Cricket in Time Square

1. Cricket in Time Square Vocabulary

2. Chapter 1 scrounging subsided anxiously niche subway

3. scrounging “ And when he wasn’t collecting, “scrounging” as he called it, or sleeping, he liked to sit at the opening of the drain pipe and watch the world go by…..” • hunting for something

4. subsided The bustle of the day had long subsided, and even the nighttime crowds, returning from the theaters and movies, had vanished. • quieted down

5. anxiously Tucker watched anxiously to see if any of them would stop to buy a paper. • eagerly

6. niche But it was late now: time to crawl back to his comfortable niche in the wall and go to sleep. • special place; nook, cranny

7. subway He had heard the rumble of the subway trains and the shriek their iron wheels make as they go around a corner. • underground train

8. Chapter 2 Plucked Rummaged Scornfully peculiar

9. plucked It was like a quick stroke across the strings of a violin, or like a harp that had been plucked suddenly. • pull at the strings of a musical instrument and quickly release

10. rummaged He rummaged through his jacket pocket and found a piece of chocolate bar that had been left over from supper. • to look for carefully

11. scornfully Mama paused. “Cricketer,” she said scornfully. “What do we want with a cricketer?” • to ridicule; to make fun of

12. peculiar “At the first sign of his cricketer friends, or if we come down with peculiar diseases – out he goes!” • strange or weird

13. Chapter 3 Eavesdropping Wistfully Liverwurst Furiously Forlornly

14. eavesdropping Next to scrounging, eavesdropping on human beings is what he enjoyed most. • listening secretly to someone’s conversation

15. wistfully “Yes,” said Chester. “I guess I’ll never see it again,” he added wistfully. • longing for something; wishing for something

16. liverwurst “You like liverwurst?” Tucker broke in. “Wait! Wait! Just wait!” • sausage containing ground liver

17. furiously “Anyway, I worked furiously to get loose.” • intensely; powerfully

18. forlornly “And here I am,” Chester concluded forlornly. “I’ve been lying over there for three days not knowing what to do.” • sadly

19. Chapter 4 Looming Acquaintance Leery

20. looming The cricket began to make frantic signs that the mouse should look up and see what was looming over him. • appearing

21. acquaintance “I’m very pleased to make your acquaintance,” said Harry Cat in a silky voice. • a person one knows but not well

22. leery “I guess so,” said Chester, although he was really a little leery of venturing out into New York City. • suspicious; afraid of

23. Chapter 5 Clustered Din Genius Prophesy

24. clustered Every Saturday during the winter, when the opera was broadcast, they would sit clustered around the radio and newsstand, straining to hear the music above the din of the subway station. • grouped

25. din Every Saturday during the winter, when the opera was broadcast, they would sit clustered around the radio and newsstand, straining to hear the music above the din of the subway station. • noise

26. genius I could add nothing to the genius of this little black Orpheus. • natural ability or natural talent

27. prophesy “Perhaps someday your cricket will play as well. I prophesy great things for a creature of such ability, Mario.” • predict

28. Chapter 6 Lurched Abrupt Craned Knickknacks Novelties Incense Avalanche Pagoda spire

29. lurched He was staring at an old lady wearing a straw hat, wondering if the flowers on it were real, as if they were what they would taste like, when the train lurched to a halt. • move suddenly forward

30. abrupt Like most people who first ride the subway, Chester wasn’t use to the abrupt stops. • sudden or quick

31. craned Chester craned his head out as far as he could to get his first look at New York by day. • turned

32. knickknacks The paint was peeling off the doors and the windows were crammed with years’ and years’ collection of knickknacks. • small ornamental objects

33. novelties A sign hanging out in front said, Sai Fong – Chinese Novelties.” • small inexpensive items

34. incense And there was a faint, sweet smell of incense in the air. • any of a variety of substances that give off a pleasant odor when burned

35. avalanche He was afraid that if he moved, he would be buried under an avalanche of Chinese novelties. • anything that comes in overwhelming numbers

36. pagoda He was carrying a cricket cage in the shape of a pagoda. • a temple in the form of a pyramidal tower

37. spire There were several tiers to it, each one a little smaller than the one below, and it ended in a slender spire. • top or point of a structure

38. Chapter 7 Gaping Soufflé Keen Kimono contentment

39. gaping Tucker Mouse stopped gaping at the cricket cage long enough to say, “Once I thought of living down there.” • looking

40. souffle' They could make a soufflé out of a mouse. • a baked food which is made light and puffy in cooking

41. keen “Yes,” said Chester, “but I’m not so keen on staying in a cage.” • eager

42. kimono “If only I had a kimono now,” he said, standing up on his hind legs again and resting one paw on a bar. • a loose outer garment with short, wide sleeves and a sash

43. contentment Chester and Harry heard him draw a deep breath of contentment. • satisfaction

44. Chapter 8 Rap Accuse Whopped Heaved Denounced Unsavory Gilded bail Gilded bail Pathetic Loot Peril Galoshes skinflint

45. rap “Then stay and take the rap,” he said. He crept out of his cage and examined the remains of the money. • the blame or punishment

46. accuse “They’d accuse each other of losing it,” said Chester. • to find fault or blame

47. whopped He whopped me with a mop last week. • hit; strike

48. heaved She picked up a Fortune magazine- very big and heavy- and heaved it after Tucker. • throw or hurl

49. denounced A three-cornered conversation began. Mama denounced Chester as a money eater and said further that she suspected him of inviting mice and other unsavory characters into the newsstand at night. • criticized

50. unsavory A three-cornered conversation began. Mama denounced Chester as a money eater and said further that she suspected him of inviting mice and other unsavory characters into the newsstand at night. • disagreeable or unpleasant