Choose the right look-alike word and spell the hard ones

Grade 9 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Sentence

   The ______ plan to reuse cafeteria trays as signs saved the club hundreds of dollars.
   Meanings: ingenious, clever and inventive; ingenuous, innocent and open; indigenous, native to a place; disingenuous, pretending to know less than one does.

2. 1.

   Ari fills the gap in a school-paper sentence. Using the meanings, which word fits?

   • ingenuous
   • indigenous
   • ingenious
   • disingenuous

3. Sentence

   The club’s rules ______ the use of phones during practice.
   Meanings: proscribe, to forbid; prescribe, to order or recommend; describe, to tell what something is like; subscribe, to sign up for.

4. 2.

   Bo fills the gap in a school-paper sentence. Using the meanings, which word fits?

   • describe
   • subscribe
   • prescribe
   • proscribe

5. Sentence

   Ms. Ortega likes to ______ her own talent, calling her prize-winning garden “just a few plants.”
   Meanings: deprecate, to play down or belittle; depreciate, to lose value over time; deplore, to feel strong disapproval of; appreciate, to value or be grateful for.

6. 3.

   Esme fills the gap in a school-paper sentence. Using the meanings, which word fits?

   • deprecate
   • deplore
   • appreciate
   • depreciate
7. 4.

   The class stood in ______ silence while the flag was lowered. Kira is unsure how to spell the word in the gap. Which choice gives the right spelling and the related word that proves it?

   • solemn, because the word begins like “solo” and “solid”, which also begin with sol
   • solem, because the n is silent at the end of the word, so a spelling can safely leave it out
   • solemn, because the related word “solemnity” sounds the n, so the spelling keeps it
   • solemnn, because “solemnity” shows that the n doubles when the word grows
8. 5.

   The council voted to ______ the dumping in the creek. Luz is unsure how to spell the word in the gap. Which choice gives the right spelling and the related word that proves it?

   • condemn, because the related word “condemnation” sounds the n, so the spelling keeps it
   • condem, because the n is silent at the end of the word, so a spelling can safely leave it out
   • condemn, because the word begins like “condor” and “condition”, which also begin with con
   • condemm, because “condemnation” shows that the m doubles when the ending is added
9. 6.

   Hours of practice built the ______ in the pitcher’s arm. Noah is unsure how to spell the word in the gap. Which choice gives the right spelling and the related word that proves it?

   • muscle, because the ending sounds like the ending of “tackle” and “puzzle”, which also end in -le
   • muscle, because the related word “muscular” sounds the c, so the spelling keeps it
   • muscel, because “muscular” shows an e before the l
   • mussel, because the end of the word sounds the same as “mussel”

10. Rule

    Keep every letter of the prefix and every letter of the root.

11. 7.

    Pia proofreads two words made by adding a prefix. Which sentence spells both correctly?

    • Quitting without notice did the team a diservice that felt immeasurable.
    • Quitting without notice did the team a disservice that felt immeasurable.
    • Quitting without notice did the team a disservice that felt immeasureable.
    • Quitting without notice did the team a diservice that felt imeasurable.
12. 8.

    Ren proofreads two words made by adding a prefix. Which sentence spells both correctly?

    • Reporters called the story unatural but admitted the details were dissimilar to earlier claims.
    • Reporters called the story unatural but admitted the details were disimilar to earlier claims.
    • Reporters called the story unnatural but admitted the details were dissimmilar to earlier claims.
    • Reporters called the story unnatural but admitted the details were dissimilar to earlier claims.
13. 9.

    Tala proofreads two words made by adding a prefix. Which sentence spells both correctly?

    • Although the seal was illegitimate, the committee’s anger was not illogical.
    • Although the seal was ilegitimate, the committee’s anger was not ilogical.
    • Although the seal was ilegitimate, the committee’s anger was not illogical.
    • Although the seal was illegitimate, the committee’s anger was not illogicle.
14. 10.

    Zee proofreads two words made by adding a prefix. Which sentence spells both correctly?

    • The unnerved crowd stood immobile as the results were read.
    • The unerved crowd stood immobile as the results were read.
    • The unnerved crowd stood imobile as the results were read.
    • The unerved crowd stood imobile as the results were read.