Tag Archives: context clues

Ubiquitous (adj)

Posted on September 20, 2020 | Leave a comment

It’s Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day today, so, like Pavlov’s dog, I got out an index card and wrote this context clues worksheet on the adjective ubiquitous. It’s of solid, if distant classical origin–ubique means everywhere in Latin–and found its way into English in this form in 1830. Ubiquitous means “existing or being everywhere at the same time : constantly encountered : WIDESPREAD.”

This is an adjective that tends, in any case, to show up in educated discourse.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Delve (vi)

Posted on September 18, 2020 | Leave a comment

It’s Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day today. It is also a very strong verb from Middle English, and a word that ought to be used in our schools more often. Hence this context clues worksheet on the verb delve. In the years I’ve been a teacher, students haven’t much delved into the world of ideas as skimmed its surface in preparation for high-stakes standardized tests. Maybe it’s time, especially in the second two years of high school, to ask students to delve into something.

In any case, this verb has a transitive use, excavate (i.e., dig) that Merriam-Webster now designates as archaic. However, intransitively, delve means, for our purposes, “to make a careful or detailed search for information” and  “to examine a subject in detail.” If you know delve and use it, I wonder if you find the verb rarely appears without the preposition into, which then has an object following it? He delved into the essays of James Baldwin.

(OK, delve, intransitively, also means “to dig or labor with or as if with a spade.” I don’t know if I’ve ever heard anyone say they were off to delve out the hog pen, so I left it alone.)

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Cultural Literacy: Allies

Posted on September 17, 2020 | Leave a comment

Given the rise of tyranny around the world, and given the dismal state of United States’ foreign policy, I think now is the time to post this Cultural Literacy worksheet on the Allies in both World War I (opposed, in that conflict, to the Central Powers that arose in turn out of the Triple Alliance in Europe) and World War II (opposed, in that global war, to the Axis powers).

This might make a handy learning support for students with less than adequate funds of memory. Questions about the members of alliances are the kinds things that pop up on standardized tests. In any case, you might find these two context clues worksheets on ally as a noun and a verb complements the Cultural Literacy document above.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Limpid (adj)

Posted on September 17, 2020 | Leave a comment

It’s the Word of the Day at Merriam-Webster’s, so here is a context clues worksheet on the adjective limpid. It means “marked by transparency,” “clear and simple in style,” and “absolutely serene and untroubled.” I’ve used it in the first two senses, but not in the third, in this worksheet.

I understand that this is a word students can probably live without. But what would it look like if we asked them to live with it? This is a word commonly used in poetry. If you read any amount of fiction, or even the blurbs on novels, you’ve almost certainly encountered the locution “limpid prose,” as in “In limpid [and feel free to add ‘crystalline’ here] prose, Hiram Famauthor tells the story of Stanley, who overcomes adversity to triumph in life.” So, if you have advanced English language arts students, or kids struggling with literacy, there are at least of couple of reasons to teach them this word.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Purport (vt)

Posted on September 14, 2020 | Leave a comment

It’s Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day today, so here is a context clues worksheet on the verb purport, which is used only transitively. Don’t forget your direct object: what is the subject of your sentence purporting? Arcane knowledge? Expertise in neurosurgery? A conscience?

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Ruddy (adj)

Posted on September 12, 2020 | Leave a comment

It popped up as the Word of the Day at Merriam-Webster’s last week, but I let it go by. Then I saw it used not once, but twice, in the Harlan Coben thriller I’m reading at the moment, so I wrote up five sentences. Here, therefore, is a context clues worksheet on the adjective ruddy if you can use it.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Foment (vt)

Posted on September 12, 2020 | Leave a comment

It’s Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day today, and given how it’s generally used in English–with nouns like rebellion and opposition–now is a good time to post this context clues worksheet on the verb foment. It’s used transitively only, so do not forget your direct object: you must foment something.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Matriculate (vi/vt)

Posted on September 11, 2020 | Leave a comment

Here is a context clues worksheet on the verb matriculate, which is used both intransitively and transitively. This is the last of the Words of the Day from Merriam-Webster while I was away for the Labor Day weekend. 

Teachers, especially high school teachers, as well as guidance counselors, will agree, I hope, that students ought to know this word as they proceed toward their graduation days. It’s probably worth mentioning, for linguistic purposes, that after students matriculate, work for four years, then graduate, their relationship with their college is characterized by the noun alma mater, i.e. “nourishing mother.” These words stem from the Latin word roots matr, matri, and mater, which mean “mother.” 

In fact, I’ll link to this word root exercise on matr, matri, and mater in the event you want to take this inquiry a bit further.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Colloquial (adj)

Posted on September 10, 2020 | Leave a comment

Last but not least on this rainy Thursday afternoon, here is a context clues worksheet on the adjective colloquial. This is one of those words (like most of the context clues worksheets I’ve published here lately, this popped up as the Word of the Day at Merriam-Webster a few days back) that tempts me, because it shows up in educated discourse all over the place, to develop a series of worksheets for its family, to wit, colloquialism, colloquy, colloquium and colloquist–all of which have a solid Latin lineage.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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Encumber (vt)

Posted on September 10, 2020 | Leave a comment

It’s Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day today, so here is a context clues worksheet on the verb encumber. It’s used only transitively, do don’t forget your direct objects after its use.

Incidentally, in addition to meaning, as it does in the worksheet above, “weight down, burden” and “to impede or hamper the function or activity of,” encumber can also mean “to burden with a legal claim (as a mortgage).” Thus, the noun encumbrance will show up in mortgage contracts. These are all good concepts and words for informed consumers (i.e. our students) to know.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

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