Jason's Words

accommodate

to provide lodging or room for; to adjust to

over-

English prefix meaning 'too much' or 'above' (e.g., overwork, overcome)

anti-

Greek prefix meaning 'against' or 'opposite'

definitely

without doubt; clearly

calendar

a chart showing the days, weeks, and months of a year

receive

to be given or presented with something

empathy

the ability to understand and share the feelings of another

benevolent

well-meaning and kindly; generous

mono-

Greek prefix meaning 'one' or 'single' (e.g., monologue, monopoly)

sub-

Latin prefix meaning 'under' or 'below' (e.g., submarine, subway)

super-

Latin prefix meaning 'above' or 'beyond' (e.g., superhero, supernatural)

trans-

Latin prefix meaning 'across' or 'beyond' (e.g., transport, transform)

circum-

Latin prefix meaning 'around'

bene-

Latin prefix meaning 'good' or 'well'

auto-

Greek prefix meaning 'self' (e.g., autobiography, automobile)

environment

the surroundings or conditions in which a person or thing lives

diligent

showing careful and persistent effort

ominous

giving the impression that something bad is going to happen

concur

to agree or have the same opinion

spill the beans

to reveal secret information

costs an arm and a leg

something that is very expensive

tone

Recognizing the author's attitude toward the subject

main idea - friendship

Identifying the main idea

inference

Drawing a conclusion from clues in the text

necessary

required to be done; essential

novice

a person new to or inexperienced at something

misspell

to spell a word incorrectly

opportunity

a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something

restaurant

a place where people pay to eat meals

referred

mentioned or directed attention to

pseudo-

Greek prefix meaning 'false' or 'fake'

dis-

Latin prefix meaning 'apart' or 'away from' (e.g., disagree, disconnect)

mal-

Latin prefix meaning 'bad' or 'evil'

break the ice

to initiate conversation in an awkward social situation

mis-

English prefix meaning 'wrongly' or 'badly' (e.g., mistake, misunderstand)

who vs. whom

'who' is a subject pronoun; 'whom' is an object pronoun

fewer vs. less

'fewer' for countable nouns; 'less' for uncountable nouns

bio-

Greek prefix meaning 'life' (e.g., biology, biography)

they're / their / there

'They're' = they are; 'their' = possessive; 'there' = a place or introductory word.

a vs. an

Use 'a' before consonant sounds; use 'an' before vowel sounds.

bi-

Latin prefix meaning 'two' (e.g., bicycle, bilingual)

micro-

Greek prefix meaning 'small' (e.g., microscope, microphone)

double negatives

Two negatives in one clause create a grammatical error (in standard English they cancel out).

its vs. it's

'Its' is possessive; 'it's' is a contraction of 'it is' or 'it has'.

a vs. an

Use 'a' before consonant sounds; use 'an' before vowel sounds.

lie vs. lay

'lie' means to recline (no object); 'lay' means to put down (needs an object)

occurrence

an event or incident

pre-

Latin prefix meaning 'before' (e.g., preview, predict)

separate

to set or keep apart; distinct

privilege

a special right or advantage available only to a particular person or group

jeopardize

to put something at risk of being lost or harmed

lucid

expressed clearly; easy to understand

existence

the fact or state of living or being

hindsight

understanding of a situation only after it has happened

candid

truthful and straightforward; frank

diminish

to make or become less; to reduce

conscience

inner sense of right and wrong

raining cats and dogs

raining very heavily

give someone the cold shoulder

to deliberately ignore or be unfriendly to someone

the last straw

the final small thing that causes someone to lose patience completely

bite the bullet

to endure a painful or difficult situation bravely

hit the nail on the head

to describe exactly what is causing a situation or problem

butterflies in your stomach

a nervous or excited feeling

main idea

Identifying the central point of a passage

main idea - volunteering

Identifying the main idea

gratitude

the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation

contemplate

to think about something deeply and at length

maintenance

the process of keeping something in good condition

un-

English prefix meaning 'not' or 'opposite of' (e.g., unhappy, undo)

let the cat out of the bag

to accidentally reveal a secret

embarrass

to cause someone to feel awkward or ashamed

versatile

able to adapt or be adapted to many different functions or activities

ridiculous

deserving or inviting mockery; absurd

argument

an exchange of diverging views; a reason given for or against something

immediately

without any delay; at once

disappoint

to fail to meet the expectations of someone

your vs. you're

'Your' is possessive; 'you're' is a contraction of 'you are'.

skeptical

not easily convinced; having doubts

resilient

able to recover quickly from difficulties; tough

perseverance

persistence in doing something despite difficulty

judgment

the ability to make considered decisions; a formal decision

then vs. than

'Then' indicates time or sequence; 'than' is used for comparisons.

pronoun case (basic)

Use subject pronouns (I, he, she, they) as subjects; use object pronouns (me, him, her, them) as objects.

on thin ice

in a risky or dangerous situation, close to getting in trouble

under the weather

feeling ill or sick

detail recall - honeybees

Recalling specific details from a passage

detail recall - water cycle

Recalling specific details from a passage

author's purpose

Understanding why the author wrote something

detail recall - camels

Recalling specific details from a passage

detail recall - thunderstorms

Recalling specific details from a passage

detail recall - basketball

Recalling specific details from a passage

elated

extremely happy and excited

prevalent

widespread in a particular area or at a particular time

impartial

treating all people and sides equally; fair and unbiased

post-

Latin prefix meaning 'after' (e.g., postwar, postpone)

they're / their / there

'They're' = they are; 'their' = possessive; 'there' = a place or introductory word.

re-

Latin prefix meaning 'again' or 'back' (e.g., return, rebuild)

apostrophes (basic possessives)

Add 's to singular nouns to show possession; add just an apostrophe to regular plurals.

to / too / two

'To' is a preposition or infinitive marker; 'too' means 'also' or 'excessively'; 'two' is the number 2.

piece of cake

something that is very easy to do

they're / their / there

'They're' = they are; 'their' = possessive; 'there' = a place or introductory word.

tri-

Latin/Greek prefix meaning 'three' (e.g., triangle, tricycle)

semi-

Latin prefix meaning 'half' or 'partly' (e.g., semicircle, semifinal)

once in a blue moon

very rarely

add insult to injury

to make a bad situation even worse

when pigs fly

something that will never happen

break a leg

good luck (said before a performance)

main idea - recycling

Identifying the main idea

main idea - helmet safety

Identifying the main idea

main idea - music practice

Identifying the main idea

detail recall - penguins

Recalling specific details from a passage

main idea - library

Identifying the main idea

detail recall - solar system

Recalling specific details from a passage

main idea - breakfast

Identifying the main idea

advocate

a person who publicly supports or recommends a cause

beginning

the point in time at which something starts

abundant

existing in large quantities; plentiful

poly-

Greek prefix meaning 'many' (e.g., polygon, polyglot)

subject-verb agreement

subjects and verbs must agree in number (singular/plural)

run-on sentences

Two independent clauses cannot be joined without proper punctuation or a conjunction.

inter-

Latin prefix meaning 'between' or 'among' (e.g., interact, international)