Vocabulary Terms Chapters 1- 11 To Kill A Mockingbird Vocabulary Terms Chapters 1- 11

Articulate [adjective] Distinctly spoken or clearly communicated; expressing oneself readily, clearly, or effectively… [The lecturer proved to be highly articulate, clearly communicating their main points and keeping the audience’s interest.]

Beadle [noun] A minor parish official; a security or peacekeeping figure… [The beadle strolled through the church grounds, maintaining order.]

Benevolence [noun] Good will; the act of being charitable… [The kind old man always stopped to help his fellow man, daily demonstrating his benevolence.]

Concessions [noun] The act of yielding to requests or demands; something done or agreed to usually grudgingly... [Teachers and students often have to make concessions for each other to peacefully survive the school day, yielding to the needs of one another.]

Condescension [noun] The act of looking down on someone in a superior or arrogant manner; a patronizing attitude or behavior... [The unsympathetic adult looked down on all teenagers with condescension, believing that anyone under the age of twenty was “up to no good”.]

Contentious [adjective] Quarrelsome; likely to cause disagreement or argument... [The pair of siblings were eternally fighting, both having extremely contentious natures.]

Diminutive [adjective] Exceptionally or notably small, tiny; sometimes the state or quality of being familiarly known… [The diminutive teacher, Mr. Silvers, was so short that he couldn’t reach anything without his trusty stepladder.]

Guilelessness [noun] Sincere, not fake or artificial; innocent and naïve… [Children often exhibit a powerful guilelessness- the ability to approach the world with earnestness and unguarded excitement.]

Illicitly [adverb] Doing something illegally or in a manner unauthorized for ethical or social reasons… [The student tried to be secretive, illicitly sending a text message to his friend during class.]

Inconspicuous (adjective) Not readily noticeable or seen; not obvious… [The late Michael Jackson was not very skilled at being inconspicuous, obviously standing out in a crowd.]

Obstreperous [adjective] Resisting control or restraint; unruly, loud, noisy… [Ross LaBenske entered the room, obstreperous as usual, creating noise at every possible moment to announce his arrival.]

Persevere [verb] To persist or endure in a state, enterprise, or undertaking in spite of counterinfluences, opposition, obstacles or discouragement… [Though overwhelmed by the staggering amount of homework, the PreAP/IB student was determined to persevere and get the work done without losing their sanity.]

Placidly [adverb] Calmly; doing something in a tranquil manner… [The lake’s surface placidly reflected the far mountain range faithfully, untroubled by ripples or any other disturbance.]

Taciturn [adjective] Quiet; temperamentally disinclined to talk… [The taciturn individual mainly kept to themselves, not interacting with their peers.]

Umbrage [noun] Offense taken at an insult; resentment based on a real or imagined slight… [She immediately felt a sense of umbrage, stinging from the insults thrown her way.]