Context Clues Day 1: Synonyms and Antonyms

Context Clues Day 1: Synonyms and Antonyms

Objective: We will be able to determine the meaning of 1-2 new words using the strategy of context clues.

Anticipation Guide and Discussion

For those of you who did not participate in the discussion, you will have the option to create a Flipgrid responding to one of the questions.

The Flipgrid link will be in the chat.

Context Clues

• Context Clues: hints that the author gives to help define a difficult or unusual word.

• We need to use the skill of inference to help us figure out the meaning of a word.

• The meaning of an unknown word can be found in the sentence, the sentence before or after, or even within a paragraph

5 Strategies

• We can use 5 context clues strategies to help us figure out the meaning of a word. We will look at two today:

• Synonyms: words that have a similar meaning 

• Antonyms: words that have opposite meanings

Synonyms

• Authors may use word clues such as synonyms—words with almost the same meaning near the unfamiliar word.

• Synonym Examples:

  Reducing cholesterol has a number of beneficial results. One positive outcome is reducing the risk of heart disease. (synonym clue)

  Beneficial: favorable or advantageous, something that results in good.

• There was crazy pandemonium when the fire alarm rang - people were running, pushing and shoving others out of the way.

  Pandemonium: Wild disorder or confusion

Antonyms

• Authors may use word clues such as antonyms, words opposite in meaning, near the unfamiliar term.

• Antonym Examples:

  I despise liver, but I adore steak. (antonym clue)

  Despise: something that you deeply dislike

• She was virtuous, unlike her evil and conniving brother.

• Virtuous: a good, moral, righteous person

I Do

It was an idyllic day - sunny, warm, and perfect for a walk in the park.

-What will Ms. Grande do?

-Look for the words after "idyllic" to get clues as to what it means

-Make an inference (guess) as to what it might mean based on the other words in the sentence

But Ms. Grande, how do I know if I am correct?

• 1) Once you come up with your guess, substitute the unknown word with your "guess word" - if it fits, then it is most likely a correct inference. If it does not fit, then you are most likely incorrect.

• 2) And after? In order to check if your inference was correct, you must use a resource to help you, such as the dictionary or thesaurus.

• 3) Lastly, try to write a sentence using the new word. This will help you to use it in your writing and conversations.

Multiple Choice

What do you think the word animosity means?

'His animosity, or hatred, of his sister divided the family.'

• love

• boredom

• hatred

• annoyance

Multiple Choice

What do you think the word sweltering means?

'Our sweltering summer days were quickly replaced by the cold flashes of fall.'

• cold

• hot

• windy

• icy

You Do

• Using what you learned about synonyms and antonyms, you will now try to figure out the meanings of certain words in a group

• Come up with your own definition by examining the words around it using the skill of context clues

• Discover what the real definition is and see if you are correct