The Color of a Lie: Chapters 15-22

by Kim Johnson
In this historical novel set in 1955, a Black family moves to a white-only town and begins passing for white, but their life there is threatened when one of them begins to uncover the town's dangerous secrets.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Prologue-Chapter 6, Chapters 7-14, Chapters 15-22, Chapters 23-30, Chapters 31-42
15 words 10 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. repercussion
    a remote or indirect consequence of some action
    I knew what the repercussions were.
  2. metaphysical
    without material form or substance
    But this country only knows how to rule in terror and by blood. The physical and the metaphysical.
  3. tirade
    a speech of violent denunciation
    I threw my hands up, irritated at his tirade.
  4. deviation
    a variation from the standard or norm
    Paranoid he was following me, I kept my strict schedule. No deviations.
  5. intoxicating
    extremely exciting
    In the barn, I could feel that energy. It was intoxicating.
  6. inadvertently
    without knowledge or intention
    Nervously, I prepared myself to speak to her, but anxiety clenched my throat, as I feared I might inadvertently offer a warm greeting that seemed too familial.
  7. elicit
    call forth, as an emotion, feeling, or response
    We must not elicit violence or any front-page news by restricting entrance.
  8. profuse
    produced or growing in extreme abundance
    My head spun; I was close to passing out as profuse sweat ran down my brow.
  9. deliberate
    carefully thought out in advance
    With a sigh, he continued, his words punctuated by deliberate pauses.
  10. yield
    give or supply
    I searched through the drawers, which yielded nothing, until I got to the bottom file cabinet.
  11. covert
    secret or hidden
    Here in Levittown, it was covert.
  12. vagrant
    a wanderer with no established residence or means of support
    “Until they can’t build out anymore. Eventually it’ll be owned by somebody —for now it’s vagrants. People caught in between who can’t own but grew up near that land.”
  13. emulate
    strive to equal or match, especially by imitating
    Like this entire town was emulating commercials and TV shows about what life was supposed to be like.
  14. exaggerated
    enlarged to an abnormal degree
    Showing me another one of my exaggerated terrified smiles.
  15. solo
    without anybody else or anything else
    “Are you still going if you’re solo?”
Created on Tue Aug 19 07:55:17 EDT 2025 (updated Wed Aug 20 08:30:10 EDT 2025)

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