Advanced texts use words such as contentious, emaciated, convoluted and mellifluous. You can often infer their meaning from the context.
Look for explanations after commas or dashes, contrasts with but or unlike, and effects: “The plot was so convoluted that I needed to read the book twice.” Needing to read it twice suggests convoluted means complicated.
Also use your knowledge of roots and the tone of the passage. Check your meaning by substituting it into the sentence.
Worked example
Read: “The new rule was contentious, and parents argued about it for weeks.” What does contentious mean?
- The clue is “parents argued about it for weeks”.
- Something that causes arguments is controversial.
Answer:causing disagreement
Key words
- infer
- work out from clues
- substitute
- put one word in place of another
- tone
- the attitude of a text
Practise this
New questions every time.
Common Core-referenced: L.7.4a