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Words in the News

This Week's Word In The News 

VERTEBRAE

DEFINITION:
Each of the series of small bones forming the backbone.

FOUND IN THE NEWS:
The photographer with The Washington Post who was attacked by Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank so badly that several vertebrae were broken said Sunday she was increasingly angry that Israel’s military seems to protect settlers more than the Palestinians they threaten.
►Associated Press, 10/19/2026

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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. Ziggurat

► A marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function.

► A temple tower of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians, having the form of a terraced pyramid of successively receding stories.

► To renounce under oath; forswear.

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


2. Detritus

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

► Having a bad disposition; surly.

► Lacking or marked by a lack of self-confidence; shy and timid.

► A product of disintegration, destruction, or wearing away; debris.


3. Enervate

► Mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially to an exaggerated or ludicrous degree.

► Interchanged, given, or owed to each other.

► To impress (something) upon the mind of another by frequent instruction or repetition; instill.

► To weaken or destroy the strength or vitality of.


4. Loquacious

► The use of words to express something different from and often opposite to their literal meaning.

► Very talkative; garrulous.

► Overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance.

► The use of obstructionist tactics, especially prolonged speechmaking, for the purpose of delaying legislative action.


5. Tempestuous

► The process in green plants and certain other organisms by which carbohydrates are synthesized from carbon dioxide and water using light as an energy source.

► The lowest point

► Tumultuous; stormy.

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


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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.