| homograph |
a word that has the same spelling as another but a different meaning and history. Homographs are often pronounced differently from each other. In the sentence, "She shed a tear over the tear in her dress," the two words spelled "t-e-a-r" are homographs. |
| housewife |
a married woman whose main work is taking care of the cooking, cleaning, and other duties of her family's household. |
| hypocrite |
a person who pretends to be different or better than he or she really is. Someone who does not act according to his or her stated beliefs is a hypocrite. |
| immigrant |
a person who moves permanently to another country from his or her native land. |
| koala |
a mammal with gray fur, round ears, and a short black nose. Koalas are marsupials and live in trees. The female has a pouch in her belly where she carries her baby. Koalas are only found in Australia. They are sometimes called "koala bears," but they are not related to true bears. |
| maiden name |
the last name of a woman before she marries and takes her husband's last name. |
| maid of honor |
an unmarried woman who is the most important attendant of a bride at her wedding. |
| marsupial |
an animal in a group of mammals that includes kangaroos and opossums. Female marsupials have a pouch outside their belly where the mother carries her young after they are born. Most marsupials live in Australia. |
| martyr |
a person who chooses to die or be killed rather than give up his or her religion. [1/2 definitions] |
| mime |
an actor who tells a story or acts out a scene using just his or her body movements and without using any words. [1/2 definitions] |
| opossum |
a small mammal with gray fur, a pointed nose, and a long tail, which it uses to hang from tree branches. The common opossum is the only marsupial that lives in North America. Several other kinds of opossums live in Central and South America. The female opossum carries her young in a pouch in her belly. [1/2 definitions] |
| patriot |
one who loves, supports, and defends his or her country. |
| phrase |
a group or string of words whose meaning cannot be understood by considering the meaning of each word on its own; idiom. In the sentence "She takes after her father," "takes after" is a phrase that means "is similar to" or "resembles." [1/4 definitions] |
| prime |
the time in a life or career when a person is at his or her best. [1/5 definitions] |
| queen |
a female ruler of a country who is not elected but whose mother, father, or relative was the ruler before her. [1/4 definitions] |
| racist |
a person who believes in the notion that racial groups have basic differences that can make one or more groups superior to others and typically believes that his or her own racial group is superior to all others. [1/3 definitions] |
| rearview mirror |
a mirror attached to a car or other vehicle that allows the driver to see what is behind him or her. |
| rebel |
a person who fights against or is not loyal to the government of his or her country. [1/5 definitions] |
| refugee |
a person forced to leave his or her home or country to seek safety or protection. |
| rookie |
a professional athlete in his or her first season on a team. [1/2 definitions] |
| sexist |
the unfair treatment of a person because of his or her sex. |