1. A Rose for Emily by: William Faulkner
Vocabulary Lesson
A Rose for Emily
by: William Faulkner

2. Place the appropriate vocabulary word in each blank to complete the sentences which create a paragraph.
Tedious
Edict
Circumvent
Thwart
Temerity
Dank
Pallid
Diffident
Obliterate
Coquettish
Profoundly
Encroach
Obscure
Virulent
Divulge

3. Miss Emily’s life held little interest—it consisted merely of one ___________ day after another.
The mayor had issued a foolish __________ that Miss Emily would not have to pay taxes.
Instead of directly offering financial help to her, he took another route by making up an involved story to __________ the problem.
When a new administration tried to make her pay, the obstructions created by her stubbornness made her able to ___________ every attempt.
When Miss Emily insisted on something, no one in the town has the __________to argue with her.

4. Miss Emily had always been a no-nonsense kind of woman, not the type to behave in a ____________ fashion toward any man.
Although the town realized that she kept company with Homer Barron, no one knew just how _____________ in love she had been.
Only after death did anyone dare to ____________ on the privacy of the upstairs room.
Enough tarnish had formed on the silver of the men’s toilet things to _____________ the monogram.
Was it Homer’s plans to leave town that made Miss Emily react in such a ____________fashion?

5. Answer Key:
tedious
coquettish
edict
profoundly
circumvent
encroach
thwart
obscure
temerity
virulent

6. Miss Emily’s life held little interest—it consisted merely of one tedious day after another.
The mayor had issued a foolish edict that Miss Emily would not have to pay taxes.
Instead of directly offering financial help to her, he took another route by making up an involved story to circumvent the problem.
When a new administration tried to make her pay, the obstructions created by her stubbornness made her able to thwart every attempt.
When Miss Emily insisted on something, no one in the town has the temerity to argue with her.

7. Miss Emily had always been a no-nonsense kind of woman, not the type to behave in a coquettish fashion toward any man.
Although the town realized that she kept company with Homer Barron, no one knew just how profoundly in love she had been.
Only after death did anyone dare to encroach on the privacy of the upstairs room.
Enough tarnish had formed on the silver of the men’s toilet things to obscure the monogram.
Was it Homer’s plans to leave town that made Miss Emily react in such a virulent fashion?