Name: ______________________________________________________________ Date:____________
Unit A Vocabulary – Determining Meanings of New Words
Directions: Use context clues to deduce a definition for each word. Write the definition in the space labeled “My
Definition.” Do NOT use other resources to find the definitions. The point of this activity is to practice using context
clues to draw conclusions. I will be able to tell if your definitions came from a dictionary.
1. Adversary
 His political adversary tried to prevent him from winning the election.
 Our old cat seemed to consider the new kitten an adversary, and he hissed at her every time she came
near.
2. Adversity
 Despite the adversity she faced by being poor and sometimes homeless, Alisha managed to graduate
high school and go on to college.
 During the long droughts of the Great Depression, farm families faced may adversities related to being
unable to grow crops.
3. Analogous
 Bad-mouthing your sister is analogous to slapping her in the face – it’s just as cruel.
 A dog wagging her tail is analogous to a human being smiling and laughing.
4. Antagonistic
 Even when not at war, relations between Palestine and Israel are always antagonistic.
 The girl’s antagonistic attitude caused her to make more enemies than friends.
5. Antecedent
 One antecedent to the Revolutionary War was that the British taxed the colonists without allowing them
have a say in the government.
 Antecedent to being Americans, most of our ancestors were immigrants.
6. Apathetic
 Some psychologists are concerned that playing violent video games makes children apathetic towards
real violence.
 Karen was apathetic about nature and the environment, so she didn’t bother to recycle, and she even
littered at times.
7. Ascertain
 The internet makes is much easier for people to ascertain all sorts of information.
 The counselor was immediately able to ascertain that the girl was uncomfortable discussing her home
life, but could not conclude why.
8. Coalesce
 The separate ice masses coalesced into a glacier over time.
 What began as an argument between two young men eventually coalesced into a family feud that went
on for decades.
9. Duplicity
 James Bond successfully exposed the Russian spy’s duplicity.
 Jalene proved Eric’s duplicity by showing the text messages he sent her saying he loved her on the same
night he sent similar love messages to Cheyenne.
10. Frivolous
 Window shopping may be a completely frivolous activity, but I just love to check out the new styles each
season, even if I can’t afford to buy anything.
 The judge was tired of hearing frivolous lawsuits that were more about getting attention than getting
justice.
11. Imperturbable

12.
13.
14.
15.
Even when his kitchen caught on fire, the chef remained imperturbable, and simply picked up the
extinguisher and put it out.
 Although Mr. Smith seems outwardly imperturbable in class, I’ve overheard him getting very upset on
the phone several times.
Irascible
 The irascible football coach accepted no excuses – even legitimate ones – and got furious when practice
didn’t go exactly as planned.
 My uncle’s irascible personality makes family get holidays difficult because he loses his temper at every
little thing.
Magnanimous
 Lucy was too magnanimous to resent the nasty things they had said to her when they were fighting.
 The magnanimous old lady gave all of her extra money to charity, and lived without luxuries for herself.
Nefarious
 Ernest was secretly developing a nefarious scheme to cheat people out of their money.
 The nefarious villain twirled his mustache before tying his victim to the railroad tracks.
Perceptive
 Due to their ability to rotate their ears, cats are very perceptive when it comes to pinpointing the source
of a sound.
 Being a perceptive person, Jake understood that Ellla’s refusal to talk about her problems was because
she was embarrassed about being poor, not because she didn’t trust him.