Context Clues
Everyone else at the party wanted garbage pizza but Tim because he detested vegetables.
What is: Did not like; hated
Mr. Thomas sat on the front porch of his house in a bathrobe and bunny slippers with his head in his hands. He was holding the daily newspaper. The sun shined brightly in the sky. His neighbors were coming out of their houses and getting in their cars. Mr. Thomas sighed. His neighbor Mr. Rosencrantz stepped out on his porch and saw Mr. Thomas. "Did it again, huh?" said Mr. Rosencrantz. Mr. Thomas replied, "Yep." Mr. Rosencrantz chuckled and said, "Here, Mr. Thomas, you can use my cell phone. I could even keep a key over here if you wanted." Tom thankfully grabbed the cell phone and called his wife. "Honey, I did it again." Mr. Rosencrantz heard Mrs. Thomas yelling at Mr. Thomas in a distorted high-pitched squeal. "Yes, dear. I'm so sorry. I'll see you soon," Mr. Thomas returned the phone, sighed deeply, and ran his fingers through his hair.
What is the thing that Mr. Thomas "did again"?
Mr. Thomas locked himself out of his house.
Comparing two unlike things using "like" or "as"
What is: simile
It's hard to imagine what things were like before there was money, but such a time did exist. During these times people exchanged goods using the barter system. The word barter means to trade. People using the barter system traded things instead of buying and selling them. So if you were a rice farmer, you would trade your rice with many people to get all the things that you wanted or needed. Unfortunately, the people from whom you needed things might not want your rice. Isn't it nice to just go to the store and buy candy instead of having to trade rice for it?
The barter system and some of its shortcomings.
Provide reasons or evidence to support or oppose.
Argue
Grandpa didn’t know that Suzie was coming along on the fishing trip, and now he had to alter his plans.
What is: Change
Mr. Ericson was a manager at a small insurance company in Minnesota. One cold day in January, April McKenzie, one of his employees, approached him about some time off from work. "This job is very important to me, Mr. Ericson, but I've been called into jury duty. When my government asks for my help, I have to answer the call." Mr. Ericson rubbed his forehead. "We really need you here, April, but the government needs you more. Take the time. We'll be alright." Mr. Ericson thought that they needed her there, but they managed fine without her. A week passed and April returned to the office. When April returned, Mr. Ericson noticed that most of her body was a shade of bright red except for around her eyes. Pale white circles ran from the top of her eyebrows to the bottom of her cheeks. These pale circles around her eyes were surrounded by sunburned flesh. That's when Mr. Ericson knew. "April, step into my office. There are some things we need to discuss," Mr. Ericson said ominously.
Where was April?
April was somewhere sunny, not at jury duty.
When a non-human object is given human characteristics.
What is: personification
Money is pretty old but nobody knows exactly how old it is. Perhaps the oldest evidence of people using money is in the Code of Ur-Nammu. The Code of Ur-Nammu is a system of laws written around 2050 BC. That's like 4,000 years ago! Many of Ur-Nammu's laws carry fines, such as one stating that if a man is proven innocent of sorcery, his accuser must pay 3 shekels. This ancient document shows me two things: Ur-Nammu didn't tolerate false witch-hunts, and money is very old.
This paragraph informs readers about one of the oldest records of money usage, the Code of Ur-Nammu.
Draw from a text or data set some meaning or significance.
Interpret
When Kiki got a tiny cut on her pinky finger, she got all melodramatic and began sobbing and demanding a doctor.
What is: over dramatic
Gloria was driving around the neighborhood in her pajamas. Every block or so she'd stop the car, hold her head out the door, whistle, and call out "Candy! Candy! Come here girl!" Then she'd start the car again and drive another block or two at a slow rate, looking around from left to right. Curtis sat in the passenger seat. He was looking around too, but he held his head low. "How many times have I told you to make sure that you shut and lock the door after you come in?" Gloria reprimanded Curtis. Curtis sighed. He felt bad enough without her finger-wagging.
Who is Candy and what are Gloria and Curtis doing?
Candy is a dog.
Your beauty was a web of frail delight.
What type of figurative language is being used?
