Work out a word in a hard or older text

Grade 11 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Sentence

   Mayor Ruiz opened the budget hearing with an emollient speech, thanking residents for their patience, owning up to the confusing first notice and promising a second meeting, and by the end the angriest man in the front row had unfolded his arms and asked his question in a level voice.

2. 1.

   Ari reads a sentence from a town newsletter. What does emollient mean here?

   • soothing, meant to ease anger
   • polite but empty, promising nothing
   • harsh, meant to stir up anger
   • given at a public budget hearing

3. Sentence

   Dr. Abara asked whether anyone would second the motion to extend the library's hours, and for a long moment no one in the room spoke.
   Entry: second 1. (adjective) coming right after the first one in order. 2. (noun) one sixtieth of a minute. 3. (verb) to back a motion so that it can be discussed. 4. (verb) to move a worker to another job for a time.

4. 2.

   Bo reads a sentence from a school board agenda and the entry under it. Which sense of second fits?

   • to move a worker to another job for a time
   • to back a motion so that it can be discussed
   • coming right after the first one in order
   • to lengthen the hours the library stays open

5. Sentence

   Though she held two degrees and had just won the college's top teaching prize, Ms. Okoye was diffident about her own work, and the magazine's writer learned of the prize only when the dean mentioned it.

6. 3.

   Esme reads a sentence from a college magazine. What does diffident mean here?

   • eager to talk about her own work and prizes
   • winner of the college's top teaching prize
   • shy and unwilling to push oneself forward
   • sure of herself and well qualified

7. Sentence

   The delay was bad enough, but the storm compounded it, closing the last open road and turning a three-hour drive into a two-day wait.
   Entry: compound 1. (noun) a group of buildings inside a fence. 2. (noun) a substance made of two or more elements. 3. (verb) to mix parts into a whole. 4. (verb) to make worse by adding to it.

8. 4.

   Kira reads a sentence from a road-safety report and the entry under it. Which sense of compounded fits?

   • to close the last open road
   • to mix parts into a whole
   • to make worse by adding to it
   • a group of buildings inside a fence

9. Sentence

   The weather on the lake was fickle: a calm morning could turn to whitecaps by noon, and the water might be flat again by evening, so the club stopped trusting any forecast.

10. 5.

    Luz reads a sentence from a sailing club newsletter. What does fickle mean here?

    • calm and gentle on the water that morning
    • steady and easy to predict
    • changing suddenly and without warning
    • found on a lake where a club sails

11. Sentence

    After weeks without rain, the north field would yield barely half of last year's wheat, and the farmer rebuilt the fall budget around that.
    Entry: yield 1. (verb) to give way under pressure or force. 2. (verb) to produce as a crop or a result. 3. (noun) the amount of a crop that is grown. 4. (verb) to let another go first.

12. 6.

    Noah reads a sentence from a farm report and the entry under it. Which sense of yield fits?

    • the amount of a crop that is grown
    • to give way under pressure or force
    • to produce as a crop or a result
    • to plan the fall budget around it

13. Sentence

    After losing the semifinal by a single vote, Tomas was magnanimous, shaking his opponent's hand and offering to help her prepare for the state round.

14. 7.

    Pia reads a sentence from a debate-league recap. What does magnanimous mean here?

    • bitter and angry about the loss
    • stubborn and unwilling to accept defeat
    • generous and forgiving toward a rival
    • defeated by one vote in a semifinal

15. Sentence

    The contractor proved so dilatory that the porch promised for May was still a pile of lumber in August, and the owners finally planned their cookout around it.

16. 8.

    Ren reads a sentence from a homeowners' newsletter. What does dilatory mean here?

    • quick to start and quick to finish
    • slow to act and prone to delay
    • widened or opened out, as an eye does
    • hired to build a porch for the owners

17. Sentence

    After two hours of argument over parking rules, the council agreed to table the question until its March meeting.
    Entry: table 1. (noun) a flat-topped piece of furniture. 2. (noun) facts arranged in rows and columns. 3. (verb, U.S.) to set aside to take up at a later time. 4. (verb) to write something down in a list.

18. 9.

    Tala reads a sentence from a council summary and the entry under it. Which sense of table fits?

    • to argue for two hours about parking rules
    • to set aside to take up at a later time
    • to write something down in a list
    • facts arranged in rows and columns

19. Sentence

    Though the apartment looked as if a storm had passed through it, its owner was punctilious about one thing, the spice rack, where every jar stood in alphabetical order with its label facing out.

20. 10.

    Zee reads a sentence from a roommate profile. What does punctilious mean here?

    • easy to please and unbothered by details
    • messy and careless about the home
    • very keen on arriving exactly on time
    • extremely careful about small details