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9th grade Choose the right look-alike word and spell the hard ones worksheet

6 printable versionsBuilding Confidence10 questions · answer keyFree · no account

Level: Building Confidence · On Level · Challenge Me

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

Grade 9 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

NameDate

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

    • ingenuous
    • ingenious
    • disingenuous
    • indigenous
  3. 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.

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

    • deprecate
    • deplore
    • depreciate
    • appreciate
  5. Sentence

    The editor trusted the reporter’s ______, since each claim in the story had been checked twice.
    Meanings: veracity, truthfulness; voracity, a huge appetite; velocity, speed; verbosity, use of too many words.

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

    • verbosity
    • voracity
    • velocity
    • veracity
  7. 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?

    • solem, because the n is silent at the end of the word, so a spelling can safely leave it out
    • solemnn, because “solemnity” shows that the n doubles when the word grows
    • solemn, because the word begins like “solo” and “solid”, which also begin with sol
    • solemn, because the related word “solemnity” sounds the n, so the spelling keeps it
  8. 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
    • 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
    • condem, because the n is silent at the end of the word, so a spelling can safely leave it out
  9. The principal will ______ at the end of the school year. Milo is unsure how to spell the word in the gap. Which choice gives the right spelling and the related word that proves it?

    • resign, because the word begins like “reset” and “resume”, which also begin with res
    • resign, because the related word “resignation” sounds the g, so the spelling keeps it
    • resignn, because “resignation” shows that the n doubles when the ending is added
    • resine, because the g is silent in the word, so a spelling can safely leave it out
  10. 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?

    • muscel, because “muscular” shows an e before the l
    • 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
    • mussel, because the end of the word sounds the same as “mussel”
  11. Rule

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

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

    • Quitting without notice did the team a disservice that felt immeasureable.
    • Quitting without notice did the team a diservice that felt imeasurable.
    • Quitting without notice did the team a diservice that felt immeasurable.
    • Quitting without notice did the team a disservice that felt immeasurable.
  13. 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 illogical.
    • Although the seal was ilegitimate, the committee’s anger was not ilogical.
    • Although the seal was illegitimate, the committee’s anger was not illogicle.
  14. 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 unnerved crowd stood imobile as the results were read.
    • The unerved crowd stood immobile as the results were read.
    • The unerved crowd stood imobile as the results were read.
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9th grade Choose the right look-alike word and spell the hard ones worksheet – printable
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About this worksheet

Choose the right look-alike word and spell the hard ones. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

  • I can tell formal look-alike words apart by swapping each meaning into the sentence and checking every clue.
  • I can use a related word or the parts of a word to spell a hard word, and find the one misspelled word among correct ones.
  • I can explain why a word doubles a letter, keeps an e or drops one, and fix a draft with two different kinds of slip.

Words to know

look-alike words: Words that look or sound alike but mean different things (ingenious and ingenuous)

meaning swap: Put each word's meaning in the gap and reread: the meaning that fits picks the word

related word: A word from the same family where a hidden letter is sounded (condemnation for condemn)

prefix and root: A front part (dis, un, il) and the word it joins (service); every letter of both stays

stressed part: The part of a word said most strongly (con-TROL, BEN-e-fit)

soft g and soft c: g that sounds like j and c that sounds like s; an e keeps them soft before -able

Common mistakes

Your child chose the look-alike word that is most often mixed up with the right one; try asking: what does each of the two words mean, and which meaning fits this sentence?

Your child chose a word with a close but different meaning; try asking: does this exact word do the job the sentence needs?

Your child chose a word that sounds close to the right one; try asking: does the chosen word make sense with the words around the gap?

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with choose the right look-alike word and spell the hard ones?

Your child chose the look-alike word that is most often mixed up with the right one; try asking: what does each of the two words mean, and which meaning fits this sentence?

Are these 9th grade reading worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

More grades 9-10 reading

See all Grades 9-10 Reading

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