Definition: to make fun of someone or something in a scornful way.

From the reading: "A Hare one day ridiculed the short feet and slow pace of the Tortoise"

Synonyms:

mock, taunt, jeer at

Antonyms:

praise, respect, honor

Root:Latin ridiculus, "laughable," from ridere, "to laugh."

Definition: a confident statement that something is true, often made without proof.

From the reading: "The Hare, believing her assertion to be simply impossible, assented to the proposal"

Synonyms:

claim, declaration, contention

Antonyms:

denial, retraction

Root:Latin assertio, from asserere, "to claim," from ad- (to) + serere (to join): to attach oneself to a claim.

Definition: to agree to a proposal or opinion, often formally.

From the reading: "...assented to the proposal; and they agreed that the Fox should choose the course and fix the goal."

Synonyms:

agree, consent, concur

Antonyms:

dissent, refuse, object

Root:Latin assentire, from ad- (to) + sentire (to feel, think): to think the same way as someone.

Definition: great tiredness from work, effort or strain.

From the reading: "...he saw the Tortoise had reached the goal, and was comfortably dozing after her fatigue."

Synonyms:

weariness, exhaustion, tiredness

Antonyms:

vigor, energy, freshness

Root:Latin fatigare, "to tire out," possibly from ad fatim, "to the point of bursting."

Definition: too much pride or self-confidence, which leads a person to ruin.

Context: The Hare's hubris told him he could nap halfway through the race and still win.

KJV link: "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall" (Proverbs 16:18).

Synonyms:

arrogance, overconfidence, presumption

Antonyms:

humility, modesty, meekness

Root:Greek hybris, "insolence, outrageous pride." In Greek tragedy, hubris brings down the hero.

Definition: Too high an opinion of oneself; in older English, an idea or opinion (the KJV sense).

KJV: "Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him" (Proverbs 26:12).

Context: The Hare was a hare wise in his own conceit: so sure of his speed that he never measured the race.

Synonyms:

vanity, self-importance, egotism

Antonyms:

humility, modesty

Root:Middle English conceite, "a thought," from Latin concipere, "to take in, conceive." Thinking much of oneself became "conceit."

Definition: to look down on someone or something as unworthy; scorn.

KJV: "And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance" (1 Samuel 17:42).

Context: Like Goliath, the Hare disdained a rival who looked too small to matter.

Synonyms:

scorn, contempt, look down on

Antonyms:

admire, respect, esteem

Root:Old French desdeignier, from Latin dis- (not) + dignari (to think worthy).

Definition: a lazy person who avoids work and sleeps when he should be busy.

KJV: "Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise" (Proverbs 6:6).

Context: The Hare was not slow, but in the middle of the race he behaved like a sluggard.

Synonyms:

idler, loafer, slacker

Antonyms:

worker, toiler, go-getter

Root:Middle English slugge, "a lazy person," + -ard (one who does something too much, as in drunkard).

Definition: the habit of continuing firmly in a course of action in spite of difficulty or delay.

Context: The Tortoise won by persistence: she never for a moment stopped.

Synonyms:

steadiness, doggedness, determination

Antonyms:

idleness, wavering, quitting

Root:Latin persistere, from per- (through) + sistere (to stand): to stand firm all the way through.

Definition: Done on purpose, after careful thought; slow, careful and unhurried.

Context: The Tortoise moved at a deliberate pace, one careful step after another, straight to the end of the course.

Synonyms:

intentional, careful, measured

Antonyms:

accidental, hasty, careless

Root:Latin deliberare, "to weigh well," from de- (thoroughly) + librare (to weigh), from libra (scales).

Definition: done or acting too quickly, without enough thought or care.

KJV: "The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want" (Proverbs 21:5).

Context: The Hare's hasty judgment of the Tortoise cost him the race.

Synonyms:

rash, hurried, impulsive

Antonyms:

deliberate, careful, unhurried

Root:Old French haste, "speed, urgency," from a Germanic word for violence or fury.

Definition: To bear hardship patiently without giving up; to last a long time.

KJV: "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved" (Matthew 24:13).

Context: The race goes not to the one who starts fast but to the one who will endure to the goal.

Synonyms:

bear, persevere, withstand

Antonyms:

give up, quit, yield

Root:Latin indurare, "to harden," from in- + durus (hard): to harden oneself against trouble.

Definition: physical weakness or illness, especially one that lasts a long time.

KJV: "Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Context: When sickness left Robin unable to walk, Brother Luke taught him that his infirmity did not have to be the end of his usefulness.

Synonyms:

weakness, frailty, ailment

Antonyms:

strength, health, vigor

Root:Latin infirmitas, from in- (not) + firmus (strong).

Definition: to recover health and strength slowly after an illness.

Context: Robin convalesced at the monastery, gaining strength little by little as he carved wood, read and learned to swim.

Synonyms:

recover, recuperate, heal

Antonyms:

decline, weaken, relapse

Root:Latin convalescere, from con- (thoroughly) + valescere (to grow strong), from valere (to be strong).

Definition: hardship, trouble or misfortune.

KJV: "In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider" (Ecclesiastes 7:14).

Context: Robin's adversity taught him patience; he learned to "consider" what he could still do rather than mourn what he could not.

Synonyms:

hardship, misfortune, affliction

Antonyms:

prosperity, good fortune, ease

Root:Latin adversitas, from adversus, "turned against," from ad- (toward) + vertere (to turn).

Definition: To surround a town or castle with an army in order to capture it; to crowd around or overwhelm with requests.

KJV: "There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it" (Ecclesiastes 9:14).

Context: When enemies besieged the castle where Robin was staying, the boy on crutches found a way to slip out and bring help. Like the poor wise man of Ecclesiastes 9:15, he did it by wisdom, not by strength.

Synonyms:

surround, blockade, beset

Antonyms:

relieve, liberate, abandon

Root:Middle English be- (around) + sege, "seat," from Old French siege: to sit down around a place until it falls.

Definition: To limit or soften a statement so that it is exact (the usual test sense in reading and writing); to meet the requirements for something.

From the reading: "List three words that qualify a claim (often, usually, sometimes)."

Context: "Steady beats swift when swift stops" qualifies the old moral so that it tells the truth.

Synonyms:

limit, modify, restrict

Antonyms:

exaggerate, overstate, generalize

Root:Latin qualificare, from qualis (of what kind) + facere (to make): to say exactly what kind.

Definition: to say more than the facts support; to claim something is always true when it is only sometimes true.

From the reading: "Show which part of the moral is true and which is overstated."

Synonyms:

exaggerate, inflate, magnify

Antonyms:

understate, qualify, minimize

Root:English over- (too much) + state, from Latin status, "a standing, condition."

Definition: a broad statement drawn from only a few cases, applied to all.

Context: "Slow but steady wins the race" is a generalization drawn from a single race in which the fast runner fell asleep.

Synonyms:

sweeping statement, broad claim, overstatement

Antonyms:

particular, specific case, exception

Root:Latin generalis, "of a whole class," from genus, "kind, race."

Definition: Logically sound and well grounded; legally or officially acceptable.

Context: The moral is valid when it praises steadiness, but not when it praises slowness.

Synonyms:

sound, reasonable, well-founded

Antonyms:

invalid, unsound, fallacious

Root:Latin validus, "strong," from valere, "to be strong" (the same root as convalesce).