. toil
    work hard
    The three oxen lowed and hurtled on, sweating and toiling, locked in a race of their own.
  34. profusely
    in very large amounts or quantities; extremely
    Razi was sweating profusely now but he wasn’t about to give up.
  35. airy
    open to or abounding in fresh atmosphere
    They trotted past the houses on either side—broad, airy verandas that came right down to the edge of the street and were held up by wide round pillars.
  36. wistfully
    in a pensively sad manner
    He gazed wistfully into the distance as the cart trundled on, then started and yelled as he spotted Marco’s cart.
  37. solemnly
    in a serious and dignified manner
    Marco looked at Zheng and Shifa standing by their cart and gazing solemnly at him.
  38. poultice
    a medical dressing spread on a cloth and applied to the skin
    Shifa was mixing up a poultice as a boy sat talking to her.
  39. whittle
    cut small bits or pare shavings from
    Zheng held the little whale Razi had whittled.
  40. fanciful
    indulging in or influenced by the imagination
    It would be a while till he saw his brave, adventurous, tiring, and fanciful friend again.
Created on Thu Dec 07 16:14:27 EST 2023 (updated Sat Dec 09 16:30:45 EST 2023)

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