1. The Cutoff: The Story of the Donner Party
Vocabulary

2. perpetual Per-pet-chew-al Continuing forever & ever
The perpetual rain made me think I’d never see the sun again.

3. fiery “fire-ee” Easily provoked, full of emotion or spirit
Because of his fiery nature, he lashed out in anger without thinking.

4. confide “Cun-fied” Have confidence or trust in something
Best friends confide in each other by sharing their secrets.

5. arrogance “Air-o-gan-s”
A feeling or impression that you’re better than others.
Her arrogance led her to
believe she was the best
singer in the entire choir.

6. Despair “dis-pair” Utter loss of hope. No hope at all.
The lost hiker began to despair when he ran out of food and water and still no rescuers came.

7. Grim “grim” Gloomy, horrid, harsh, gruesome
The horror movie was quite grim and my mother wouldn’t let me see it.

8. Gaunt “gah-nt” Excessively thin, anorexic in appearance
The prisoner had been starved, so he had a gaunt appearance.