Reading - Unit 2 A Common Thread

“Last Summer with Maizon” Story Vocabulary

Essay Maizon sat down to write an essay on how she felt about going away to a new school.

Essay Noun A short written composition on a particular subject

Fidgeted He fidgeted, playing with his hair and shifting nervously in his seat.

Fidgeted Verb Acted nervously or restlessly

Desolate The room felt lonely, sad, and desolate.

Desolate Adjective Deserted Miserable Cheerless

Somberly Her grandmother came in, and Maizon looked at her somberly, with great seriousness and sadness.

Somberly Adverb Gloomily, darkly, seriously

Exaggerated Her grandmother talked on and on about how great the new school would be, but she always exaggerated.

Exaggerated Verb Made to seem larger, greater, or more than it really was

Tokens To cheer Maizon up, her grandmother gave her two shiny silver tokens so she could take the subway.

Tokens Noun Pieces of metal-like coins used for paying transportation fares

Illegible The teacher made her write the essay over because her handwriting was illegible.

Illegible Adjective Very hard or impossible to read