Chapter 1-5 Vocabulary

Affluent: having an abundance of wealth, property, or other material goods.

• "Everyone agreed that my father, my Baba, had built the most beautiful house in the Wazir Akbar Khan district, a new and affluent neighborhood in the northern part of Kabul." p. 4
• The business man was very affluent, his family was financially set for life.
• Synonyms: rich, teeming, upscale, upper class,
• Antonyms: poor, lacking, suffering, needy, unsuccessful 

Intricate: having many interrelated parts

• "Intricate mosaic tiles, handpicked by Baba in Isfahan, covered the floors of the four bathrooms." p. 4
• The corn maze had lots of intricate paths, which made it hard to make it to the other side. 
• Synonyms: complex, tangled, tricky, difficult
• Antonyms: easy, clear, direct, obvious, simple

Notoriously: publicly or generally known for a specific trait

• "People had raised their eyebrows when Ali, a man who had memorized the Koran, married Sanaubar, a women nineteen years younger, a beautiful but notoriously unscrupulous woman who lived up to her dishonorable reputation." p. 8
• Justin Bieber has been notoriously in the tabloids for his not so great actions.
• Synonyms: infamously, notably, especially
• Antonyms: -

Unscrupulous: unrestrained by scruples, unprincipled

•  "People had raised their eyebrows when Ali, a man who had memorized the Koran, married Sanaubar, a women nineteen years younger, a beautiful but notoriously unscrupulous woman who lived up to her dishonorable reputation." p. 8
• The students were acting unscrupulous, because there was substitute teacher. 
• Synonyms: unprincipled, scandalous, sly, unfair
• Antonyms: good, honest, fair, moral, trustworthy  

Congenital: of or pertaining to a condition at birth, whether inherited or caused by the enviornment

• "While Sanaubar's brilliant green eyes and impish face had, rumor has it, tempted countless men into sin, Ali had a congenital paralysis of his lower facial muscles, a condition that rendered him unable to smile and left him perpetually grim-faced." p. 8
• The baby was diagnosed with the congenital disease autism. 
• Synonyms: inherited, natural, ingrained, 
• Antonyms: contracted

Rendered: to cause to be or become

• "While Sanaubar's brilliant green eyes and impish face had, rumor has it, tempted countless men into sin, Ali had a congenital paralysis of his lower facial muscles, a condition that rendered him unable to smile and left him perpetually grim-faced." p. 8
• The loss of his job rendered his family to poverty. 
• Synonyms: accomplished, carried out, done
• Antonyms: -

Oscillating: to swing or move to and fro

• "I have heard Sanaubar's suggestive stride and oscillating hips sent men to reveries of infidelity." p. 8
• In the summer, my oscillating fan keeps me cool.
• Synonyms: fluctuate, sway, swing
• Antonyms: stabilize, stay, be still

Reveries: a fantastic, visionary, or impractical idea; daydream

•  "I have heard Sanaubar's suggestive stride and oscillating hips sent men to reveries of infidelity." p. 8
• The little girl had reveries running through her mind about her future. 
• Synonyms: dreaming, fantasy, trance
• Antonym: nightmare

Garrulous: excessively talkative in a rambling manner

• "As confided to a neighbor's servant by the garrulous midwife, who had then in turn told anyone who would listen, Sanaubar had taken one glance at the baby in Ali's arms, seen the cleft lip, and barked a bitter laughter." p. 10
• When someone gets nervous they might start to become garrulous.
• Synonyms: chatty, babbling, loose-lipped
• Antonyms: quiet, silent, reserved

Veracity: conformity to truth or fact

•  The man confessed he had to improve his own veracity, before insulting someone else's.
• Synonyms: accuracy, honesty, fairness
• Antonyms: dishonesty, lying, unfairness

 
 Obstinate: firmly or stubbornly adhering to one's purpose or opinion

• "Of course, Baba refused, and everyone shook their heads in dismay at his obstinate ways." p. 13
• The leader was very stressed and annoyed at the children and their obstinate attitudes.
• Synonyms: convinced, headstrong, hardened, firm
• Antonyms: flexible, obedient

Havoc: great destruction or devastation

• The little girl's parents had left her in such havoc after telling her they were getting a divorce.
• Synonyms: chaos, devastation, confusion, distruction
• Antonyms: blessing, miracle, calm

Virtuous: conforming to moral and ethical principals

• I hope to lead a virtuous life.
• Synonyms: honest, honorable, principled
• Antonyms: bad, dishonest, sinful

Chortle: to chuckle gleefully

• "But a chortle escaped through my nose and made a snorting sound." p. 17
• I chortle most of the time that I'm with my friends, we always have fun.
• Synonyms: cackle, giggle, snicker
• Antonyms: -

