Component : Reading
INTERPRETING WORD
MEANING
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the session, students will be able to:
✔ use contextual clues to guess the meaning of
words
✔ use components of unknown word to help
determine the meaning of the word
✔ confirm the meaning of words by using the
dictionary
Using Contextual Clues
Punctuation Helping word
Clues from other General sense /
sentences Experience
Definition /
Examples Synonym
Contrast Clue
1. Punctuation
Some sentences set off the definition for
a difficult word by means of punctuation:
dashes –
parentheses ( )
brackets [ ]
comma ,
colons :
semi-colons ;
Example
punctuation ( dashes)
Origami – Japanese art of paper folding – is fun.
meaning of ‘origami’
Example
punctuation (comma)
Fibrin, elastic threads of protein in our body, avoids blood to flow from open wound.
meaning of ‘fibrin’
2. Helping Words
Sometimes helping words, along with
punctuation, provide important clues:
that is
meaning
such as
or
is called
is defined as
is known as
is the term for
Example
helping words
punctuation
Mary felt perturbed, that is, she was
greatly disturbed by her sister’s rude behaviour.
meaning of ‘perturbed’
3. Clue from Other Sentences
Sentences before or after a sentence
containing an unfamiliar word sometimes
explain the meaning of the word.
Steps to follow:
✔ Read the sentences around the
sentence that contains the unfamiliar
word.
✔ Try to guess the meaning of the word
from the examples / description /
explanation given by the sentences.
Example
Brunei is a very prosperous country. The
country earns billions of dollars through
international trade and commerce. In
addition, the country is one of the largest oil
producers in the world.
Clues:
✔ earns billions of dollars
✔ one of the largest oil
producers
prosperous = rich / wealthy
4. General Sense / Experience
Sometimes, you can use your own
experiences to figure out the definition of
an unknown word.
Steps to follow:
✔ Put yourself in the situation, or
recall any similar experience.
✔ Guess the meaning based on your
own experience, or your background
knowledge.
Example
The cacophonous sound made Lily cover her
ears.
Clue:
✔cover ears
Your experience / others experience:
What type of sound makes you cover your ears?
Answer : sound that you do not like.
cacophonous: unpleasant / awful /
horrible / harsh
[Link] Examples
Some sentences contain examples that help
you build a definition for the unfamiliar words.
Steps to follow:
✔ List all the examples given.
✔ Find the common attributes or the
characteristics of the examples.
✔ Build up your own definition.
Example
Select a periodical from among the
following : Reader’s Digest, Cleo,
FHM, Wanita, Anjung Seri, Jelita, and
Marie Claire.
Steps to follow:
✔ Study the examples and use your
background knowledge.
Example
6. Definition or Synonym
Some sentences use a word you know to help
explain a word you do not know.
Steps to follow:
✔ Look at the sentence structure.
✔ Look at the subject and the predicate parts
of the sentence.
✔ If the unknown word is in the subject
part, most probably the meaning of the
word can be found in the predicate part,
and vice versa
Example
subject predicate
A formidable enemy is the one to be
frightened of.
formidable = to be frightened of / to be feared of
7. Contrast Clue Words
Some sentences tell the opposite of what an
unfamiliar word means. From its opposite, you
can figure out the meaning of the word.
Steps to follow:
✔ Identify the words that signals the opposite.
✔ not, but, although, however, on the other hand.
✔ The word/phrase after the signal word gives you
the opposite meaning of the unknown word
✔ Figure the meaning of the unknown word by
guessing its meaning in the opposite direction
Example
Introverts like solitary activities but extroverts
prefer activities involving people.
contrast clue word : but
solitary involving people
activities
solitary not involving people
activities
VS
A Quick Review
Guess the meaning of the highlighted words. Use
the clues given to help you.
1. While battling the fire in the plastics factory, the firemen wore
oxygen masks to protect themselves from the noxious fumes.
(clues from sentence)
2. I felt fatigue after working and studying for 48 hours non-stop.
(experience)
3. A good supervisor can recognize instantly the adept workers
from the unskilled ones.
(contrast clue)
4. One look at the surgeon’s grim expression told us how badly the
operation had gone.
(clue from sentence)
5. Citadels, fortresses built on high ground to defend cities,
were common in many parts of the Roman Empire.
(punctuation)
Using Word Components
Word Formation
Root Word
+
Affixes
Prefix Suffix
Example
ABLE
+
IN TY
= INABILITY
Example
FACTORY
make place
shoe factory
shoe place make
Example
MORTUARY
die/dead/death place
Where is the
mortuary in the
hospital?
