GED Reasoning Through Language Arts
Vocabulary in Context
These questions hand you a word and ask what it means IN THIS SENTENCE. The dictionary meaning you already know is often the trap, because test writers pick words being used in their second or third sense. The sentence around the word is the answer key.
The words first
- context
- the words and sentences surrounding the mystery word
- context clues
- definitions, examples, contrasts, or restatements sitting nearby
- connotation
- the feeling a word carries beyond its meaning
- multiple-meaning word
- a word like "charge" or "current" with several unrelated senses
The method
THE COVER-UP METHOD
1. Cover the word with your thumb.
2. Read the sentence and say your own word for the blank.
3. Pick the answer choice closest to YOUR word.
"The evidence was so scant that the case collapsed."
cover "scant" → the case collapsed, so evidence was ___ → thin, little
scant = barely enough ✓
CLUES THE SENTENCE LEAVES
definition "the levee, a wall built to hold back water,"
contrast "unlike her talkative brother, she was reticent"
example "arid places such as the Sahara"
result "so scant that the case collapsed"
Worked all the way through
The problem
"Even after the scandal, the senator retained a measure of public trust." What does "measure" mean here: (A) a ruler, (B) an amount, (C) a law, (D) a rhythm?
- Step 1 — Cover "measure" and read the sentence."...retained a ___ of public trust." Your own word: some, an amount.
- Step 2 — Compare your word to the choices."An amount" matches "some" exactly.
- Step 3 — Notice the trap choices are real meanings.A ruler measures; congress passes measures; music has measures. All true, all wrong HERE.
On the board
cover the word
"retained a ___ of trust"
your own word: "some"
from the sentence alone
match to choices
"an amount" = some
dictionary senses A, C, D
real meanings, wrong sentence
Answer
B — an amount
A second one, in a different form
"The nurse checked the patient's vitals at the top of every hour." What does "vitals" mean here?
a nurse checking something hourly
medical setting
→ vital signs: pulse, temperature, breathing
not "essential things" in general
the medical sense fits the sentence
Answer
Vital signs — pulse, temperature, and other basic body measurements
The usual mistake
Choosing the most common meaning instead of the one that fits.
Check yourself
If the answer you like is the first dictionary meaning you ever learned for the word, slow down — reread the sentence and make sure that meaning actually fits it.
Practice it
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