Road Home: List 8

by Rex Ogle
In this final chapter of his memoir trilogy, Rex is forced out of his family home by his father and travels to New Orleans, trying to find somewhere he belongs.

This list covers vocabulary from "shake on it"–"drive."

Here are links to our lists for the book: List 1, List 2, List 3, List 4, List 5, List 6, List 7, List 8

25 words 23 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. priority
    status established in order of importance or urgency
    She says, “I have to take care of myself. No matter what happens, I’ve gotta be priority number one.”
  2. scavenge
    feed on carrion or refuse
    “All we do is scavenge for food and water and a place to sleep. We’re chasing basic needs. Nothing else. If that’s not an animal, I don’t know what is.”
  3. stagnant
    not circulating or flowing
    Bored, I pick up pebbles, set them on the edge of the decline, watching them start to tip, then tumble their way down the slanted concrete toward the stagnant water below.
  4. delirious
    experiencing hallucinations
    “If I don’t eat today, there’s no guarantee I’ll eat tomorrow. Then I’ll be too weak to fight off someone if they wanna hurt me. I need my strength if I’m going to work. Better to earn money while I can than wait until I’m delirious from hunger.”
  5. rummage
    search haphazardly
    She rummages around her purse, pulling out a paper cigarette box.
  6. consolation
    the comfort you feel when soothed in times of disappointment
    Like it’s a consolation prize, she kisses me on the cheek.
  7. anxious
    causing or fraught with or showing nervousness
    Each time I come to, I’m a little more anxious.
  8. sediment
    matter that has been deposited by some natural process
    No matter where I sleep, or how much cardboard I put down, dirt and sediment gets everywhere.
  9. invade
    intrude upon, infringe, encroach on, or violate
    But an old man reading a newspaper gives me a foul, condemning look, as though I’ve invaded his space.
  10. nostalgia
    a longing for something past
    It’s a flood of nostalgia, for all the times I escaped into a book.
  11. hail
    call for
    I chase after them, as laughter hails me from above.
  12. throng
    a large gathering of people
    The streets grow thick with throngs of people.
  13. flank
    be located at the sides of something or somebody
    The third walks around, flanking me.
  14. exasperated
    greatly annoyed; out of patience
    “No, fuck you,” the one says, exasperated.
  15. hobble
    walk unevenly due to pain, injury, or weakness
    I hobble, slowly, gently, unable to move as far or as fast as I usually can.
  16. trample
    walk on and flatten
    Tourists won’t see it underfoot and will trample it, crushing it.
  17. avert
    turn away or aside
    When someone looks at me, they avert their eyes, turn their faces away, walk more quickly.
  18. grovel
    show submission or fear
    Grovel to keep my place among the living?
  19. encampment
    a site where people can pitch a tent
    Instead of returning to the encampment under the bridge, I take the long way around, up onto the bridge.
  20. feat
    a notable achievement
    It soars over the river, this engineering feat, a creation of man.
  21. summit
    the top or extreme point of something
    I watch it from the bridge’s summit where I sit.
  22. penetrate
    spread or diffuse through
    But the deep cobalt warms until it’s burning orange, and the sun, just a pinpoint of its crown, penetrates the line of land in the distance.
  23. reassure
    give or restore confidence in
    “I’m in New Orleans. I’m alive,” I say weakly, as if reassuring myself.
  24. cranny
    a small opening or crevice
    Every nook and cranny seems to hide more sediment.
  25. metropolis
    a large and densely populated urban area
    Past Marshall and Longview, and into the metropolis of Dallas/Fort Worth, taking a slight detour to pass through Grapevine, where I grew up.
Created on Thu May 22 08:19:15 EDT 2025 (updated Tue Jun 10 15:13:33 EDT 2025)

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