Merci Suárez Plays It Cool: Chapters 25–41

by Meg Medina
In this final book of the trilogy, eighth-grade 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
40 words 11 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. idle
    run disconnected
    He slumps in his seat as we idle by the curb, like he doesn’t want anybody to see him in his Walgreens shirt or something.
  2. throng
    a large gathering of people
    There’s a smell of hot dogs, popcorn, and bug repellent in the air as we squeeze through the throngs of people toward our seats in the muggy heat.
  3. gazette
    a newspaper or official journal
    Still, maybe I can get one or two good action shots that they’ll use in the Ram Gazette or even in the yearbook.
  4. epaulet
    an ornamental cloth pad worn on the shoulder
    The red color makes them look like British soldiers of some kind, especially with those fringy epaulets on their shoulders that the band director insists on.
  5. plume
    decorate with a feather
    Still, the Pox band across the field looks even sharper with their plumed hats and shiny instruments.
  6. swath
    a path or strip (also figurative)
    That leaves me and Wilson next to a gigantic swath of empty band seats in the stands.
  7. stifle
    smother or suppress
    I stifle a yawn and wipe the grit from my eyes.
  8. keen
    having or showing interest and intense desire
    I can tell from the tone of her muffled voice that Lolo isn’t keen on his shower today.
  9. infraction
    a violation of a law or rule
    This is looking worse every second. I know Abuela. A sock infraction is strike one.
  10. convulse
    be overcome with laughter
    When he signals that he’ll be right there, they practically convulse in giggles.
  11. innovation
    a creation resulting from study and experimentation
    “Have you ever considered innovation on the menu?” I ask him. “For a small percentage of sales, I’d be willing to share my recipe for Dog Crunchers. It’s a proven winner.”
  12. smitten
    marked by foolish or unreasoning fondness
    And then he walks off to help his smitten customers.
  13. alcove
    a small recess opening off a large room or garden
    Between turns, they’ve been running to the arcade alcove to watch the older kids play video games or else, like now, hogging all the nachos at the table, picking around for the red chips like vultures.
  14. primp
    dress or groom with elaborate care
    She looks down at herself and primps her shirt a bit.
  15. conscience
    a feeling of shame when you do something immoral
    I’m dying to ask her what the meeting was about, but the question stays on the tip of my tongue. Nosy. Buttinsky. I can practically hear Mami’s voice clawing out of my conscience to throttle me.
  16. throttle
    kill by squeezing the throat of so as to cut off the air
    I can practically hear Mami’s voice clawing out of my conscience to throttle me.
  17. dally
    waste time
    “Well, you only have a minute or two to get to class before the bell,” she says. “Don’t dally.”
  18. douse
    wet thoroughly
    The rain is sharp against my skin as the water douses me.
  19. tendril
    something long, light, slender, and often curling
    My blazer is soaked, my loafers are squeaking, and my hair clings in soggy tendrils to my head.
  20. discrepancy
    a difference between conflicting facts or claims or opinions
    “I see a mistake on my room assignment.”
    Miss Wilkinson glances up at me as she tosses three more shirts in a box.
    “Oh yes, I spotted that discrepancy, too, and made a note to ask you about it.”
  21. receptacle
    a container that is used to put or keep things in
    The bin near the copier is overflowing with paper. I’m supposed to keep things tidy for him so he can empty it in the large receptacles behind the cafeteria once a week.
  22. tenacious
    stubbornly unyielding
    Robin can definitely play. She’s got quick feet and good aim. She’s tenacious, too.
  23. hassle
    annoy continually or chronically
    When someone hassles me, even with little things sometimes, I always remember.
  24. mantra
    a commonly repeated word or phrase
    Maybe Coach Cameron is telling Robin the same thing I did. “Help each other.” That was the mantra our first year.
  25. warble
    sing or play with trills
    “Goooooooooooool,” he says, his voice warbling.
  26. glower
    look angry or sullen as if to signal disapproval
    “We made it in time.”
    I lean back and glower at him. It’s already 7:20 a.m. We were supposed to be here twenty minutes ago.
  27. demise
    the event of departure from life
    “We have an amphibian 911, miss.” I motion to the pool. “You don’t want to have a frog demise on your conscience, do you?”
  28. rotunda
    a building having a circular plan and a dome
    It’s a super fancy place to learn, for sure, even more deluxe than Seaward Pines is. Inside the rotunda it looks a lot like Hogwarts if that were real.
  29. trudge
    walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud
    We trudge on blistered feet to the restaurant listed on our agenda, where we sit at long tables and share brick-oven pizzas.
  30. maritime
    bordering on or living near the sea
    It’s just that I’ve climbed plenty of lighthouses. Who needs one more? I’m going to do the maritime archaeology walk.
  31. scoff
    treat with contemptuous disregard
    I think of Roli, who scoffs at anything supernatural.
  32. stoop
    small porch or set of steps at the front entrance of a house
    Papi is waiting for us in the dark on our stoop although it is three thirty in the morning.
  33. muster
    summon up, call forth, or bring together
    Besides, I didn’t know what they’d gone over in class, and I couldn’t muster the energy to text or call.
  34. void
    an empty area or space
    I haven’t talked with anyone, either. Not even with Lena, Hannah, Edna, or Wilson, who texted into the void until they got tired.
  35. solemnly
    in a serious and dignified manner
    This dead anole in the garden gets their attention. They stare at it solemnly, which is a big improvement over their squabbles lately, always ending with them both red in the face and screaming.
  36. indentation
    a concave cut or depression in a surface or edge
    The indentation of his body is still in the seat cushion.
  37. gauzy
    so thin as to transmit light
    I look out through the gauzy curtains.
  38. conjure
    summon into action or bring into existence
    Instead, she was making sure we were clean and looked right, that we got home from school safely, that we weren’t devoured by a gator or felled by another horrible villain she conjured in her mind.
  39. fester
    decay with an offensive smell
    When I reach inside, I don’t find a festering ham-and-mayonnaise mess.
  40. sliver
    (figurative) a small or narrow piece or slice
    I lean into the sliver of happiness that is in my belly and hug Wilson tight.
Created on Tue Jun 18 12:07:36 EDT 2024 (updated Wed Jun 19 18:38:08 EDT 2024)

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.