Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus

1.overrated (adjective):

valued more highly than something is worth

“I wailed in despair, and she told me to stop crying because having arms was totally overrated.” (Chapter 1, Page 2)

2. traumatized (past tense verb):

shocked from something emotionally disturbing or from an injury

“So I kind of traumatized her and had to have a meeting with my parents and the teacher later about my story.” (Chapter 1, Page 5)

3. privy (adjective):

sharing secret knowledge

“I wasn’t sure why an eighty-six-year-old woman who lived in a trailer in Kansas was the only person privy to this top-secret information, but she clearly was.” (Chapter 2, Page 8)

4. résumé (noun):

a document that lists a person’s education, skills, and job experiences

“I guess he found my resume on one of the job sites where I posted it.” (Chapter 2, Page 9)

5. entice (present tense verb):

tempt someone by promising them something they like

“’Stop trying to entice me,’ I said.” (Chapter 2, Page 10)

6. humble (adjective):

modest; not fancy

“Mom and Dad had described the apartment as a cozy but humble little place.” (Chapter 3, Page 14)

7. Medusa’s head (noun):

In Greek mythology, Medusa is one of the Gorgons, monstrous winged women with snakes instead of hair. Anyone who looked into their eyes would turn to stone.

“Like my torso was actually Medusa’s head.” (Chapter 4, Page 21)

8. Chronic (adjective):

recurring repeatedly or lasting a long time

“I already had Dad arrested for chronic farting, and I didn’t have to pay for it either because my parents run the place (VIP here).” (Chapter 5, Page 26)

9. subjected (past tense verb):

forced to experience something

10. interrogation (noun):

questioning

“I dreaded going home and being subjected to more of the interrogation about my day Mom had started in the car.” (Chapter 5, Page 29)

11. dementia (noun):

a disorder that causes people to lose mental functions like thinking and remembering

“He has dementia, sweetheart.” (Chapter 6, Page 32)

12. malformation (noun):

an abnormally formed part of the body; a deformity

“Instead, I recited, ‘I have an extremely rare genetic disorder that causes malformation of the limbs.” (Chapter 6, Page 42)

13. contagious (adjective):

able to spread from person to person, like a disease

“’Is it contagious?’ green-tank-top girl asked.” (Chapter 6, Page 42)

14. ostracized (past tense verb):

excluded, shunned, rejected

“I stop for a quick visit with Spaghetti, the poor mutant llama—Spaghetti, who understands how it feels to be ostracized by the other kids. (Chapter 8, Page 44)

15. revelation (noun):

a surprising or enlightening fact that gives a new understanding

“That e-reader was like a revelation for me.” (Chapter 9, Page 48)

16. cumbersome (adjective):

difficult, burdensome, complicated

“No more cumbersome pages; I could just slide my toe effortlessly across the screen to turn the page.” (Chapter 9, Page 48)

17. neurological (adjective):

having to do with the nervous system, the body’s brain, nerves, and spinal cord

18. involuntary (adjective):

uncontrolled

19. tics (plural noun):

repeated, uncontrollable twitches, movements, or sounds

“Tourette syndrome is a neurological disorder that causes involuntary motor or oral tics.” (Chapter 9, Page 50)

20. morbid (adjective):

gruesome, dark, sick

“In fifth grade, I had come to the realization that it was far more productive for me to channel my creative storytelling into songwriting than to only use it to shock people with morbid horror stories about my armlessness.” (Chapter 10, Page 67)

21. nunchuks (plural noun):

a weapon used in Chinese martial arts that is made of two wooden sticks connected at one end by a metal chain

“As soon as I learned how to use nunchuks…” (Chapter 11, Page 76)

22. begrudgingly (adverb):

reluctantly, bad humoredly

“But he opened it begrudgingly and scowled.” (Chapter 11, Page 77)

23. haphazard (adjective):

disorganized

“It was sloppy and haphazard, but Connor managed to dig a hole in each of the steaks, tie the twine through them, and then tie them around my T-shirt sleeves, going through the arm and neck holes.” (Chapter 11, Page 86)

24. shenanigans (noun):

mischief, horseplay, silly tricks

“The next morning the cowboys went and complained to Dad about my shenanigans.” (Chapter 11, Page 88)

25. disclaimer (noun):

a statement that denies responsibility; a warning

“’I’m not allowed to play any game with a disclaimer on the cover,’ I said.” (Chapter 14, Page 101)

26. emphatically (adverb):

forcefully

“’It matters,’ I said emphatically.” (Chapter 14, Page 105)

27. embellishing (present participle verb):

adding extra details

“I may be embellishing a little.” (Chapter 14, Page 110)

28. cacophony (noun):

loud, noisy sound

“It was strange listening to everyone speak among a cacophony of barking, farting, whooping, shrieking, and chicken nipples.” (Chapter 17, Page 134)

29. fathom (verb):

understand

“I couldn’t fathom why anyone would want to do such a thing or how anyone could think they were doing it.” (Chapter 17, Page 134)

30. waning (adjective):

decreasing; getting smaller

“I think Dad must have noticed my waning interest.” (Chapter 18, Page 138)

31. tarnished (adjective):

discolored, stained

“’My mom told me that’s because it’s tarnished silver,’ I said.” (Chapter 19, Page 141)

32. vixen (adjective):

a lively, attractive woman

“With a beautiful vixen lady and a lady pig.” (Chapter 20, Page 146)

33. bedraggled (adjective):

messy, untidy

“Just then a bedraggled-looking blonde woman wearing a night-gown and a robe emerged from a small hallway.” (Chapter 21, Page 151)

34. attainable (adjective):

something one can achieve; possible

“It didn’t need to be big, but something easily attainable—like my parents had always taught me: one small goal at a time.” (Chapter 22, Page 158)

35. noncommittal (adjective):

not agreeing to something; cautious, reserved

“The way he said his goal felt noncommittal, and I doubted he would follow through with it.” (Chapter 22, Page 159)

36. vendors (plural noun):

people or businesses that sell something

“’Well,’ Mom said, ‘for one thing, how do we even find these vendors?’” (Chapter 24, Page 170)

37. intriguing (adjective):

interesting, fascinating

“’That is…mildly intriguing,’ said Dad.” (Chapter 24, Page 173)

38. coincidence (noun):

when two things happen at the same time that seem to have no connection

“It could just be a coincidence.” (Chapter 27, Page 184)

39. doppelgangers (plural noun):

people who look almost identical to someone else but are not related to them; in German folklore, spirit-doubles of living people

“I saw this show once about doppelgangers—” (Chapter 27, Page 184)

40. transaction (noun):

a business deal

“I also let the boys handle the transaction.” Chapter 28, Page 190)

41. evasive (adjective):

 avoiding an issue

“He shrugged, and I couldn’t tell if it was a tic or if he was deliberately being evasive.” (Chapter 29, Page 194)

42. equivalent (adjective):

equal or similar to

“I know it sounds silly, but to me this was like the equivalent of him going to Antarctica and back to bring me a feather from a penguin’s butt.” (Chapter 29, Page 198)

43. luxurious (adjective):

comfortable, fancy, expensive

“I need the extra room, and it sucks to wait until their perfectly armed selves are all done with their luxurious, roomy bathroom visits.” (Chapter 30, Page 204)

44. incapable (adjective):

unable to do something

“There’s a big difference between saying you’re disabled and saying you’re incapable.” (Chapter 31, Page 207)