Dictionary, thesaurus and glossary skills
Grade 8 Reading Worksheet
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Dictionary entry (written by PencilGo)
Be·nev·o·lent (buh-NEV-uh-lunt) adjective 1. wishing to do good for others; kindly: a benevolent donor. 2. (formal) organized to give help rather than to make money: a benevolent society. [from Latin bene, 'well' + volens, 'wishing']
Jun reads the origin of benevolent. The related word malevolent comes from Latin mal-, “badly,” + volens. What does malevolent most likely mean?
- wishing harm and planning revenge
- wishing harm to others
- doing harm without meaning to
- wishing to do good for others
Thesaurus entry (written by PencilGo)
Benevolent adjective. Group 1, kind and giving: kind (gentle and friendly), generous (giving freely), charitable (giving help to people in need; formal tone), big-hearted (warm and giving; informal tone). Group 2, friendly: cordial (warm and polite; formal tone), chummy (friendly in a casual way; informal tone).
Kira writes: “The ___ society, founded in 1880, still pays for school lunches for families in need.” Which word from the entry fits this formal sentence best?
- big-hearted
- generous
- cordial
- charitable
Dictionary entry (written by PencilGo)
Be·nev·o·lent (buh-NEV-uh-lunt) adjective 1. wishing to do good for others; kindly: a benevolent donor. 2. (formal) organized to give help rather than to make money: a benevolent society. [from Latin bene, 'well' + volens, 'wishing']
Luz sees the label (formal) on sense 2. Which sentence uses benevolent in that formal sense?
- My uncle is benevolent about sharing his pizza with anyone at the table.
- The benevolent old man waved to the children who passed him on the street.
- A benevolent smile crossed the teacher's face when the class finished early.
- The Benevolent Society of Maple County gave scholarships to students in need.
Dictionary entry (written by PencilGo)
Di·lem·ma (dih-LEM-uh) noun 1. a situation that forces a choice between two options, both unwelcome: faced a dilemma. 2. (informal) any hard problem: a dilemma about what to wear. [from Greek di-, 'two' + lemma, 'something taken, an assumption']
Milo uses the origin di-, “two.” Which situation is a dilemma in sense 1?
- Ren has three assignments due on the same day, and a test the day after.
- Ren cannot decide which flavor of ice cream to order at the new shop.
- Ren must choose between two good prizes, a new bike or a new skateboard.
- Ren must pick between missing the big game and missing the concert, both at the same time.
Thesaurus entry (written by PencilGo)
Dilemma noun. Group 1, a hard situation: predicament (an unpleasant situation), quandary (not knowing what to do), jam (a tight spot; informal tone), bind (no easy way out). Group 2, a puzzle: riddle (a problem to solve), enigma (something hard to understand; formal tone).
Noah writes: “Tala stood in a ___, unsure which of two paths to take.” Which word from the entry fits best?
- quandary
- riddle
- jam
- predicament
Dictionary entry (written by PencilGo)
Di·lem·ma (dih-LEM-uh) noun 1. a situation that forces a choice between two options, both unwelcome: faced a dilemma. 2. (informal) any hard problem: a dilemma about what to wear. [from Greek di-, 'two' + lemma, 'something taken, an assumption']
Pia sees the label (informal) on sense 2. Which sentence uses dilemma in that informal sense?
- Jun faced a dilemma: tell the truth and lose a friend, or lie and keep the friendship.
- The mayor faced a dilemma: close the library or raise taxes.
- Pia had a dilemma about which sneakers to wear.
- The coach faced a dilemma: bench the star player or lose the team's trust.
Dictionary entry (written by PencilGo)
Quar·an·tine (KWOR-un-teen) noun 1. a period of isolation to stop a disease from spreading: a ten-day quarantine. 2. (figurative) a state of being kept apart from others: put in quarantine for talking in class. verb to place in quarantine. [from Italian quaranta giorni, 'forty days,' the time ships waited outside Venice]
Ari reads the origin of quarantine. What does it show about how the word began?
- It began as the name of a harbor in Italy where ships were held.
- It began as a medical test that lasted forty minutes for each sailor.
- It began as a rule that forty sailors must be tested before the ship could land.
- It began as a count of days: forty, the length of time ships were held.
Tala sees the label (figurative) on sense 2. Which sentence uses quarantine in that figurative sense?
- The ten-day quarantine ended on Friday.
- The ship waited ten days in quarantine outside the harbor at Venice.
- The noisy radio was put in quarantine at the back of the room.
- Nurses will quarantine anyone who has caught the illness.
Dictionary entry (written by PencilGo)
Ro·bot (ROH-bot) noun 1. a machine that carries out a series of actions on its own, often shaped like a person: a factory robot. 2. a person who acts mechanically, without feeling: spoke like a robot. 3. (informal) a program that does tasks online by itself; also called a bot. [from Czech robota, 'forced labor'; introduced by the writer Karel Čapek in a 1920 play]
Esme reads the origin of robot: Czech robota, “forced labor.” What does that suggest about how the first robots in the play were imagined?
- As workers made to do hard jobs for people.
- As clever inventors who solved problems.
- As soldiers built to fight in wars.
- As free helpers who chose their work.
Thesaurus entry (written by PencilGo)
Robot noun. Group 1, a self-working machine: machine (any device that does work), automaton (a self-moving device, often clockwork or old-fashioned), android (a robot made to look human), droid (a robot in science fiction; informal tone). Group 2, a mindless follower: puppet (someone controlled by another), drone (someone who works without thinking; informal tone).
Ren writes: “In the museum, a clockwork ___ from the 1700s, a brass duck, flapped its wings and quacked.” Which word from the entry fits best?
- droid
- puppet
- android
- automaton