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Words in the News

This Week's Word In The News 

ACCOST

DEFINITION:
To approach and speak to (someone) in an often challenging or aggressive way.

FOUND IN THE NEWS:
As their identities became more public, the operators were even accosted in their off hours.
The Anchorage Daily News, 09/21/2026

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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 sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of something.

Vanishing or likely to vanish like vapor.

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

The process in cell division by which the nucleus divides.


2. Gauche

The side of a right triangle opposite the right angle.

Lacking social polish; tactless.

Lacking purpose or vitality; feeble or ineffective.

A diligent, dependable worker.


3. Hubris

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

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

Overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance.

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.


4. Xenophobe

To insert or introduce between other elements or parts.

A person unduly fearful or contemptuous of that which is foreign, especially of strangers or foreign peoples.

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

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


5. Hegemony

Of the same or similar nature or kind

The predominant influence, as of a state, region, or group, over another or others.

Not interesting; dull:

Of or relating to a holding of something in trust for another.


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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.