The Pearl

Vocabulary list

Context clues

●Check for meaning behind the words surrounding the unknown word.

●Look for clues in suffixes and prefixes.

●Does the word have a Latin base?

●What is the tone of the passage?

List #1 1 & 2●Coveyo“Outside the brush

house in the tuna clump, a covey of little birds chattered and flurried with their wings” (Steinbeck 1).

●A small flock of birds

●Plaintivelyo“. . .the Song of the

Family cried plaintively” (Steinbeck 6).

●Expressing sorrow.

List #1 3 & 4●Lymphatico“. . .the red

swelling extended farther around it in a hard lymphatic mound” (Steinbeck 8).

●Of or pertaining to the lymph nodes.

●Consolationo“They slept at their

posts in the shadow of the church so that no one crept in for consolation without their knowledge” (Steinbeck 11).

●To comfort in time of grief or loss.

List #1 5 & 6●Avariceo“They knew his

ignorance, his cruelty, his avarice, his appetites, his sins” (Steinbeck 11).

●Greed

●Indigento“They followed to

see what the fat lazy doctor would do about an indigent baby” (Steinbeck 12).

●A destitute or needy person.

List #1 7 & 8●Supplianto“. . .Kino stood in

front of the gate with Juana beside him. Slowly he put his suppliant hat on his head” (Steinbeck 13).

●Expressing humble characteristics.

●Estuaryo“The town lay on a

broad estuary…It’s old yellow plaster buildings hugging the beach” (Steinbeck 17).

●An arm of the sea that extends inland to meet the mouth of a river.

List #1 9 & 10

●Bulwarko“It is the bulwark

against starvation” (Steinbeck 19).

●Providing protection.

●Unsubstantialo“…the minds of

the people are as unsubstantial as the mirage of the gulf” (Steinbeck 20).

●Lacking strength.

List #2 - 11 & 12●Undulate

o“Above, the surface of the water was an undulating error of brightness” (Steinbeck 22).

●To move in a smooth wavelike motion.

●Obscureo“Kino moved

cautiously so that the water would not be obscured with mud or sand” (Steinbeck 22).

●Indistinct. Not easy to see through.

List #2 - 13 & 14

●Perceptibleo“There was a secret

little inner song, hardly perceptible, but always there. . .” (Steinbeck 23).

●Capable of being noticed.

●Speculativelyo“He looked

speculatively at the basket” (Steinbeck 25).

●Unsure, but thoughtful.

List #2 - 15 & 16

●Illusiono“In this Gulf of

uncertain light there were more illusions than realities” (Steinbeck 25).

●A mistaken perception of reality.

●Deft(ly)o“Kino deftly slipped

his knife into the edge of the shell” (Steinbeck 25).

●Skillfully.

List #2 - 17 & 18

●Incandescento“[The pearl] captured

the light and refined it and gave it back in silver incandescence “(Steinbeck 25).

●Light emitted by an object.

●Judiciouso“. . .When it was

made plain who Kino was, the doctor grew stern and judicious at the same time” (Steinbeck 28).

●Having judgment.

List #2 - 19 & 20

●Almsgivero“. . .They knew that

there was no almsgiver in the world like a poor man who is suddenly lucky” (Steinbeck 29).

●A person who gives money or goods to charity.

●Semblanceo“. . .There was only one,

and he kept these agents in separate offices to give a semblance of competition” (Steinbeck 29).

●Closely resembling, or being like something else.

List #3 - 21 & 22

●Precipitateo“The essence of pearl

mixed with essence of men and a curious dark residue was precipitated” (Steinbeck 30).

●To condense and fall as rain or snow.

●Distillateo“The news stirred up

something infinitely black and evil in the town; the black distillate was like the scorpion. . .” (Steinbeck 32).

●The liquid condensed from vapor.

List #3 - 23 & 24●Disparage

o“And this is said in disparagement whereas it is one of the greatest talents the [human] species has and one that has made it superior to animals” (Steinbeck 32).

