Merci Suárez Plays It Cool: Chapters 1–4

by Meg Medina
In this final book of the trilogy, eighth-grader Merci tries to prove that she is a cool soccer-playing teenager while juggling the responsibilities of school and home, which include assisting the guidance office and taking care of her sick grandfather and almost-seven-year-old twin cousins.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–4, Chapters 5–12, Chapters 13–24, Chapters 25–41
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. testy
    easily irritated or annoyed
    They echoed through our backyards, sounding like one of those spirits that Abuela warns about—a tátara-something-or-other buried back in Cuba who gets testy if they think they’ve been forgotten by their descendants.
  2. exasperated
    greatly annoyed; out of patience
    “Did that cat shred the mesh again?” Mami asks, exasperated. “Your father just fixed it last week.”
  3. grisly
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
    He kills everything: birds, mice, voles, lizards—even baby possums—and leaves them as grisly presents.
  4. incriminating
    charging or suggestive of guilt or blame
    “You have your summer reading, too. Don’t forget. There’s only a couple of weeks left before school starts.”
    From the corner of my eye, I see the incriminating stack of library books sitting on the shelf near the back door exactly where I left them three weeks ago.
  5. motto
    a favorite saying of a sect or political group
    But the not-so-secret faculty motto at Seaward Pines Academy is apparently Work ’em till their eyes bleed.
  6. infringement
    an act that disregards an agreement or a right
    “We’d never get away with this kind of infringement on an employee’s personal time in the business world.”
  7. tract
    a system of body parts that serves some specialized purpose
    “That stuff tastes like Styrofoam.”
    She shrugs and pours milk over her cereal. “It also keeps the digestive tract moving,” she says.
  8. surveil
    keep under close watch or observation
    It’s bad enough that my screen time is closely monitored, that I’m required to store my phone in the kitchen overnight, that I have to do chores during my vacation. Now my bowel habits are being surveilled, too?
  9. snarky
    rudely sarcastic and mocking in tone or manner
    “Where are you going?” Mami says as I head past her and down the hall with my breakfast.
    “To attend to my digestive tract,” I say, trying not to sound too snarky.
  10. blare
    make a loud noise
    The house is already loud, too, with cartoons blaring from the TV and the crash of dominoes coming from the next room, where Axel and Tomás, still in their pajamas, are hanging out with Lolo.
  11. squabble
    a quarrel about petty points
    She comes to the doorway drying her hands on a dishrag, frowning the way she does when she has to break up another squabble between me and the twins.
  12. beeline
    the most direct route
    They make a beeline for Tía as soon as they see her, trying to wrap themselves around her waist.
  13. threshold
    the entrance for passing through a room or building
    “Shh,” she tells them, stopping at the threshold with me as Mami charges in.
  14. gurney
    a metal stretcher with wheels
    Two workers crouch on the ground, where they’re strapping Lolo onto a flat gurney.
  15. congeal
    solidify, thicken, or come together
    The yolks from Lolo’s uneaten breakfast are orange and congealed now.
  16. disheveled
    in disarray; extremely disorderly
    Roli climbs out, looking just as disheveled as he did when he drove off with Mami all those hours ago.
  17. appalled
    struck with dread, shock, or dismay
    “What do you mean he peed?” Tomás asks, appalled.
  18. transfixed
    having your attention fixated as though witchcraft
    Roli turns on the faucet and washes his hands to his elbows, even scrubbing his nails with the vegetable brush like a surgeon. The twins watch, transfixed, as his arm hair turns bubbly.
  19. prong
    a pointed projection
    I’m almost to my bed when I accidentally step on a charger he’s left lying around. The metal prongs get jammed between my toes, slicing off some skin.
  20. assess
    estimate the nature, quality, ability or significance of
    I hop the rest of the way to my bed to assess the full damage.
  21. delicate
    easily broken or damaged or destroyed
    “And watch my stuff, please. It’s delicate.”
  22. tumbler
    a glass with a flat bottom but no handle or stem
    Instead, I reach for the jumbo-size Iguanador Nation tumbler I keep on my nightstand for when I get thirsty at night.
  23. subside
    wear off or die down
    When the sting starts to subside, I call out to him.
  24. sustenance
    a source of food or nourishment
    “They had chips and stuff,” I mumble, checking my toe. I guess I just forgot the sustenance part. I don’t mention that they never ate their breakfast either.
  25. clamor
    utter or proclaim insistently and noisily
    “Lolo!” they yell when they see him, awake and smiling.
    “Take it easy, you two,” Papi tells them as they clamor around the passenger side.
  26. frazzle
    exhaust physically or emotionally
    You’d think it was Abuela who fainted for how pale and frazzled she looks.
  27. amble
    walk leisurely
    I hug him again and then watch him amble down the path between Tía and Abuela, the twins already racing ahead.
  28. infernal
    extremely evil or cruel
    But I still have a load of things left to do, like hose off these chairs and read a few more chapters from that infernal reading list before school starts next week.
  29. sputter
    spit up in an explosive manner
    But when I squeeze the grip, I get blasted in the face with a spray instead. Sputtering, I drop the hose, water dripping off my glasses.
  30. saunter
    walk leisurely and with no apparent aim
    Edna watches for a second before she saunters over, grinning.
  31. spell
    a period of indeterminate length marked by some condition
    And though it’s been a week since his fainting spell, he still looks a little pale.
  32. competent
    properly or sufficiently qualified, capable, or efficient
    She might decide there are no competent adults here to watch us.
  33. slump
    assume a drooping posture or carriage
    Her shoulders slump her down almost to her old size.
  34. dire
    causing fear or dread or terror
    The fiberglass furniture is chipped and unsteady, which is why, on gusty days, the umbrellas are the source of Abuela’s dire warnings. She’s sure they’ll come loose and go off like giant discs to decapitate somebody.
  35. caulk
    a waterproof filler and sealant used in building and repair
    Her SPF 90 sunblock is already thick as caulking on her neck.
  36. reconnaissance
    the act of scouting, especially to gain information
    “Hello? Basic reconnaissance.” She scrolls and swipes like a pro to reveal different people’s socials.
  37. flank
    be located at the sides of something or somebody
    Avery was our center forward last year, and Mackenzie and I subbed in as the attackers flanking her.
  38. bristle
    react in an offended or angry manner
    She looks at me sheepishly and then mumbles, “Not that you’re an outcast.”
    I don’t even bristle. I mean, I’ve never been especially popular, but it’s Edna who really knows what it’s like to be tossed to the curb.
  39. singe
    burn superficially or lightly
    I grit my teeth and let the pavement singe the bottoms of my feet as I race toward the deep end.
  40. sullen
    showing a brooding ill humor
    They’ll be together a lot this year, and I’ll be stuck mostly alone. I wait as long as I can below, sullen and watching them through the ripples, until finally, I have no choice but to push back to the surface to breathe.
Created on Tue Jun 18 12:06:53 EDT 2024 (updated Tue Jun 25 13:42:58 EDT 2024)

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