MEETING 13

VOCABULARY-IN-CONTEXT QUESTIONS

A. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1. To explain the different meaning of words in different field or context.
B. THE AIMS OF THE TOPIC
1. Students are able to define a word based on their context or field of use.
C. GUIDANCE AND METHODS OF LEARNING
1. Lectures
2. Discussions
3. Presentations
4. Practices
D. MATERIAL DESCRIPTION

I. Vocabulary-in-Context
In vocabulary-in-context questions, you must determine which of four words
or phrases can best substitute for a word or words in the passage. Most of the
questions ask about single words (usually nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs).
Some ask about two- or three-word phrases. Sometimes two or more of the answer
choices for these items might be "correct" definitions of the word that is asked
about. In those cases, you must decide which is correct in the context of the
passage. There are a number of clues that can help you determine the meaning of an
unknown word:
 Synonyms The first state to institute compulsory education was Massachusetts,
which made it mandatory for students to attend school 12 weeks a year. The
word mandatory is a synonym for the word compulsory.
 Examples Many gardeners use some kind of mulch, such as chopped leaves, peat
moss, grass clippings, pine needles, or wood chips, in order to stop the growth of

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 weeds and to hold in moisture. From the examples given, it is clear that mulch is
plant matter.
 Contrast In the 1820's the Southern states supported improvements in the
national transportation system, but the Northern states balked. Since the
Southern states supported improvements, and since a word signaling contrast
(but) is used, it is clear that the Northern states disagreed with this idea, and that
the word balked must mean objected or refused.
 General Context In a desert, vegetation is so ~ as to be incapable of supporting
any large human population. As is generally known, deserts contain little
vegetation, so clearly the word scanty must mean scarce or barely sufficient.
When answering vocabulary-in-context questions, you must often depend on the
general context of the sentence to help you choose the correct answer. You
should follow these steps to answer vocabulary-in-context items:
1. Look at the word being asked about and the four answer choices. If you are
familiar with the word, guess which answer is correct. Do not mark your
answer sheet yet.
2. 2. Read the sentence in which the word appears. If you were familiar with
the word and guessed at the answer, make sure that the word that you chose
fits with the word as it is used in the sentence. If you were unfamiliar with
the word, see if context clues in the sentence or in the sentences before or
after help you guess the meaning.
3. If you are not sure which answer is correct, read the sentence with each of
the four answer choices in place. Does one seem more logical, given the
context of the sentence, than the other three? If not, do any seem illogical?
(Those you can eliminate.)
4. If you're still not sure, make the best guess you can and go on.

In Britain's NorthAmerican colonies, university trained physicians were at a

premium. At the time of the Revolution, there were probably only around 400
physicians and some 3,000 practitioners who had on-the-job training as barber-
surgeons or physicians' apprentices. Whether university trained or not, none had
much knowledge of the causes of disease, and the "cures" they often recommended-

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 bleeding, blistering, and the use of violent purgatives-were at best ineffective and at
worst lethal.
The phrase at a premium" in line 2 is closest in meaning to
(A) well-paid
(B) not very numerous
(C) very experienced
(D) not well-respected
The phrase "only around 400" indicates that there was a shortage of university-
trained physicians.

II. EXERCISES
Exercise 13.1
Focus: Using context clues to answer vocabulary-in-context questions involving words
with multiple definitions.
Directions: Read each item. Then mark the answer choice that could best be used in
place of the underlined expression as it appears in the sentence.
1. The planet Mercury is visible to the naked eye but is not the easiest planet to spot.
___ (A) unclothed
____(B) unaided
____ (C) unarmed
2. Every atlas has its own legend.
_____ (A) mythical story
_____(B) famous person
_____ (C) explanation of symbols
3. Above the snowline, any mountain hollow is permanently occupied with snow.
_____ (A) filled
_____ (B) busy
4. The glass factories of Toledo, Ohio, boomed after Michael Owens invented a process
that turned out bottles by the thousands.
_____ (A) exploded
_____ (B) resounded
_____ (C) prospered

