Poetry, Prose, Drama, and Context Clues

1. Kevin had been sick for days. He looked worn out. His mom said that he was "white as a sheet" because his usually bright, olive-colored skin was dull and pasty. What is the meaning of the word pasty?

• shining
• healthy
• clear
• pale

2. After eating an excess of chocolate chip cookies, Emma spent the rest of the day with an ache in her stomach. What does the word excess most likely mean?

• too many
• one dozen
• a pair
• a few

3. PART A: Hailey's dog Braxton fell down the stairs. Hailey thought he might have a broken leg. He was rolling around on the floor in anguish and would not walk. Hailey could tell that Braxton was in a lot of pain. She tried to stroke his head while her mom went to call the emergency vet. While Hailey snuggled Braxton, he let out a sad whimper, or cry. Hailey knew that they needed to hurry and get poor Braxton to the vet. What does the word whimper mean in the passage?

• cry
• stroke
• call
• look

4. Part B: The above passage says, "while Hailey snuggled Braxton, he let out a sad whimper, or cry." What type of context clue helps you understand what whimper means?

• Example
• Definition
• Synonym
• Antonym

5. There are many shots that can make your body immune to different diseases. Being immune means that your body has created a defense to a disease. It protects you from the disease. The defense created is called antibodies. The antibodies are made to fight off disease. The antibodies created when you get shots will keep you from getting some diseases. What does the word immune mean?

• protected from the disease
• hurting from being sick
• that being sick is easy
• that doctors are scary

6. Chase smelled something wonderful coming from the kitchen. He decided to investigate and find out what was in the kitchen. He entered the kitchen to explore the smell. Chase looked all around. Then he took a look at the evidence on the kitchen counter. Chase noticed there was a bag of chocolate chips and a big mixing bowl. Using the facts that he saw, Chase decided that the smell had to be chocolate chip cookies. Now that Chase had solved the mystery, he could not wait to taste them! What does the word investigate mean in the passage above?

• smell
• explore
• enter
• taste

7. Sophia was always acting funny. Her brother rolled his eyes and called her loony when she did crazy dances and clucked like a chicken. Based on the other information in the passage, when Sophia's brother called her loony, he meant that she was

• crazy
• sad
• serious
• interesting

8. The one-lane highway was a ribbon flowing across the endless desert.

• simile
• metaphor
• personification
• hyperbole

9. I am so sick of desserts that I couldn’t eat another cookie if my life depended on it.

• simile
• metaphor
• personification
• hyperbole

10. The cold air bit at our cheeks and noses leaving them tender and bright red.

• simile
• metaphor
• personification
• hyperbole