Words in the News

This Week's Word In The News 

PLOY

DEFINITION:
A cunning plan or action designed to turn a situation to one's own advantage.

FOUND IN THE NEWS:
“First of all, I think it’s important to recognize that the majority of the American people find this behavior deeply troubling,” said the 44th president, conceding that it does serve as an effective distraction and ploy for attention.
►The Boston Herald, 02/16/2026

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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. Quarantine

► A Y-shaped protein on the surface of B cells that is secreted into the blood or lymph in response to an antigenic stimulus

► Enforced isolation or restriction of free movement imposed to prevent the spread of contagious disease.

► The arrangement of events in time

► A preparation of a weakened or killed pathogen.

2. Yacht

► Consuming or eager to consume great amounts of food; ravenous.

► Any of various relatively small sailing or motor-driven vessels used for pleasure cruises or racing.

► Conversation between characters in a drama or narrative

► The act of resting or the state of being at rest.

3. Sect

► To proclaim publicly

► A cult or religious movement, a group sharing particular (often unorthodox) political and/or religious beliefs.

► A weather phenomenon in the Eastern Pacific that is precisely equivalent to a hurricane.

► One that speaks for, represents, or advocates

4. Kilometer

► A metric unit of length equal to 1,000 meters (0.62 mile).

► Marked by hearty conviviality and good cheer.

► Strikingly unconventional and far-fetched in style or appearance; odd

► An elevated, comparatively level expanse of land; a tableland.

5. Hologram

► An elevated, comparatively level expanse of land; a tableland.

► A member of an irregular, usually indigenous military or paramilitary unit operating in small bands in occupied territory to harass and undermine the enemy

► The pattern produced on a photosensitive medium that has been exposed by holography and then photographically developed.

► An ammunition belt, worn over the shoulder, having loops or pockets for cartridges.

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Common Core State Standard
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.