The document is a vocabulary workbook created by Agatha Lee in December 2008 that defines and provides examples for 8 words: wilting, flitted, swirling, trance, route, semblance, distraught, and improvise. For each word, there is a definition, two examples of the word used in a sentence, and 2-3 additional questions about the word.

1. Big Bushy
Mustache
*Robust Vocabulary*
Created By: Agatha Lee
December 2008

2. wilting
Wilting means
leaves are
drooping because
the plant didn’t
get enough water.

3. wilting
My new plant did not
have wilting leaves.
If you had a garden, would you
you like wilting flowers?
If you give a plant enough water,
will it start to wilt?

4. wilting
* Name some reasons
why plants might be wilting.
* If someone wilts from
being outside in the heat,
how does that person feel?

5. flitted
Flitted means something moved quickly from
place to place without stopping for long.

6. flitted
The butterflies flitted
about in the air.
Which would be more
likely to flit about-a
bird in a cage or a bird in a tree?

7. flitted
* Would a class flit
from room to room?
* Would you be more likely
to flit about a toy store
or a doctor’s office?

8. swirling
Swirling means something is
moving round and round quickly.

9. swirling
My little sister watched
the swirling snowflakes.
When would you most likely
see swirling leaves-on
a rainy day or on a windy day?

10. swirling
* Would it be a good idea to
swirl hot soup in a bowl?
* When does water swirl in a
bathtub- when it’s being added
or when it’s being drained out?

11. trance
When someone is in a trance,
he or she seems to be asleep,
but his or her eyes are open.

12. trance
The child watched the
laundry as if in a trance.
Would you be in a trance
while riding a roller coaster?
I was in a trance as I
listened to a long speech.

13. trance
* Would you like for your friends
to act like they are in a trance
when you are telling them a story?
* If you were watching a movie as
if you were in a trance, would you
be enjoying the movie?

14. route
When you follow the same route to
school or to the store every day, then
you are going the same way each time.

15. route
Ricky retraced his
route that he took home.
Who might use
the same route everyday-a
mail carrier or
a police officer?

16. route
* What route did you take
to get school today?
* Do we take the same route
to the lunchroom everyday?

17. semblance
When you make a drawing or a picture
that looks a lot like someone, than it
is a good semblance of that person.

18. semblance
Ricky used shoe polish to make
a semblance of a mustache.
The student drew a picture that
was a semblance of her teacher.

19. semblance
* Why could a doll be a
semblance of a person?
* Would a baby’s drawing of you be a
good semblance of you?
* How could a twin be a good semblance
of someone else?

20. distraught
When someone is distraught, it means
that person is very, very unhappy.

21. distraught
Ricky was distraught when he
couldn’t find the mustache.
My friend was distraught
because he got poor grades
on his report card.

22. distraught
* Would you be smiling if
you were distraught?
* What kinds of events
make a person distraught?

23. improvise
If you improvise, then you are
making it up as you go along.

24. improvise
Ricky tried to improvise
to make a mustache.
Would you improvise if you
forgot your lines in a play or
if you missed your bus?

25. improvise
* If you improvise a song,
what are you doing?
* How might a cook
improvise a special dish?
* If you are playing a game
and following the directions
very closely, are you improvising?

26. The school bus driver drives the
same _________ everyday.
A. improvise
B. route
C. semblance
D. trance

27. My daughter was ________ when
she lost her soccer game.
A. swirling
B. trance
C. wilting
D. distraught

28. The plant in our classroom
is starting to _________
because we forgot to water it.
A. improvise
B. flit
C. wilt
D. trance

29. The students were in a ________ as a
teacher read a story about a lost dog.
A. trance
B. route
C. semblance
D. improvise

30. I forgot the words to the song,
so I had to __________.
A. swirl
B. wilt
C. improvise
D. route

31. Tinkerbell __________
around the room.
A. wilted
B. distraught
C. route
D. flitted

32. My clay sculpture was a
_______ of the Statue of Liberty.
A. semblance
B. route
C. swirling
D. wilting

33. The water in the toilet bowl
_______ around and around.
A. route
B. improvised
C. swirled
D. trance

34. Can you read these words?
1. wilting
2. flitted
3. swirling
4. trance
5. route
6. semblance
7. distraught
8. improvise