CONTEXT CLUES Using context clues to choose the correct word, define content area words, and choose among multiple meanings of words Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

CONTEXT CLUES The context of a word is all of the other words around it. You can use this context to help you understand the meaning. It’s called using context clues. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

You can use context clues to fill in a missing word. See if you can choose the correct word to complete the passage below. First the lights flickered. Next, they stayed out for a few seconds. When they went out again, and didn’t come back on quickly, Tom felt sure that this was going to be one of those long power _____. He had seen it happen before – the lights blink out in a storm and then take days to come back on. Once again, he wished that he had bought a generator like many of his neighbors had. The missing word is: a) sources b) supplies c) outages d) plays Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

First the lights flickered. Next, they stayed out for a few seconds. When they went out again, and didn’t come back on quickly, Tom felt sure that this was going to be one of those long power outages. He had seen it happen before – the lights blink out in a storm and then take days to come back on. Once again, he wished that he had bought a generator like many of his neighbors had. From the context clues in the passage, you can tell that outages is the missing word. CONTEXT CLUES Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

You can use context clues to define a word. For example, what does the word urbanization mean in the following passage? At that period in history, urbanization was on the increase. Every month saw more and more people packing up their belongings, selling their farmland, and moving to the cities in hopes of finding jobs and making enough money to support their families. Urbanization means _____________________________________. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

At that period in history, urbanization was on the increase. Every month saw more and more people packing up their belongings, selling their farmland, and moving to the city in hopes of finding jobs and making enough money to support their families. From the context clues in the passage, you can tell that urbanization means the movement of people from the country to the city. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

You can use context clues to understand multiple meaning words. For example, which meaning of throw is used in this sentence? Since James wanted to be a ventriloquist, he learned to throw his voice. In this sentence, throw means: a) to toss or fling b) to send c) a small blanket often kept on a sofa or chair d) to make ones voice sound as it if is coming from somewhere else Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Since James wanted to be a ventriloquist, he learned to throw his voice. From the context clues, you can tell that the correct answer is d) to make ones voice sound as if it is coming from somewhere else. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Now it’s your turn. Take out a piece of paper and number it one through ten to answer the following questions. Then check your answers on the last slide. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Billy took his compass along on the hike. He wanted to be sure that he could find his way from one stopping point to the next. Even though a park ranger went along on the hike, it was important that everyone find his or her own way. After all, this hike was part of a/an _____ class. 1. The missing word is: a)nature b)architecture c)orienteering d)fun Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Fireworks were one of Macy’s favorite parts of any big event. So it was no surprise that she chose fireworks as the grand finale of today’s _____, even though it was not a patriotic holiday. Today, Macy was turning fifteen, and it seemed like the perfect day to celebrate in her own favorite style. 2.The missing word is: a)celebration b)Fourth of July party c)school holiday d)meeting Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

In art class, Roger was learning about perspective drawing. He learned that it was a way of drawing objects to make then look three- dimensional. Roger drew a building using lines and vanishing points to make it look 3-D. 3.Perspective means ______________________________________. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Anna was studying poetry terms for a quiz, but she had trouble remembering the meaning of the term personification. Then, she remembered an example that she had seen. In the example, people were enjoying a day on a warm, sunny beach. The caption under the picture said that the sun smiled down on the people. She remembered that the sun smiling was an example of personification. 4.Personification means _____________________________________. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Directions: Match each statement to the correct meaning of the word in blue. A. When my friends and I got too loud, my brother yelled, “Stop the racket!” B. Her tennis instructor said that it was time for her to buy a new racket. c. That plan for getting rich quick is nothing more than a racket! 5. _____ loud noise 6. _____ a dishonest scheme for making money 7. _____ sports equipment used in tennis Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

8.What does using context clues mean? 9.How do you think using context clues can help you to be a better reader? 10.Write a context clue question for your classmates to solve. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian

Check Your Answers 1.C 2.A 3.A way of drawing 3-D objects using lines and vanishing points 4.Describing a non-human object as if it had human characteristics 5.A 6.C 7.B 8.Figuring out the meaning of a word by using the words around it 9.Answers will vary. 10.Answers will vary. Copyright © 2012 Sharon Fabian