vocabulary

Baklava

Part of speech: noun

In Berkeley, and only in Berkeley, my name drew people like flies to baklava. (Funny in Farsi, 64)

Context clues: logic, “drew people like flies”, flies are drawn to food

Def: A Near Easter pastry made of many layers of paper-thin dough with filling of nuts, baked dough and honey

Sentence: Ms. Henderson brought baklava for the class to try.


Exempt

Part of speech: verb

The Christian and Jewish children at my school were exempt from religious studies, a fact that caused much envy among the rest of us. (Funny in Farsi, 105)

Context clues: logic, figured it out after the comma when it said “a fact that caused much envy among the rest of us.”

Def: to free from an obligation or liability to which others are subject.

Sentence: I was exempt from taking algebra since I had already taken it in eighth grade.


Gendarmes

Part of speech: noun

The gendarmes started sifting through the clothes and the myriad of gifts I had brought for my host family. (Funny in Farsi, 133)

Context clues: I had a already known what gendarmes meant

Def: name for police officers in European Countries

Sentence: The gendarmes can be very annoyed with tourists when they are asked all day where things are.