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Words in the News

This Week's Word In The News 

PARLIAMENTARIAN

DEFINITION:
A consultant who advises the presiding officer and other officers, committees, and members on matters of parliamentary procedure.

FOUND IN THE NEWS:
Mia Cooper, a parliamentarian for the district, brought her daughter to district meetings and state-level education forums as the girl grew up.
►The Los Angeles Times, 03/09/2026

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Words in the News Quiz
5 High 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. Gerrymander

► Tumultuous; stormy.

► To divide (a geographic area) into voting districts so as to give unfair advantage to one party in elections.

► The clear, yellowish fluid portion of blood, lymph, or intramuscular fluid in which cells are suspended.

► To separate or get rid of (an undesirable part); eliminate.

2. Enervate

► Warlike in manner or temperament; pugnacious.

► Belonging to the period before a war, especially the American Civil War.

► To weaken or destroy the strength or vitality of.

► An underlying base or foundation especially for an organization or system.

3. Vacuous

► Lacking serious purpose or occupation; idle.

► A stock of terms used in a particular profession, subject, or style; a vocabulary:

► To remove erroneous, vulgar, obscene, or otherwise objectionable material from (a book, for example) before publication.

► Shaking and vibration at the surface of the earth resulting from underground movement along a fault plane.

4. Obsequious

► Any of numerous natural and synthetic compounds consisting of up to millions of repeated linked units,

► Full of or exhibiting servile compliance; fawning.

► Characterized by affected, exaggerated, or insincere earnestness.

► The act or process of inhaling and exhaling; breathing.

5. Notarize

► To certify or attest to (the validity of a signature on a document, for example) as a notary public.

► The iron-containing respiratory pigment in red blood cells of vertebrates.

► A sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of something.

► The art or study of correct spelling according to established usage.

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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.