Vocabulary Words-Open Court Stories
VOCABULARY WORDS FOR SECOND GRADE OPEN COURT
UNIT ONE: SHARING STORIES
Ant and the Three Little Figs
1. figs: fruit that is shaped like a small pear and grows on a tree
2. quickly: with speed
3. finally: coming or happening at the end
4. chance: possibility of something happening
5. anytime: at any time
Come Back, Jack!
1. boring: not interesting
2. adventure: an experience that is interesting or dangerous
3. exciting: stirring up strong feelings; thrilling
4. searched: looked for
5. steep: having a very sharp slope or slant
6. nimble: moving quickly and lightly
The Library
1. nearsighted: able to see things that are close by better than those things that are faraway
2. incredible: amazing; astonishing
3. manufactured: to have made something
4. tutoring: to teach privately
5. donations: gifts, contributions
6. library: a room or building that has a collection of books, magazines, and newspapers
7. vacuum: to pick up dirt from carpets, furniture, etc.
Story Hour ~ Starring Megan!
1. librarian: a person who works in a library
2. assistant: a person who helps
3. calm: to make quiet and still
4. patient: willing to wait
5. amazement: great surprise
6. mistake: something that is not done right
Tomas and the Library Lady
1. midnight: twelve o’clock at night
2. howling: making a loud, wailing cry
3. chattered: clicked together quickly
4. thorny: covered with sharp points
5. glaring: staring angrily
6. eager: wanting very much to do something
UNIT TWO: KINDNESS
Mushroom in the Rain
1. clearing: a spot in a forest where no trees are growing
2. barely: hardly, not quite able
3. drenched: soaked; very wet
4. huddled: crowded; close together
5. flicked: gave a quick, light snap
The Elves and the Shoemaker
1. leather: material made from animal skin
2. polished: made smooth and shiny
3. handsome: good looking
4. cobbler: someone who makes and repairs shoes
The Paper Crane
1. serve: help others
2. guests: people who are visiting in another house, restaurant, or hotel
3. stranger: someone you don’t know
4. manner: the way something is done
5. unusual: something that is different; not seen every day
6. overjoyed: really excited about something
Butterfly House
1. larva: the baby or young form of some insects (A caterpillar is the larva of a butterfly.)
2. nectar: the sweet liquid in flowers
3. chrysalis: the protective covering around the caterpillar when it is in a sleeping stage while changing into a butterfly
4. transformed: to change how something looks
5. drift: to move because of wind or water
Corduroy
1. department: section or part of a store that sells one kind of merchandise
2. escalator: moving stairs
3. toppled: fell over
4. enormous: gigantic; very big
5. fastened: closed; buttoned
The Story of Three Whales
1. lurk: to hide in or about a place
2. surface: to rise to the top of any liquid
3. trudged: walked or marched steadily with great effort
4. plight: a bad condition or situation
5. invincible: impossible to defeat
6. ordeal: something that is difficult to do
Cinderella
1. beautiful: pleasant to look at
2. cellar: basement
3. diamonds: highly valued precious stones
4. kingdom: a country that is ruled by a king or a queen
5. shimmering: shining with a soft light
UNIT THREE: LOOK AGAIN
I See Animals Hiding
1. natural: not learned or taught, but something one is born with
2. unaware: not watchful or mindful
3. camouflage: animal coloration; disguise
4. wariest: most cautious and alert
5. slithering: sliding, gliding, or creeping
6. invisible: not able to be seen
They Thought They Saw Him
1. glistened: sparkled
2. wakeful: restless, not able to sleep
3. gripped: held onto tightly
4. swooped: rushed down suddenly
5. ridge: the edge of something
Hungry Little Hare
1. disguise: something that changes or hides the way one looks
2. scent: a smell
3. disappear: not able to be seen
4. sneaky: moving or acting secretly or slyly
5. avoid: to keep away from
How to Hide an Octopus and Other Sea Creatures
1. creatures: live people or animals
2. fade: to lose or cause to lose color or brightness
3. designed: planned or made, as in an arrangement of shapes, parts, or colors and patterns
4. enemies: things or creatures that are dangerous or harmful to another
5. drab: not cheerful or bright; dull
How the Guinea Fowl Got Her Spots
1. glossy: bright and shiny
2. delicious: pleasing to the taste or smell
3. slinking: moving slowly or secretively
4. scrambled: moved or climbed quickly
5. cautiously: carefully
Animal Camouflage
1. costume: clothes you wear in order to look like someone or something else
2. surroundings: area or things that are around a person or thing
3. blends: fades into something else
4. mimicry: to imitate or pretend to be something
5. pretenders: those who make believe they are something else
6. marsh: swamp
UNIT FOUR: FOSSILS
Fossils Tell of Long Ago
1. amber: a yellowish sap from plants that hardens and becomes a fossil
2. fossil: a plant, animal, or imprint that has turned to stone
3. extinct: not alive today; all members of the group or species have died out
4. peat: swampy forest soil
5. mammoth: a kind of elephant that lived millions of years ago
6. preserved: has not rotted
7. seeps: leaks slowly
Dinosaur Who Lived in My Backyard
1. hatched: broke out of an egg
2. neighborhood: the area around your home
3. swamp: an area of wet land
4. rescue: to save someone who is in danger of harm
5. sprinkler: something used for watering the lawn
Dinosaur Fossils
1. fossils: hardened remains of an animal or plant that lived long ago
2. hardened: became solid
3. scientists: people who study things in nature
4. difficult: not easy
5. extinct: no longer living
6. chance: luck
Why Did The Dinosaurs Disappear?
