Words in the News Quiz
5 Middle School Words
Click on the correct answer in the quiz below.
Then see if you can find the word in your newspaper -- the print edition, the website or the digital edition and copy the sentence for context. NOTE: High School words are much harder to find!
1. Despondent
► Being without or almost without hope
► Strikingly unconventional and far-fetched in style or appearance; odd
2. Jaunty
► Sharing the same opinions or views; being in complete harmony or accord.
► Having a buoyant or self-confident air; brisk.
3. Toxin
► A weather phenomenon in the Eastern Pacific that is precisely equivalent to a hurricane.
► A poisonous substance, especially a protein, that is produced by living cells or organisms.
► Marked by hearty conviviality and good cheer.
4. Inference
► A prohibition by a government on certain or all trade with a foreign nation
► The act of reasoning from factual knowledge or evidence.
► To move back or away from a limit, point, or mark
► Something that is passed down from preceding generations; a tradition.
5. Gargoyle
► Something that is passed down from preceding generations; a tradition.
► A grotesque ornamental figure or projection.
LS.CCS.4/5/6 Grades 3-12: Students are asked to determine the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words through multiple choice vocabulary quizzes. Quizzes are designed to help students demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships and nuances in words, acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words, and gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression. Students are then asked to find the words within the newspaper and copy the sentence for context to its overall meaning or function in a sentence.