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Words in the News

This Week's Word In The News 

ADVERSE

DEFINITION:
Having a negative or harmful effect on something.

FOUND IN THE NEWS:
There was no evidence of “any adverse or harmful chemical or other exposures,” he wrote.
The Boston Herald, 06/15/2026

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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. Exponent

Marked by hearty conviviality and good cheer.

One that speaks for, represents, or advocates

The method or result of concealing personnel or equipment from an enemy by making them appear to be part of the natural surroundings

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


2. Plateau

The act of reasoning from factual knowledge or evidence.

An elevated, comparatively level expanse of land; a tableland.

To proclaim publicly

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


3. Lichen

A preparation of a weakened or killed pathogen.

A fungus, usually of the class Ascomycetes, that grows symbiotically with algae,

A treeless area between the icecap and the tree line of Arctic regions, having a permanently frozen subsoil and supporting low-growing vegetation

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


4. Malignant

A rebirth or revival.

To abstain from or act together in abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with as an expression of protest or disfavor or as a means of coercion

Harmful, malevolent, injurious. Harmfully cancerous.

Having a buoyant or self-confident air; brisk.


5. Labyrinth

A grotesque ornamental figure or projection.

Any of several rod-shaped bacteria, of the genus Salmonella, that cause food poisoning and other diseases.

An intricate structure of interconnecting passages through which it is difficult to find one’s way; a maze.

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


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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.