1. climate: the average, or normal weather conditions of a place
2. protection: the keeping of someone or something from harm
3. moisture: water or other liquid in the air or on a surface
4. erupt: to break out suddenly with force
5. discovery: something that is seen or found out for the first time
6. starve: to not have enough food
Monster Tracks
1. clues: hints that help solve a mystery or a problem
2. prehistoric: belonging to a time before people started writing history
3. imprint: to mark by applying pressure
4. mold: a hollow form that material is poured into to make a shape
5. instructions: directions
Let’s Go Dinosaur Tracking!
1. analyze: to look at very carefully
2. clue: hint
3. paleontologist: a scientist who studies fossils and the past
4. limestone: a rock that often contains fossil prints
5. tracks: footprints
6. canteen: like a bottle
UNIT FIVE: COURAGE
Molly the Brave and Me
1. guts: courage
2. homesick: wanting to be home with family
3. wimp: a weak, helpless person
4. swatted: hit or slapped at something
5. creepy: makes you feel like something is crawling over your skin
Dragons and Giants
1. puffing: breathing in short breaths
2. avalanche: stones or snow falling down a mountain
3. trembling: shaking
4. cried: yelled out (“I am not afraid,” Toad cried.)
5. leaping: jumping
6. fell: to cover something (“The shadow of a hawk fell over Frog and Toad.”
A Hole in the Dike
1. gurgling: making a sound like a bubbling liquid
2. trickling: like a liquid that is falling or flowing drop by drop
3. gushing: pouring out suddenly and in large amounts
4. numb: having no feeling, as if asleep
5. rumbling: making a heavy, deep, rolling sound
6. hero: a person who is honored because of brave or courageous acts
A Picture Book of Martin Luther King, Jr.
1. protests: acts of complaint or objections against something
2. demanding: to ask for urgently or forcefully
3. fair: not favoring one more than another
4. riots: a noisy and violent disorder caused by a group of people
5. prejudice: unfair treatment of a particular group of people
6. violence: doing something that hurts people or property
7. powerful: strong
The Empty Pot
1. successor: a person who comes next
2. swarmed: to move in a large group
3. ashamed: to feel upset of guilty because one has done something wrong or has failed
4. worthy: deserving
5. admire: to approve or respect
6. courage: the strength to overcome fear
7. proclamation: an announcement
Brave as a Mountain Lion
1. reservation: land set aside by the government for Native Americans to live on
2. drifted: piled up because of the wind
3. dreaded: looked forward to with fear
4. qualified: fit or able to do a job or task
5. gymnasium: a room or building that has equipment for physical exercise of indoor sports
6. swirling: moving around in a twisting motion
UNIT SIX: OUR COUNTRY AND ITS PEOPLE
The First Americans
1. wampum: small, polished beads made from shells and strung together or woven into belts, collars, and necklaces; Used by some Native Americans as money
2. tundra: a huge plain with no trees that lies in arctic regions
3. tepees: a tent shaped like a cone; A tepee is made from animal skins stretched over poles
4. warriors: people who fight or are experienced in fighting battles
5. herd: group
6. cleared: cut down
New Hope
1. recycling: using throw-away items for another purpose
2. ferried: carried across a body of water
3. brisk: quick and lively
4. bustling: busy
5. invitation: a written request to do something
6. citizens: people who live in a town or city
A Place Called Freedom
1. plantation: a large farm worked by people who live there
2. fretted: to become worried
3. settlement: a small village or group of houses
4. celebrate: to give a party
5. weary: tired
6. sturdy: strong
The Story of the Statue of Liberty
1. harbor: a protected area of water along a coast
2. ferry: a boat used to carry people and things across a narrow body of water
3. monuments: a structure made to honor a person or an event
4. symbol: something that represents something else
5. voyage: a long trip, usually by ship
6. independence: freedom
The Butterfly Seeds
1. tossed: moved up and down on a ship because of the waves
2. passengers: people who travel in a vehicle
3. inspectors: people who look at things closely
4. alley: a narrow street between buildings
5. vendor: a person who sells things
6. harmonica: a musical instrument
A Piece of Home
1. journey: a long trip
2. treasure: money, jewels, or other things that are valuable
3. strange: not familiar
4. passport: a document given to a person to show what country the person is a citizen of
5. Russian: relating to Russia, its people, or their language
6. settled: decided (Gregor finally chooses his blanket as his treasure. Then Papa says, “At least it is
settled.”)
Jalapeno Bagels
1. jalapeno: a small hot pepper
2. ingredients: parts that go into a mixture
3. dough: a mixture of flour, liquid, and other things that is usually baked
4. knead: to mix and press dough together with the hands
5. recipe: a list of ingredients and directions for making something to eat or drink
6. mixture: something made up of different things that are put together