The Witch of Blackbird Pond Chapter 9 Vocabulary

earnestly intensely or excessively serious and grave in manner or attitude “Two small heads bent earnestly over each of the three dog-eared primers which were all the dame school boast.” p. 82

primer a book used to teach young children to read, usually containing simple stories “At the opposite end of the kitchen Mercy, having generously alloted to Kit the primer readers, was laboring with the beginners.” p. 83

hornbook formerly, a page of text used as an aid in teaching reading, usually printed with the alphabet, letter combinations, and a religious passage, covered with a thin layer of horn “..each holding a hornbook..” p. 83

sober serious and thoughtful in demeanor or quality “Sober little adults they had appeared on that first day, dressed in fashions much like their parents’.” p. 84

quill an old-fashioned pen made from the shaft of a feather “The six children followed every motion of her quill with breathless eagerness.” p. 84

zest lively enjoyment and enthusiasm “Kit chose the stories that she herself enjoyed most, and her reading had a zest…” p. 86

enthralled fascinated and giving total attention to something “…and liveliness that enthralled the children.” p. 86

hearth the floor of a fireplace, especially when it extends into the room “Charity picked up the broom by the hearth and began to sweep.” p. 87

obstreperous noisily and aggressively boisterous “By chance she had chosen the three most obstreperous pupils in the school to be her thieves and robbers.” p. 87

subdued sad or in low spirits “Across the subdued children’s heads Kit and Mercy faced their two visitors…” p. 88

incredulously unable or unwilling to believe something or completely unconvinced by it “Reverend Woodbridge stared incredulously at Mercy.” p. 89

dumbfounded to make somebody temporarily speechless with astonishment “For a moment Kit was too dumbfounded to move.” p. 91