Context Clues: You Be the Detective

By Ms. Sherman

Context Clues – What Are They?

• Context clues are bits of information from the text that help you to figure out the meaning of unknown words in a story or article.

• As a reader you must act as a detective to use the clues to make an intelligent“guess” as to what the definition of a word is.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.7.4.AUse context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word's position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.

Types of Clues: Clue 1- Word Connotation1. Word Connotation- the idea or feeling that you get from a word.

Decide whether the word is positive, negative or neutral

+ Positive: something good- Negative: something bad~ Neutral: neither good nor bad

Clue 2: Part of Speech: Noun, Verb or AdjectiveNoun

Person, place or

thing

Part of Speech Continued- VerbsVerb-

action

Part of Speech Continued- Adjectives

Adjective-

Describe nouns

Clue 3: Clue Words Words in the sentence that give hints about the bolded word.

Let’s Try Some Together1. unpleasant: Brian felt that Ms. Golding was much more unpleasant than usual and he suspected that she did not have her coffee this morning.

Step 1: Does the word seem positive +, negative –, or neutral ~

Step 2: Identify the part of speech:

Noun – person, place or thing

Verb – action

Adjective- describing word

Step 3: What are some clue words that give hints about unpleasant?

“did not have her coffee this morning”

Step 4: What do you think the meaning of unpleasant is?

Uncomfortable, unhappy

2. remedy: The richest man in town was losing his hearing and he offered a large reward to anyone who could find a remedy for his condition.

Positive, negative or neutral?

Part of Speech: Noun, Verb, or Adjective

What are some clue words?

“losing his hearing” “large reward” “condition”

What does remedy mean?

Remedy is another word for a cure.

Now, I want you to read the next two with a partner seated to your right . Discuss and label the three types of clues:

1) Positive + , negative- or neutral ~

2) Noun, Verb or Adjective

3) Circle clue words

4) Write what you think the definition is on the line.

I will give you 4 minutes. Then we will share. (If time- students do the rest of their own

What Did You Learn? What is one type of clue that you learned?

How are context clues useful when you are reading?