Words in the News

This Week's Word In The News 

PETITIONER

DEFINITION:
A person who pleads with a governmental institution for a legal remedy or a redress of grievances, through the use of a petition.

FOUND IN THE NEWS:
While presenting the citizens’ petition for debate at the April 11 Spring Town Meeting, petitioners argued that ICE operations in Plymouth have “created fear” and “disrupted lives” among the immigrant community, leading to what they call a distrust of local police.
►The Boston Herald, 04/20/2026

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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. Pulverize

► The repetition of the same sounds or of the same kinds of sounds at the beginning of words or in stressed syllables

► Marked by hearty conviviality and good cheer.

► To pound, crush, or grind to a powder or dust.

► A schedule of prices or fees.

2. Labyrinth

► A relationship of mutual benefit or dependence.

► An intricate structure of interconnecting passages through which it is difficult to find one’s way; a maze.

► A fungus, usually of the class Ascomycetes, that grows symbiotically with algae,

► The systematic procedure by which a complex or scientific task is accomplished.

3. Guru

► The systematic procedure by which a complex or scientific task is accomplished.

► To stress or emphasize; intensify

► The distribution of energy emitted by a radiant source, arranged in order of wavelengths.

► A teacher and guide in spiritual and philosophical matters.

4. Quandary

► Forfeiture of something highly valued for the sake of one considered to have a greater value or claim.

► A state of uncertainty or perplexity.

► Inspiring awe, admiration, or wonder

► To proclaim publicly

5. Hieroglyphic

► Relating to a system of writing, such as that of ancient Egypt, in which pictorial symbols are used to represent meaning or sounds or a combination of meaning and sound.

► The method or result of concealing personnel or equipment from an enemy by making them appear to be part of the natural surroundings

► Having a backbone or spinal column.

► A form of a verb that in some languages, such as English, can function independently as an adjective.

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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.