Context Clues
Dictionary Skills
Text Structure
Faulty Reasoning
Persuasive Techniques
100
A dog whistle makes a high-pitched sound that is only audible to dogs. In this sentence the word "audible" means: a. like a dog, b. capable of being heard, c. annoying, d. a type of whistle.
What is a. capable of being heard?
100
steal vt., stole, stolen, stealing [OE staelan] 1. to take (another's property), 2. to take (a look) slyly, 3. to gain insidiously or artfully [he stole her heart], 4. to move, put, etc. stealthily. In the dictionary entry above, the word steal is this part of speech.
What is a verb?
100
This is the type of non-fiction text structure that might be used in a personal journal.
What is chronological order?
100
The elm tree on my block has Dutch elm disease. So does the one on your block. This means that all elm trees have Dutch elm disease. This statement is an example of this type of faulty reasoning.
What is overgeneralization?
100
This is the type of persuasion in which they use words like "we" and "together". This method tries to convince you to buy something or use a product because everyone else is. It is sort of like peer pressure.
What is to bandwagon?
200
The mood in the church was very solemn when the bride began her walk down the aisle. In this sentence, the word "solemn" means: a. serious, b. happy, c. sad, d. merry.
What is a. serious?
200
starry-eyed adj. 1. with sparkling eyes, 2. overly optimistic. In the definition above, the most common definition boasts this number.
What is 1?
200
This is the type of text structure used in the paragraph below. Labrador Retrievers are a popular breed of dogs because of their even temperament and desire to please their human owners. Labrador retrievers can be yellow, brown, or black. They are medium-large dogs with an average weight of sixty-five pounds.
What is description?
200
It would be hard to feed a mouse to a snake. Pet snakes need to eat live mice just like snakes in the wild do. However, the thought of watching a nasty snake eat a cute little mouse is sickening. Snakes should be given vegetables and ground meat instead. Is an example of this type of faulty reasoning.
What is personal bias?
200
This is an advertising technique that might show a brother and sister fighting over a cell phone data plan while the parents complain about their teenagers' data usage.
What is plain folks?
300
After his outburst, Raphael decided to stay outside of the classroom until his feelings of rage subsided. In this sentence the word "subsided": a. to sink, b. to fall, c. to become less active, or d. to increase.
What is c. to become less active?
300
This is where you would find synonyms for a common word such as good or bad that would make your writing more interesting. This can also help you gain a better understanding of a word when used in conjunction with the definition.
What is a thesaurus?
300
This is the type of text structure that is used in providing directions to fold origami. It is also used in recipes and in wrapping presents.
What is sequential order?
300
The Hawaiian islands were made by eruptions from undersea volcanoes. The Aleutian islands were also made by eruptions from undersea volcanoes. Therefore, all islands were made by eruptions from undersea volcanoes. This statement is example of this type of faulty reasoning.
What is overgeneralization?
300
This is a technique that makes you feel strongly about something. Hallmark commercials and baby lotion commercials often use this technique.
What is emotional appeal?
400
The soldier was awarded four medals for his meritorious conduct on the battlefield. In the sentence above, the best clue as to the meaning of meritorious is: a. soldier, b. battlefield, c. conduct, d. medals.
What is d. medals?
400
The abbreviation Ant. in the thesaurus means this.
What is antonym or opposite?
400
This is the type of text structure that uses the words issue, solve, so, then.
What is problem and solution?
400
It rained all last week and now I have a cold. Rainy weather must cause colds. This statement is an example of this type of faulty reasoning.
What is illogical conclusion?
400
This is the type of advertisement that might feature a BMW or a Mercedes. This technique appeals to people who feel that only the best will do.
What is snob appeal?
500
The bearded man sweated as he crawled through the torrid dessert. In the sentence above the word "torrid" means: a. oppressively hot, b. passionate, c. really dry, d. very sunny.
What is a. oppressively hot?
500
silence adj. 1. making no vocal sound, mute, 2. not talkative, 3. an omission of mention, vt. 1. to make silent, 2. to put down, repress. The two parts of speech the word "silence" belongs to.
What are adjective and verb?
500
This is the type of text structure that uses the words similar, alike, both, different, unlike.
What is compare and contrast?
500
Bazooka bubble gum blows bigger bubbles than any other bubble gum. I know this because I can blow the biggest bubbles with Bazooka bubble gum. This statement is an example of this sort of faulty reasoning.
What is personal bias?
500
This technique is one that is used by shoe companies. For example, Michael Jordan sells shoes for Nike.
What is a testimonial?
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