Unit 16

UNIT 16 WORD LIST altogether If something happens altogether, it happens completely. The company stopped using sugar altogether in its food. bind To bind people is to make them feel united together. The victims of the flood were bound by their need to help each other. bruise A bruise is a dark mark caused by being hit by something. She got a bruise on her knee from falling down. custom A custom is a way of doing things that has been the same for a long time. It is a custom that the bride and groom have the first dance. disobedient When someone is disobedient, they do not follow the rules or instructions. The disobedient children didn't listen to their mother and had an accident. foresee To foresee something is to know about it before it happens. The teacher didn't foresee any problems with his large class. glimpse To glimpse something is to see it for a short time. She glimpsed outside the window as the plane was about to land. hoop A hoop is a ring that is made of plastic, metal, or wood. The boys tried to toss the ball through the basketball hoop. misfortune Misfortune is bad luck or an unlucky event. His family helped him when he encountered misfortune. negative When something is negative, it is unpleasant or sad. She doesn't like to say negative things about her friends.

per Per is used to mean "each" when giving a price, size, or amount. It costs eight dollars per person to watch the baseball game. plead To plead is to ask for something you want very badly. He pleaded for his parents to let him go to the soccer game. rip To rip something means to pull it apart. She ripped the paper in half by accident. sake The sake of something is the reason for doing it. The parents worked hard for their children's sake. scrape To scrape something is to rub it very hard with something sharp. I accidentally scraped the paint off the side of the car. source A source of something is the place that it comes from. The river was the source of drinking water for the village. stern When somebody is stern, they are very serious. The stern teacher didn't allow the students to speak during class. stitch To stitch is to use a needle and thread to join pieces of cloth together. My grandmother stitched the pieces together to make a big blanket. thump A thump is the sound of a heavy object hitting something. They heard the thump when the bowling ball hit the floor. vehement When somebody is vehement, they are angry and emotional. Gina was vehement when she found out that Liz was bad in school.

Gwen's New Friends Gwen walked into the gym for her next class. Coach Peeves said, "Today, we're playing basketball. The custom is to let you choose your own teams. However, we're going to do things differently." The coach assigned each girl to a team. There were six girls per team. Gwen glimpsed at her teammates. She didn't know any of them. All of her friends were on the other teams. She couldn't believe her misfortune. "I feel sick. May I go to the nurse?" asked Gwen. The coach could see through Gwen's excuses. It wasn't the first time Gwen tried to leave class. With a stern voice, the coach said, "No." Gwen was vehement. "I don't know any of these girls! Let me play on another team. Please!" she pleaded. "Gwen, don't be disobedient. I don't want to hear any more negative comments from you." Gwen had no choice. Then a girl smiled at her. "Hi, I'm Stephanie. I was in your English class last year." she said. Gwen remembered her. "For the sake of the team, please try your best. I know you're a good player," said Stephanie. When the game started, Gwen played as best as she could. She took a long shot. The ball sailed through the air and went right through the hoop! "That was awesome!" said one of her teammates. Later, Gwen fell with a loud thump. "Are you OK?" asked her teammates. They were worried. She had ripped her pants. She had scraped her knee and had a small bruise. Gwen told her teammates, "My knee is fine, and I can stitch my pants later. Let's keep playing!" By the end of the game, Gwen forgot altogether that she hadn't wanted to play, and her team won! The victory bound Gwen's team together. She had made a lot of new friends, and she could foresee that they would be a source of happiness for her for many years.