TIE | The Los Angeles Times in Education

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. Rainforest

► A grotesque ornamental figure or projection.

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

► A dense evergreen forest occupying a tropical region with an annual rainfall of at least 100 inches.

► A proportional part or share.

2. Parasite

► Having no specific pattern, purpose, or objective.

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

► One who habitually takes advantage of the generosity of others without making any useful return.

► A disorderly commotion or disturbance.

3. Flourish

► To stress or emphasize; intensify

► To grow well or luxuriantly; thrive

► Conversation between characters in a drama or narrative

► A preparation of a weakened or killed pathogen.

4. Guerrilla

► A preparation of a weakened or killed pathogen.

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

► The distance that light travels in a vacuum in one year.

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

5. Tariff

► To move back or away from a limit, point, or mark

► Exceeding the limits of propriety or good manners; improperly forward or bold

► A schedule of prices or fees.

► Selecting or employing individual elements from a variety of sources, systems, or styles

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.

BILLIONAIRE

Words in the News Quiz
5 Middle School Words

BILLIONAIRE
DEFINITION: One whose wealth is estimated at a billion or more dollars, pounds, or other monetary units.	FOUND IN THE NEWS: About a dozen people took part in the “March for billionaires” on Saturday morning in San Francisco to raise awareness about the plight of the ultrarich. ►The Los Angeles Times, 02/09/2026

BILLIONAIRE

Words in the News Quiz5 Middle School Words

Words in the News Quiz
5 Middle School Words