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. Vacillate
► One that takes in everything available, as with the mind.
► To condescend to give or grant
► To swing indecisively from one course of action or opinion to another.
2. Pulverize
► One thing conceived as representing another; a symbol.
► The act of resting or the state of being at rest.
► To pound, crush, or grind to a powder or dust.
3. Wretched
► Exceeding the limits of propriety or good manners; improperly forward or bold
► In a deplorable state of distress or misfortune; miserable.
► Sharing the same opinions or views; being in complete harmony or accord.
4. Camouflage
► To stress or emphasize; intensify
► The arrangement of events in time
5. Alliteration
► The main character in a drama or other literary work.
► Having a backbone or spinal column.
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.