Root Words
Root Word Meaning Example
astro star astronaut
cardio heart cardiology
geo earth Geology
bio life biology
mono one monologue
psycho mind psychology
syn same synonym
terra earth terracota
ped foot pedestrian
zoo animal zoology
Prefixes
Prefixes meaning ‘no’ or ‘not’
Prefix Meaning Example
a not, without amoral
in not insensitive
im not immobile
non not non-returnable
mis wrongly misplaced
mal badly malfunctioned
anti against anti-social
un not unattractive
ir not irresponsible
il not illogical
Prefixes dealing with time
Prefix Meaning Example
pre before pre-diploma
post after post-graduate
ante before antedated
Prefixes dealing with numbers & manners
Prefix Meaning Example
uni one unicycle
mono one monologue
auto self autograph
bi two bicycle
tri three tripod
poly many polygon
multi many multi-purpose
Prefixes dealing with placement / condition
Prefix Meaning Example
ab away from abnormal
circum around circumference
com with, together committee
de down from de-grade
dis away disagree
ex out of expel
ex former ex-wife
inter among inter-school
per through perceive
re again return
sub under submarine
super above superman
trans across transnational
Suffixes
Suffix Meaning Example
able able to manageable
ible defensible
al statistical
ance relating resistance
ence to independence
ic heroic
ion union
ism state of, patriotism
hood quality of brotherhood
ity legality
ment embarrassment
er one who writer
or advisor
y full of soapy
ful faithful
A Quick Review
Can you guess the meaning of these
affixes?
oct
acou
homo
annu/a
nni
aqua cide
avi
deca cent
A Quick Review
Can you come out with at least 3 words
containing these affixes?
oct
acou
homo
annu/a
nni
aqua cide
avi
deca cent
Using Dictionary
A Good Dictionary
A good dictionary can:
✔ provide you with meaning(s) of a word
✔ provide you with the meaning of a word in context
✔ confirm the meaning of a word (that you have
guessed earlier)
✔ provide grammatical information of a word
Find out the correct meaning
• let’s play a game
• be a game
• hunting for game
• game park
• game point
• game leg
• who is game to try this?
• what is your game?
• beat somebody at their own game
What is the intended meaning?
• The President said that the ambassador’s
friendly speech was an index of how eager
the government was to help our country.
• My teacher told me that getting 75 marks
on the math quiz was nothing to crow
about, even if it was the highest grade.
What is the correct meaning?
• Although his theories are no longer
current, Tesla’s work on alternating
current was an important contribution to
American life.
• His illness had taken its toll; his cheeks
were hollow, his lips were dry and
cracked, and his voice was weak.
Which is the correct meaning?
The victim’s body still wore
remnants of leather clothes and
boots that had been covered by
blood.
remnant n 1 an unsold or unused
end of piece of goods 2a a usually
small part, member, or trace
remaining b a small surviving group
Which is the correct meaning
The victim had some kind of
accident in the course of a perfectly
ordinary trip.
ordinary adj 1 a of common
quality, rank or ability b
deficient in quality: POOR,
INFERIOR having or constituting
immediate or original jurisdiction
2 of a kind to be expected in the
normal order of events: ROUTINE
Which is the correct meaning
The tunnel provided the poor children with
shelter from the elements and they also had a
braid mat of grass to keep them warm.
element n 1 a one of the four substances air,
water, fire and earth formerly believed to
compose the physical universe b pl: weather
conditions; esp: violent or severe weather 2 a
a basic member of a mathematical or logical
class or set b one of the necessary data or
values on which calculations or conclusions are
based.
Denotation and Connotation
• Denotation – the literal meaning of a word
– E.g. I saw a SNAKE.
• Connotation – implied meaning of a word (beyond
surface
meaning)
– E.g. She is a SNAKE.
– Related to author’s opinion and bias about a certain
topic/person/situation
What is the significance?
• Inform the author’s attitude towards the issue /
person / place etc
– Natural
– Favour
– Hate
– Sympathetic
– Angry
– Fed up
Similar denotations but different
connotations
• Female • Large
• Woman • Enormous
• Girl • Oversized
• Lady • Gigantic
• Chick
Find out :
1. Denotation of the words in each group
2. Connotation of each word
• broke / bankrupt / penniless
• clever / devious / sly / sneaky
• argument / quarrel / debate
• oldster / elderly person / senior citizen /
gramps
• genius / master mind / egghead
References
