Category Archives: Glossary

Ungainly

Ungainly (adjective): 1. a. lacking in smoothness or dexterity:  clumsy b. hard to handle: unwieldy 2. having an awkward appearance (Merriam-Webster)

Found on Paragraph 10, Page 263 of “A Jury of Her Peers”–>“The county attorney was looking at the cupboard — a peculiar, ungainly structure, half closet and half cupboard, the upper part of it being built in the wall, and the lower part just the old-fashioned kitchen cupboard.”

I believe the word in this quote means that Mr. Hale (the attorney) found that the Wrights cupboards were crafted poorly, making them fragile looking and awkward in shape and appearance.

 

Aquiver

Aquiver (adjective): shaking or trembling because of strong emotion; quivering (Merriam-Webster)

Found on Paragraph 5 of “The Story of an Hour”–>“She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life.”

I believe the word in this quote means that the trees that Mrs. Mallard was watching from her bedroom window were shaking (excited) to blossom with new leaves.