Context Clues Tryin’ to help you out.

What are context clues? Text book writers usually know when they must use a word that will be new to their student readers. So they often include other words or phrases to help with the understanding of the new word. These words or phrases are referred to as context clues. They are built into the sentences around the difficult word. If you become more aware of the words around the difficult words you encounter in your reading, you will save yourself many trips to the dictionary. You will be able to make logical guesses about the meanings of many words.

Surrounding words: synonyms Words or phrases that are common Often, the author uses synonyms that are more simple in surrounding phrases Example: My dog, Buddy, travels everywhere with me. My friend’s canine, Fluffy, doesn’t get to travel much.

Surrounding words: antonyms Words or phrases that are common The author may use an antonym that is common to convey meaning Example: I thought the movie would be good, but it turns out that it was atrocious.

Surrounding words: examples The author may use an example to explain the unknown words Ex: In science, we are learning about marine mammals, such as whales and dolphins.

Other general clues An author may use general, common words to give you hints about the unknown words. Example: Einstien liked the ease of riding his bike everywhere. He thought driving a car was too intricate.

When using your context clues… You may have to infer You may need some prior knowledge You might have to think back to word connotation (i.e. the emotional association tied with a word)

Let’s practice… Our new alarm system is so loud that it would wake up the entire neighborhood if an intruder were to get into our house. What is an intruder? From the sentences, what hints to what an intruder may be?

The tiny dog looked endearing, but he was actually quite mean. What can you infer about the word endearing? What type of hints did the author use to signal the meaning of the word “endearing”? Synonyms, antonyms, examples?

Taylor never gets hungry, but after going without food for three days, he was so ravenous that he ate like a horse. What can you infer that the word ravenous means? What hints from the sentence tell you that could possibly be the meaning?

Lynzee is usually very verbose is class, but today, she hardly said a word. What could verbose mean? How do you know?

It’s not that I’m aloof; I just don’t want to be around people today. What could aloof mean?

George has been the proprietor for thirty years George has been the proprietor for thirty years. His dad owned the store before that. What could the word proprietor mean?

When I ordered my wedding dress, it didn’t fit, so I had to get it altered. What could altered mean?

In the U. S. , there is a large demand for indigenous plants In the U.S., there is a large demand for indigenous plants. Many people in Arizona make a huge profit on these plants, like cactus and other local plants. What could indigenous mean?