Inside Out and Back Again- Vocabulary Part II

justify Verb To make something seem reasonable; to explain something It was hard for Brother Koi to justify the family’s moved from Saigon to America.

migration Noun Movement from one place to another The migration of the Vietnamese refugees to America had many positive and negative effects.

obvious Noun or Adjective Clear, evident, easily recognized or understood It was obvious to the students in Ha’s new school that she was not from Alabama.

giddy Adjective Excited to the point of almost feeling dizzy or light-headed; silly and excited When the refugees on the boat finally saw land in the distance, many felt giddy and jumped up and down.

solitude Noun Privacy; isolation; separateness Although Ha loved being with her mother, when she had solitude, she thought back to happier times in Saigon.

flaunt Verb To show something in a “show-off” kind of way Ha and her family were humble and did not flaunt their Christmas gifts they received from the cowboy and his wife.

chiding Verb Scolding; blaming; reprimanding One of Ha’s wishes is that Mother will “stop chiding” her to “stay calm”.

idle Adjective Not active; not working; at rest; unemployed Mother wanted her children to be active learners and workers rather than be simply idle.

contorted Verb or adjective Twisted; bent; crooked The contorted body of Brother Khoi’s baby chick made both Ha and her brother very sad.

superstitious Noun Thoughts and actions related to traditional and magical beliefs The Vietnamese people may be described as superstitious with their actions during Tet.