Context Clues
📋 What it is
When you meet a new word, the words AROUND it often give its meaning — a definition, an example, or a contrast nearby.
🗣️ Coach says
You already know how to figure out words you’ve never seen — use the neighbourhood. If a sentence says "arid, or very dry, deserts", the clue "very dry" hands you the meaning.
🧠 Memory hook
Look LEFT and RIGHT of the hard word — the clue is usually right next door.
😂 Giggle
What do you call a sleeping word?
A syno-nap!
😲 Whoa!
Skilled readers guess new word meanings from context so smoothly they don’t even notice they’re doing it.
✅ Quick check: "The path was precarious — shaky and likely to fall." What does "precarious" mean, and how do you know?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
Dangerously unsteady — the clue "shaky and likely to fall" defines it right after.
Spotting the built-in definition clue is a reliable way to unlock unknown words.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Find one unfamiliar word while reading and work out its meaning from the words around it before you look it up.