Greenglass House by Kate Milford Vocabulary List, Chapters 1-3

belonging to an earlier period, style, or fashion : old and often valuable

Given the option of being hauled up the steep hill in an antique conveyance that looked like a demented and oversized bumper car on rails or climbing three hundred and ten steps (Milo had counted), they always chose the former.

a noticeable and usually pleasant smell

Those aromas were still there, but they were buried now under the scents of Mrs. Hereward’s wet wool coat, Georgie Moselle’s broken bottle of perfume, and a faint whiff of tobacco from the pipe Dr. Gowervine had smoked out on the screened porch.

easily broken, cracked, or snapped

This evening, the first of winter vacation, was cold and brittle, and the snow had just begun to fall.

a special charm or appeal that causes people to feel attracted and excited by someone (such as a politician)

"...I'm going to suggest we rate you pretty high in dexterity, intelligence, and charisma. Those are probably going to serve you best.”

not able to think clearly or to understand what is real and what is not real : crazy or insane

Given the option of being hauled up the steep hill in an antique conveyance that looked like a demented and oversized bumper car on rails or climbing three hundred and ten steps (Milo had counted), they always chose the former.

the ability to think and act quickly and cleverly

"...I'm going to suggest we rate you pretty high in dexterity, intelligence, and charisma. Those are probably going to serve you best.”

very small

Mr. Down straightened to his full diminutive height, his face already turning pink, and then he started yelling too.

unsure or uncertain : feeling doubt about something

Wilbur Gowervine sat at the end of the dining table, also eyeing Lizzie dubiously; evidently he and Mrs. Hereward had the same lack of trust in others when it came to the making of tea.

clear to the sight or mind

Evidently, her climb up to the inn hadn’t been quite as painless as it had looked.

too bright or colorful

The papers looked like homework, and despite their garishly illustrated covers, the books looked uncomfortably like textbooks.

having or showing the insulting attitude of people who think that they are better, smarter, or more important than other people

But she looked like an angry schoolteacher too, white-haired and haughty.

not able to be explained or understood

“I’m so sorry,” he babbled, staring from the bag to the luggage rack, which, for some inexplicable reason, stood to the right of the door rather than to the left, where it should have been.

not probable : not likely to be true or to happen

But now, the sheer improbability of two separate guests showing up at this time of year made him more curious than upset.

impossible to understand : not comprehensible

He clasped his hands behind his back, made a face as if he was paying really close attention to whatever incomprehensible things these two were saying, and waited.

not able or willing to believe something : feeling or showing a lack of belief

“Someone’s coming up?” he asked incredulously.

relating to or based on instinct : based on feelings or desires that do not come from thinking or learning

Milo hesitated, thinking of the person who had been out in the pavilion just after he’d found the chart, and how he’d instinctively hidden rather than given it back.

very careful about doing something in an extremely accurate and exact way

Some time later, the two of them sat back, looking with satisfaction at the pages that were now covered with notes in both Meddy’s scrawl and Milo’s meticulous handwriting.

relating to ships and sailing

It looked like a nautical chart, the kind that ships’ navigators use.

showing a lot of respect : very respectful

She touched the bird almost reverently with one finger.

a person who knows a lot about a particular subject

"...Or you could be a savant. Like houses make sense to you because they just always have.”

to surprise or frighten (someone) suddenly and usually not seriously

“Didn’t mean to startle you. Looking for the Greenglass House, supposed to be somewhere hereabouts.”

not done with confidence : uncertain and hesitant

“Excuse me,” he said tentatively.

coming in a large, fast stream

“If you beat the Devil,” the tattooed twin called Negret began over the torrential rain beating upon the windows of the inn in the story, “you can win your heart’s desire..."

very bad or unpleasant

He’d gotten all the way to the utility closet on the second floor, where he emptied the bin of its flowery, vile-smelling, eye-burning contents, when he realized he still had Georgie Moselle’s book under one arm.