Unit 2: Dreams Never Die Vocab

Front 1

Dilapidated (Adj)

Back 1

Syn: Tumbledown
Reduced to or fallen into partial ruin or decay, as from age, wear, or neglect
"He sat in the midst of dilapidated tenement buildings on Manhattan's Lower East Side."

Front 2

Poverty (N)

Back 2

Syn: Penury
The state or condition of having little or no money, goods, or means of support; condition of being poor
"Theirs wasn't the kind of poverty McCourt had known; they had electricity and food."

Front 3

Shame (N)

Back 3

Syn: Dishonour, Disgrace, Embarrass, Humiliate
A painful emotion caused by a strong sense of guilt, embarrassment, unworthiness, or disgrace
"He sensed the bitter shame and hopelessness he knew all too well."

Front 4

Miseries (N)

Back 4

Syn: Agony, Pain, Suffering
Great mental or emotional distress; extreme unhappiness
"Since humor had been the McCourts' weapon against life's miseries in Limerick, he used it to describe those days."

Front 5

Sordid (Adj)

Back 5

Syn: Unclean, Degraded, Squalid
Dirty or filthy or meanly selfish, self-seeking, or mercenary
"He began to see his sordid childhood."

Front 6

Torment (V)

Back 6

Syn: Torture
Affict with great bodily or mental suffering; pain
"He began to see his sordid childhood, with all the miseries, betrayals and longings that tormented him still."

Front 7

Hopelessness (N)

Back 7

Syn: Despair
Providing no hope, without hope
"He sensed the bitter shame and hopelessness he knew all too well."

Front 8

Yearning for (V)

Back 8

Syn: Aspire to, Wish for, Want
To desire strongly
"Maybe these kids are yearning for a way of figuring out this new teacher."

Front 9

Meager (Adj)

Back 9

Syn: Few, Scant, Scarce
Deficient in quantity or quality; lacking fullness or richness
"He began to appreciate more the companionship that enriched the meager meals his mother had struggled to put on the table."

Front 10

Defeat (V)

Back 10

Syn: Overwhelm
To overcome in a contest, election, battle, etc.
"He could almost hear students' voices from years past, some angry, some defeated, others confused and seeking guidance."

Front 11

Abandonment (N)

Back 11

Syn: Desertion
The act of giving something up
"In the innocent voice of an unprotected child who could neither comprehend nor control the world around him, Frank McCourt told his tale of poverty and abandonment."