Asalamalakim
Muslim saying for "peace be with you," a general greeting exchanged between people.
checkerberry snuff
A type of lip tobacco infused with the essence of wintergreen berries
churn
a container that makes butter from milk
clabber
clotted milk
cowering
Shaking or trembling with fear
dasher
a plunger used to beat cream in a butter churn
enveloped
Wrapped around, encased
loud
gaudy or showy
made it
to have become successful in life
Model A car
the first car produced by the Ford Motor Company in 1903
pieced together
put together; in the story, Mama uses the phrase in reference to assembling pieces of a quilt before it is stitched together.
porthole
a small window of a ship
quick
description of someone who is smart and clever
ream it out
in the story's context, an idiom meaning to squeeze it out
recompose
make or compose again or differently
rifle
to search or rummage through
sporty
flashy or showy in appearance
talk a blue streak
to talk continuously for a long time with intensity
tottering
moving in an unsteady, shuffling way
Wa-su-zo Tean-o
a form of greeting from Uganda meaning "good morning"
well-turned
elegantly expressed
whittle
to carve from wood