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5. Dr. Rene Dubos, a French physician who came to the United States in 1924, searched
for substances that would check the growth of bacteria.
___ (A) restrict
___ (B) investigate
6. The root of the horseradish plant has a biting taste.
__ (A) chewing
__ (B) sharp
___ (C) sarcastic
7. The double-bass is shaped like a viola and has a deep, rich tone.
___ (A) valuable
___ (B) resonant
___ (C) abundant
8. A public library is a resource the entire community can draw on.
___ (A) illustrate
__ (B) approach
__ (C) use
9. A business concern with two or more owners is referred to as a partnership.
__ (A) firm
___ (B) worry
10. Table salt is finer than rock salt.
___ (A) made up of smaller particles
___ (B) of better quality
___ (C) freer of impurities

Exercise 13.2
Focus : Answering vocabulary-in-context questions about words or phrases in
reading passages.
Directions : Answer the questions about the vocabulary in the passages, and mark
the words or phrases that are closest in meaning to the words or phrases
that are asked about. The first one is done as an example.

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Questions 1-11
The Civil War created feverish manufacturing activity to supply critical material,
especially in the North. When the fighting stopped, the stage was set for dramatic
economic growth. Wartime taxes on production vanished, and the few taxes that
remained leaned heavily on real estate, not on business. The population flow from farm
to city increased, and the labor force it provided was buttressed by millions of newly
arrived immigrants willing to work for low wages in the mills of the North and on the
railroad crews of the Midwest and West.
Government was nothing if not accommodating. It established tariff barriers,
provided loans and grants to build a transcontinental railroad, and assumed a studied
posture of nonintervention in private enterprise. The social Darwinism of British
philosopher Herbert Spencer and American economist William Graham Summer
prevailed. The theory was that business, if left to its own devices, would eliminate the
weak and nurture the strong. But as business expanded, rivalry heated up. In the 1880's,
five railroads operating between New York and Chicago were vying for traffic, and two
more were under construction. As a result of the battle, the fare between the cities
decreased to $1. The petroleum industry suffered from similar savage competition, and
in the 1870's, many oil industries failed.

1. The word "feverish" in line 1 is closest in meaning to

_√__(A) extremely rapid
___ (B) sickly and slow
___ (C) very dangerous
___ (D) understandable
2. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word "critical" in line 2?
___ (A) Industrial
___ (B) Serious
___ (C) Crucial
__ (D) Insulting
3. The phrase "the stage was seC in line 3 is closest in meaning to which of the
following?
___ (A) The play was over.

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___ (B) The progress continued.
___ (C) The foundation was laid.
___ (D) The direction was clear.
4. The phrase "real estate" in line 5 refers to
___ (A) tools and machines
___ (B) actual income
___ (C) new enterprises
___ (D) land and buildings
5. The word "buttressed ,. in line 7 is closest in meaning to
___ (A) concerned
__ (B) supplemented
___ (C) restructured
___ (D) enriched
6. The word "accommodating" in line lO is closest in meaning to
___ (A) persistent
___ (B) indifferent
__ (C) balanced
__ (D) helpful
7. W11ich of the following could best be substituted for the word "posture" in line 12?
___ (A) Stature
___ (B) Predicament
___ (C) Position
___ (D) Situation
8. The word "prevailed" in line 15 is closest in meaning to
___ (A) influenced
___ (B) triumphed
___ (C) premiered
___ CD) evolved
9. The phrase"left to its own devices" in lines 15-16 means
___ CA) forced to do additional work
___ (B) allowed to do as it pleased
___ (C) made to change its plans

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 ___ CD) encouraged to produce more goods
10. The word "vying" in line 18 is closest in meaning to
__ (A) competing
__ (B) hoping
___ (C) arranging
I. ___ (D) caring

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