Metaphor
Hyperinflation refers to when the value of money drops rapidly. During World War I, Germany paid for the war by borrowing. The German Mark steadily lost value as the war went on and German people could buy less and less. After losing the war, Germany was required to make large payments to the Allies. They paid all the debts that they could by printing more money. Soon the German Mark was worthless. When the war had started, the U.S. Dollar was worth around four German Marks. By November of 1923, one U.S. Dollar was worth 4,210,500,000,000 German Marks. At this point the money had more value as a fuel than as a currency, and people burned it to stay warm.
This paragraph is about hyperinflation in Germany after World War I.
Retell the essential details of what happened with an objective view.
Summarize
As Tommy walked home with the money from the church he had stolen in his pocket, powerful feelings of remorse bubbled in his stomach.
What is: felt sorry; regret
Justin came running down the stairs wearing his Tatakai Ninjas pajamas. He did a karate kick off of the last step and shouted "Kiya!" He slipped on the floor and almost fell as he landed, which didn't stop him from continuing to practice his ninja strikes on his way to the bathroom. He brushed his teeth with his Tatakai Ninjas toothbrush and rinsed his mouth out with water from a Tatakai Ninjas cup. "Moooooom, Daaaaad! It's time to open my present!" After his parents came downstairs and poured themselves coffee, Justin began to open his present. His fingers were tense with excitement. Then they were still. It was six pairs of plain white socks. Justin checked in the box for something else. There was nothing. He looked at his parents and said, "Oh, socks. Just what I needed. Thank you so much," and then he sighed.
Is Justin happy with the socks?
Justin is not happy with the socks, because he is not as excited after he opens them and he sighs.
The little Road says, Go, The little House says, Stay.
What type of figurative language?
Personification
Counterfeiting is the act of making phony money that looks official. It is a very old crime but recent advances in printing have made it possible for even amateurs to produce decent counterfeits. Fortunately, there are some ways that you can detect counterfeits. The first and most telling inspection is to pay attention to how the money feels. It is difficult to reproduce the texture of real money. If the money feels suspect, look carefully at the microprinting on the bill. Many features along the portrait and border of a genuine bill contain writing that is too small to reproduce in most printers. If you are still suspicious, hold the bill up to the light and look for the strip that says the value of the bill. With a little diligence, you can keep yourself from becoming a victim of this rising trend.
This paragraph explains how to detect a counterfeit bill.
Offer evidence or data to illustrate your point.
Support
When the other moms heard about how Charlene had won the baking contest, her email box was flooded with inquiries for her award winning muffin recipe.
What are: questions
"I'm home!" Earl shouted as he walked in the door. His wife Gail came bounding down the stairs. She hadn't seen him since he left to go on this silly fishing trip two weeks ago. "I missed you, Husband. Did you catch anything?" Gail reluctantly asked. She knew that Earl was not a very good fisherman. Earl scratched his head and responded, "You're not going to believe what I'm bringing home." Earl unzipped a cooler and pulled out several perfectly filleted salmon steaks. "Wow, Earl, I didn't know that you could fillet a fish like that." Earl looked around the room a little bit and scratched his head, "Uh, yeah, Jeff taught me how." Gail looked at him suspiciously. "Well, let me help you unpack." As Gail was helping Earl unpack his truck, she found a receipt from the grocery store. It was dated from this morning. What she saw was both disappointing and unsurprising.
What did Gail find on the receipt?
Gail finds that Earl has purchased fish fillets from the grocery store.
An endless quiet valley spreads out Past the blue hills into the evening sky.
What type of figurative language is being used.
Hyperbole
Currencies have changed and developed over the course of history, but one of the newest forms of payment doesn't even exist in the physical world. Bitcoin is an entirely digital currency. Users of Bitcoin send payments to one another over computer networks. These payments are nonrefundable. In other words, once the money is sent, you can't get it back. The value of a Bitcoin has risen rapidly since its introduction in 2009, when each Bitcoin was worth around 30 cents. At the time of this writing, it would cost you around 7400 U.S. Dollars to get one Bitcoin. That's quite a jump. On the downside, if the value of Bitcoin ever crashes, you won't be able to heat your home by burning it.
This paragraph describes a new form of electronic currency called Bitcoin.
Breakdown, deconstruct and examine are all synonyms of this academic vocabulary word.
Analyze