The Wild Robot Escapes: Chapter 55–The Epilogue

by Peter Brown
In this second book of the series, Roz is taken to Hilltop Farm, where the dangers of being destroyed surround her.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–23, Chapters 24–54, Chapter 55–The Epilogue
35 words 31 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. waft
    be driven or carried along, as by the air
    It wasn’t until the wind changed and a musky scent wafted by that the robot understood the danger.
  2. baffled
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    At first, the wolves were baffled by the robot’s strange escape.
  3. lull
    make calm or still
    Then the soothing song of the crickets lulled them both to sleep.
  4. hail
    precipitation of ice pellets
    “That is not rain,” she said. “That is hail.”
  5. ricochet
    spring back; spring away from an impact
    Then the sky opened up and hailstones were everywhere. They tore through leaves and branches. They ricocheted off rocks and roots.
  6. squelch
    make a sucking sound
    Heavy hailstones hissed into the grass and squelched into the mud and clanged off our robot.
  7. hospitable
    disposed to treat guests and strangers with generosity
    It turns out skunks can be quite hospitable. Sprinkles invited the visitors to stay as long as they liked, and so our friends spent Brightbill’s recovery in the cabin.
  8. rugged
    (of terrain) rough or very uneven
    Here and there, the sun broke through the clouds and bright streaks came shining down like spotlights. One of those bright streaks swept over a rugged mountainside and found our friends.
  9. bask
    expose oneself to warmth and light, as for relaxation
    For a moment, the robot and the goose basked in warm sunlight.
  10. spindly
    long, thin, and often weak or fragile
    Scattered throughout that mountain range were ghosts of human activity. Overgrown railways. Rusted automobiles. Spindly towers perched on mountaintops.
  11. steep
    set at a high angle (of a slope)
    They were standing still and staring up at a steep mountain of rocks.
  12. blubber
    cry or whine with snuffling
    But rather than charging, the ram hung his head and started to cry. “Oh, I’m so sorry!” he blubbered.
  13. prance
    spring forward on the hind legs
    The ram pranced away and led our friends to a narrow path that wound up the rocky mountainside.
  14. casually
    in an unconcerned manner
    They occasionally came upon a dirt road or a hiking trail, and the ram trotted across casually, while our friends crept across cautiously.
  15. sliver
    (figurative) a small or narrow piece or slice
    And what she saw was blue sky, and dark waves, and a sliver of green on the horizon.
  16. murky
    cloudy, dirty, and difficult to see through
    Time and again, the robot’s Survival Instincts had stopped her from going into deep water. Now an old rowboat was all that separated her from the murky depths.
  17. buoy
    an anchored float that marks locations in a body of water
    He heard buoys clanging in the harbor.
  18. churn
    be agitated
    He heard ocean waves churning and frothing, louder and louder.
  19. regale
    occupy in an agreeable, entertaining or pleasant fashion
    She explained that a flock of geese had flown over the bay and regaled the coastal birds with the amazing story of the wild robot and her son, the goose.
  20. grimy
    thickly covered with ingrained dirt
    Roz noticed a drainage pipe that crossed under the road. The pipe was dark and grimy, but the travelers were getting desperate.
  21. flurry
    a rapid active commotion
    With a quick flurry of wingbeats he fluttered out from the brush and onto the roof of the last train car.
  22. bustle
    move or cause to move energetically or busily
    The whole place was bustling with humans and robots, and everyone seemed to know exactly where they were going.
  23. commuter
    someone who travels regularly to and from work
    There was our robot, standing still in the station while commuters hurried past.
  24. loiter
    linger, remain, or wait around for no apparent reason
    She was trying to calculate her next move, and she had to think quickly. You see, a normal robot would never loiter there for long.
  25. swath
    a path or strip (also figurative)
    In the very heart of the city was a great swath of greenery. The old park.
  26. strut
    walk in a proud, confident way
    She approached a flock that was about a hundred birds strong, all cooing and strutting across the cobblestones as if they owned the place.
  27. scuttle
    move about or proceed hurriedly
    But as Roz stomped closer and closer, the pigeons scuttled out of the way to let her pass by.
  28. foliage
    the collective amount of leaves of one or more plants
    She dashed up the pathway and leaped into the woods. Without crunching a weed, without rustling a leaf, the robot vanished into the thick foliage.
  29. fleet
    group of aircraft operating under the same ownership
    But what she saw was a fleet of white triangular airships. They were floating over the city, searching for the runaway robot, and they had just spotted her.
  30. lofty
    of imposing height; especially standing out above others
    Back and forth she went, leaping between the buildings, climbing higher and higher, until she landed on a flat, lofty rooftop.
  31. frenzy
    state of violent mental agitation
    Roz watched in horror as more pigeons and ships went down. She hollered for the birds to fly away, but they were lost in a fighting frenzy.
  32. mangle
    destroy or injure severely
    A pile of robot parts lay on the floor. The parts were smashed and mangled.
  33. glitch
    a fault or defect in a computer program, system, or machine
    Maybe I am defective, maybe everything I have experienced is the result of a glitch. But if so, what a beautiful glitch! I have my own thoughts and feelings. I made a life for myself.
  34. tinker
    do random, unplanned work or activities; spend time idly
    It was Dr. Molovo’s newest creation, a special project she’d been tinkering with for years.
  35. frail
    physically weak
    They squinted and sniffed and whispered to each other, trying to understand how such a frail old woman could create such a big, strong robot.
Created on Wed Aug 28 09:26:04 EDT 2024 (updated Thu Aug 29 12:14:11 EDT 2024)

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