The Flicker: Chapters 1–7

by H.E. Edgmon
A year after a solar flare changed life on Earth for good, stepsisters Millie and Rose go on a perilous journey in search of hope and family.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–7, Chapters 8–14, Chapters 15–21, Chapters 22–28, Chapters 29–37
15 words 244 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. apocalypse
    a cosmic cataclysm in which God destroys the powers of evil
    She remembers being scared all the time, though maybe that had more to do with the apocalypse than the bunker.
  2. haven
    a shelter serving as a place of safety or sanctuary
    Supposedly, it’s some kind of survivors’ camp, a safe haven for people looking for community.
  3. cannibalism
    the practice of eating the flesh of your own kind
    Cannibalism is a thing now.
  4. utopia
    ideally perfect state
    "Obviously, since I ain’t clinging to the idea of some fantasy utopia. Honestly, Rose, I think you read too many of those kids’ books about dragons back in the day."
  5. nonsensical
    having no intelligible meaning
    Sammy babbles his nonsensical language, having no idea he’s never gon’ see his sister again.
  6. repurpose
    adapt for a new use or format
    She figured out how to repurpose the clothes he’d grown out of into reusable diapers and wipes with just some needle and thread.
  7. forage
    collect or look around for, as food
    “Well? What about this? We can just forage for mushrooms, right?”
  8. immemorial
    long past
    “You are a caretaker of the land. Your people have lived here since time immemorial. You should know this.”
  9. sanity
    normal or sound powers of mind
    The tears that well up in Millie’s eyes seriously make Rose question her own sanity.
  10. firsthand
    from the original source; directly
    What he didn’t see firsthand, he learned from broadcasts from the survivors’ Sanctuary.
  11. kindling
    material for starting a fire
    There’s a few old newspapers and magazines, kicked underneath turned-over shelves. Rose picks them up and shoves them in one of her cargo pockets. Kindling, for later, in case desperation for a fire outweighs the dangers of starting one.
  12. ominously
    in a manner suggesting something bad will happen
    Rose’s last words replay ominously in Millie’s mind.
  13. squeamish
    easily disturbed or disgusted by unpleasant things
    “Also, he’s really squeamish. He’d probably throw up if he ever had to fight someone.”
  14. conniption
    a display of bad temper
    Rose is on the verge of a conniption.
  15. hypocrite
    a person who professes beliefs that he or she does not hold
    “Besides, don’t it make you a hypocrite — telling them they should be embarrassed, when you’re sitting your happy butt on this bus right now, too?”
Created on Tue Jul 08 04:32:59 EDT 2025 (updated Thu Sep 25 18:57:03 EDT 2025)

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.