Vocabulary Stories

Transgress — A Vocabulary Story

The Glow at Gardens by the Bay --Rajesh had promised his neighbour Andrea that he would behave on the school trip to Gardens by the Bay in Singapore. The...

Vocabulary Stories

Curt — A Vocabulary Story

The Map at Portobello Road --Marina hurried between the stalls of Portobello Road Market, clutching a folded map her uncle Anil had drawn on the back of a...

Vocabulary Stories

Adversary — A Vocabulary Story

The Chess Match in Marrakesh --In a sunlit café in Marrakesh, ten-year-old Noor set up her chessboard beneath a striped awning. Tourists wandered past, but she...

Vocabulary Stories

Candid — A Vocabulary Story

The Photographer of Reykjavík --Hui adjusted her camera as the Icelandic wind tugged at her scarf. She had travelled from Singapore to photograph puffins, but...

Vocabulary Stories

Illusory — A Vocabulary Story

The Silver Lake --Sergey adjusted his binoculars and pointed across the dunes of the Gobi Desert. "Look, Lei, a lake!" Lei squinted. Sure enough, a sheet of...

Vocabulary Stories

Menacing — A Vocabulary Story

The Storm at Cape Agulhas --Rafael gripped the rusted railing as the wind shoved him sideways. Behind him, Cape Agulhas stretched into grey foam, the...

Vocabulary Stories

Foreshadow — A Vocabulary Story

The Painter of Slemish Mountain --Rafael had hiked Slemish Mountain three times that summer, but never with a sketchbook tucked under his arm. His cousin Bibi...

Vocabulary Stories

Dawdle — A Vocabulary Story

The Marrakech Delivery --Noor weaved her bicycle through the narrow alleys of the Marrakech medina, a paper bag of warm bread balanced in the basket. Her...

Vocabulary Stories

Affluent — A Vocabulary Story

The Lost Locket of Leeds Castle --Nushi pressed her nose against the glass case in Kent's Leeds Castle, studying a silver locket that once belonged to Lady...

Vocabulary Stories

Diminution — A Vocabulary Story

The Shrinking Pile at Portobello Road --Mei arrived at Portobello Road Market with a battered suitcase of her grandmother's old buttons, hoping to sell them...

Vocabulary Stories

Ebullient — A Vocabulary Story

The Floating Market --Lan gripped the wooden edge of the longboat as it nosed into the floating market on the Mekong Delta. Around her, traders in conical hats...

Vocabulary Stories

Machinate — A Vocabulary Story

The Hay-on-Wye Bookshop Caper --Vijay had been working at the dusty bookshop in Hay-on-Wye for only three weeks when he noticed the rival shopkeeper, Olga,...