Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt, Vocabulary List Chapters 43-51

an instrument for doing arithmetic by sliding counters along rods or in grooves

"Well, that would make you either a set of fingers or an abacus."

to regard or describe (someone or something) as having or deserving a particular status

However, they don't really acknowledge her.

a comparison of things based on ways they are alike

"I like analogies."

a feeling or way of thinking that affects a person's behavior

"It says 'The student delivering this note is our student of the month for hard work and a good attitude.'"

the imaginary straight line that something (such as the Earth) turns around

"Did the world just fall off its axis or what?"

a person or event that quickly causes change or action

"Ally is a catalyst."

to seem better or worse in comparison to something else : to be good or bad when measured against something else

"Like a little stick hitting my head compared to a baseball bat."

remaining steady and unchanged

"Elephants feel a wide range of emotions, but their behavior remains constant."

a person who shows shameful fear

"You gang up on people like cowards."

to say (something) in a strong and confident way

"Declare your answer!"

an imaginary place where people are unhappy and usually afraid because they are not treated fairly

"Dystopia or whatever."

to move about excitedly

"It's kind of like the letters on the page flutter like butterflies."

strength of mind or spirit

His intelligence and grit kept the Nazis from taking over England.

a task that is assigned or begun

"They did not have many planes, so they would repaint them every few missions."

to tell in full detail

"You know, Albert, you kind of talk like those guys who narrate the movies at school."

completely different

"Trying to make them think one thing about you when the opposite was true."

to keep trying to do something in spite of difficulties

"And how smart you have to be to persevere."

the study of the basic ideas about knowledge, right and wrong, reasoning, and the value of things

"He is considered the greatest human mind to ever have lived in the fields of physics, mathematics, and philosophy."

a science that deals with the facts about matter and motion and includes the subjects of mechanics, heat, light, electricity, sound, and the atomic nucleus

"He is considered the greatest human mind to ever have lived in the fields of physics, mathematics, and philosophy."

to express or show unwillingness to do, give, or allow something

"He refused to shoot the bear and set it free."

torn in or worn to shreds

I hand him the tattered piece of paper that says possible.

very good or excellent

"You know what else is a tremendous achievement?"

to show or be shown to a place

"He ushered in a new world."