Aloofness: the state of being distant, cold, or uninterested

• "That was how I escaped my father's aloofness, in my dead mother's books." p. 19
• After her parent's died, her friends questioned her aloofness. 
• Synonyms: remoteness, indifference, standoffishness
• Antonyms: -

Melee: a confused hand to hand fight or struggle among several people

• "A chapandaz, a highly skilled horsemen usually patronized by rich aficionados, has to snatch a goat or cattle carcass from the midst of a melee, carry that carcass with him around the stadium at full gallop, and drop it in a scoring circle while a team of other chapandaz chases him and does everything in its power- kick, claw, whip, punch- to snatch the carcass from him." p. 20
• On Christmas eve, there were parents involved in a melee over the last toy in stock that they wanted to get their child.
• Synonyms: brawl, ruckus, tussle
• Antonyms: calm, peace, agreement

Valiant:  boldly courageous

• "Mostly, I will never forget Baba's valiant efforts to conceal the disgusted look on his face as he drove in silence." p. 21
• The character Ralph was very valiant throughout the whole book, "The Lord of the Flies."
• Synonyms: courageous, fearless, gutsy
• Antonyms: afraid, cowardly, timid, weak

Contrite: caused by or showing extreme remorse

• "The police brought the somewhat contrite young men and the dead couple's five-year-old orphan boy before my grandfather, who was a highly regarded judge and a man of impeccable reputation." p. 24
• The contrite group of people went to the funeral to show their respect to the family.
• Synonyms: humble, apologetic, sorry, remorseful
• Antonyms: hurtful, indifferent, mean

Impeccable: faultless; flawless

• "The police brought the somewhat contrite young men and the dead couple's five-year-old orphan boy before my grandfather, who was a highly regarded judge and a man of impeccable reputation." p. 24
• In my opinion, country music concerts are impeccable.
• Synonyms: immaculate, faultless, unblemished
• Antonyms: flawed, imperfect, blemished

Vehemently: strongly emotional or passionate, characterized by anger

• "Their father argued, but not too vehemently, and in the end, everyone agreed that the punishment had been perhaps harsh but fair." p. 24
• The couple fought rather vehemently, but in the end agreed to disagree.
• Synonyms: angrily, boldly, forcibly, wildly
• Antonyms: calmly, kindly, gently

Imbecile: a dunce; blockhead

• "Imbecile." p. 28
• The boy stood there like an imbecile while he watched people trample over all his stuff.
• Synonyms: idiotic, slow, deranged, dull
• Antonym: intelligent, brainy, smart

Nemesis: something/someone that a person cannot conquer or achieve

• "Rostham mortally wounds his valiant nemesis, Sohrab, in battle, only to discover that Sohrab is his long-lost son." p. 29
• You never want to come in contact with your nemesis, it wouldn't end well.
• Synonyms: rival, opponent, adversary
• Antonyms: advantage, happiness

Oblivious:  unaware

• "Hassan, of course, was oblivious to this." p. 30
• The man she was talking to looked familiar, she was oblivious to the fact that it was her cousin.
• Synonyms: inattentive, unconcerned, unfamiliar, unobservent
• Antonyms: attentive, concerned, aware

Feigned: pretended

• "Baba nodded and gave a thin smile that conveyed little more than feigned interest." p. 31
• Her friend got the job over her, so she portrayed feigned enthusiasm.
• Synonyms: fake, pretended, sham, fictitous
• Antonyms: genuine, true, real 

Irony: the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literate meaning

• "But the most impressive thing about your story is that it has irony." p. 32
• The woman was killed by her favorite car, the irony in the situation was uncanny.
• Synonyms: humor, paradox, twist, satire
• Antonyms: seriousness, approval, praise

Subtle: fine or delicate in a meaning

• "But Hassan's face was my earliest memory and I knew all of its subtle nuances, knew each and every twitch and flicker that ever rippled across it." p. 42
• The new girl was wearing a very subtle smile.
• Synonyms: indirect, slight, profound,
• Antonyms: ignorant, stupid, harsh

Nuances: a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning or response

• "But Hassan's face was my earliest memory and I knew all of its subtle nuances, knew each and every twitch and flicker that ever rippled across it." p. 42
• The nuances of her appearance is what made her beautiful. 
• Synonyms: distinction, refinement, hint
• Antonyms: brightness, information

Trepidation: tremulous fear, alarm, or agitation

• "Neither one of us said much of anything as we walked home in trepidation, certain that Assef and his friends would ambush us we turned a corner." p. 43
• My heart beat in trepidation as I saw a stranger at the doorstep of my home.
• Synonyms: alarm, terror, fright, shock
• Antonyms: calmness, composure, ease