Words in Context

One of the most important skills tested in the FSCE 11+ exam is the ability to work out what a word means from the context — the words and sentences around it. You will not always know every word in a passage, but with the right strategies, you can work out meanings like a detective.

Why Context Matters

In the FSCE exam, you may encounter words you have never seen before. The examiners expect this — they are testing whether you can use the surrounding text to figure out the meaning. This is a real-life skill too: adults meet unfamiliar words all the time, and they use context to understand them.

Six Strategies for Working Out Word Meanings

Strategy 1: Surrounding Words (Clue Words)

Look at the words and phrases near the unknown word. They often give direct clues about its meaning.

Example: The arid landscape stretched for miles, with dry, cracked earth and not a drop of water in sight.

The words "dry," "cracked earth," and "not a drop of water" all point to "arid" meaning very dry.

Strategy 2: Sentence Meaning (The Big Picture)

Think about the overall meaning of the sentence. What would make sense in this position?

Example: Despite her trepidation, she stepped onto the stage and began her speech.

The word "despite" tells us she felt something negative but did it anyway. Stepping onto a stage to give a speech is nerve-wracking. So "trepidation" likely means fear or nervousness.

Strategy 3: Word Class (Part of Speech)

Identify whether the unknown word is a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb. This narrows down the possible meanings.

Example: The knight brandished his sword at the dragon.

The word sits where a verb should be (after "The knight" and before "his sword"). It describes what the knight did with his sword. "Brandished" is a verb meaning waved or displayed threateningly.

Strategy 4: Root Analysis

Break the word into its prefix, root, and suffix (using what you learned in Lesson 1).

Example: The magician performed an act of prestidigitation.

This is a very difficult word, but look: "digit" = finger. "Presti" suggests quickness. So "prestidigitation" involves quick fingers — it means sleight of hand or magic tricks using the hands.

Strategy 5: Substitution (Try a Replacement)

Try replacing the unknown word with a word you know and see if the sentence still makes sense.

Example: The teacher commended the students for their excellent work.

Try replacing "commended": praised? That works! Thanked? Maybe. Punished? No, that does not make sense with "excellent work." So "commended" means praised.

Strategy 6: Contrast Clues

Look for words that signal contrast (but, however, although, unlike, whereas). The unknown word often means the opposite of something else in the sentence.

Example: Unlike her gregarious sister, Maya was shy and preferred to be alone.

"Unlike" signals contrast. Maya is shy and prefers to be alone. Her sister is the opposite — "gregarious" means outgoing, sociable, enjoying company.

The Context Clues Flowchart

graph TD
    A["Unknown Word<br/>in a Passage"] --> B["Step 1: Read the<br/>whole sentence"]
    B --> C["Step 2: Look for<br/>surrounding clue words"]
    C --> D{"Found clues?"}
    D -- "Yes" --> E["Make a guess<br/>based on clues"]
    D -- "No" --> F["Step 3: Identify<br/>the word class"]
    F --> G["Step 4: Check for<br/>roots, prefixes, suffixes"]
    G --> H["Step 5: Try<br/>substitution"]
    H --> I["Step 6: Look for<br/>contrast words"]
    I --> E
    E --> J["Step 7: Re-read the<br/>sentence with your guess"]
    J --> K{"Does it<br/>make sense?"}
    K -- "Yes" --> L["You've found<br/>the meaning!"]
    K -- "No" --> M["Try a different<br/>strategy"]
    M --> C

Worked Examples

Worked Example 1: Using Surrounding Words

Passage: The children devoured their lunch, eating every last crumb in minutes. They had not eaten since breakfast and were absolutely starving.

Step 1: Read the whole sentence — it is about children eating lunch. Step 2: Surrounding words: "eating every last crumb in minutes" and "absolutely starving." Step 3: Word class: "devoured" is a verb (what the children did to their lunch). Step 4: The clues tell us they ate quickly and completely because they were very hungry. Answer: "Devoured" means ate quickly and eagerly.

Worked Example 2: Using Contrast Clues

Passage: The first part of the journey was arduous, with steep hills and rough paths. However, the second half was easy, with flat roads and clear skies.

Step 1: Read the whole sentence — it contrasts two parts of a journey. Step 2: "However" signals a contrast. The second half was "easy, flat roads, clear skies." Step 3: If the second half was easy, the first half must have been the opposite. Step 4: Surrounding words confirm: "steep hills and rough paths." Answer: "Arduous" means difficult, requiring great effort.

Worked Example 3: Using Root Analysis

Passage: The old manuscript was illegible — nobody could read the faded ink.