●Making someone feel low -- like they are beneath you.

●Prophecyo“But Kino’s face shone

with prophecy” (Steinbeck 33).

●A prediction.

List #3 - 25 & 26●Subjugate

o“Kino stood in the door, and hatred raged and flamed in back of his eyes, and fear too, for the hundreds of years of subjugation were cut deep in him” (Steinbeck 38).

●To bring under the domination of another. To enslave.

●Inaudibleo“There came a sound

so soft, a touch of a foot on earth, the almost inaudible purr of controlled breathing” (Steinbeck 48).

●Not capable of being heard.

List #3 - 27 & 28●Consecrate

o“From a secret place, Juana brought a little piece of consecrated candle” (Steinbeck 49).

●To declare as holy.

●Poulticeo“It’s warm lucence

(sic) promised a poultice against illness and a wall against insult” (Steinbeck 51).

●A thick paste used to heal a sore.

List #3 - 29 & 30●Diffuse

o“[He saw] the tone of the diffused green light of the sea bottom” (Steinbeck 51).

●To scatter or spread out; to make less brilliant.

●Lucento“It’s warm lucence

(sic) promised a poultice against illness and a wall against insult” (Steinbeck 51).

●To give off light.

List #4 - 31 & 32●Tithe

o“The beggars in front of the church spoke of it, for they would be there to take the tithe of the first fruits of the luck” (Steinbeck 54).

●A 10% gift of one’s salary given to charity.

●Countenanceo“This was

extravagant and not to be countenanced” (Steinbeck 54).

●A look that shows a person’s feelings.

List #4 - 33 & 34●Stalwart

o“…an old man came to see, riding on the stalwart shoulders of his nephew” (Steinbeck 60).

●Having physical strength.

●Benigno“His face was

fatherly and benign, and his eyes twinkled with friendship” (Steinbeck 61).

●Good natured; kind.

List #4 - 35 & 36●Lethargy

o“Kino sat brooding on his sleeping mat. A lethargy had settled on him” (Steinbeck 71).

●The condition of being tired and sleepy.

●Preservationo“Sometimes the

quality of woman, the reason, the caution, the sense of preservation, could save them all” (Steinbeck 77).

●To maintain unchanged.

List #4 - 37 & 38●Exhilaration

o“Through the night there came a rush of exhilaration” (Steinbeck 90).

●To be happy.

●Waryo“Some animal thing

was moving in him so that he was cautious and wary” (Steinbeck 90).

●To be on guard; watchful.

List #4 - 39 & 40●Monotonously

o“The family went on monotonously hour after hour” (Steinbeck 90).

●Dull and repetitious.

●Triumphanto“The music of the

pearl was triumphant in Kino’s head” (Steinbeck 91).

●Victorious; conquering.

List #5 - 41 & 42●Monolithic

o“Ahead were the naked granite mountains, rising out of erosion rubble, and standing monolithic against the sky” (Steinbeck 99).

●Massive; solid and uniform.

●Fresheto“The freshets had

made a small sandy beach through which the pool flowed” (Steinbeck 104).

●A sudden overflow from a stream.

List #5 - 43 & 44●Petulant

o“The baby was weary and petulant, and he cried softly” (Steinbeck 104).

●Irritable.

●Erosiono“He saw a series of

erosion caves” (Steinbeck 106).

●Natural processes that wear away a substance.

List #5 - 45 & 46●Clamber

o“He slipped off his sandals, and clambered up to them, gripping the bare stone with his toes” (Steinbeck 106).

●To climb with difficulty using both hands and feet.

●Malignanto“And the pearl was

ugly; it was gray, like a malignant growth” (Steinbeck 117).

●Evil; bad.

Be a Team

●Choose a team leader

●Pick a team name

●Set up study groups/study partners

●Exchange e-mail addresses/phone numbers

●Work as a team.

●The leader should be someone who will unite and motivate the whole class. This person will be impartial and inclusive.