Grade 8 Context Clues Worksheet

Master technical and cross-curricular vocabulary using advanced comprehension strategies.

⚗️ Learning Goals

Students apply context clue strategies to technical vocabulary from science, social studies, and literature.

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Exercise 1

The cells undergo mitosis, a process of cellular division where one cell divides into two identical daughter cells. This allows organisms to grow, repair tissue, and reproduce asexually.

What is mitosis?

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Exercise 2

The government's policy was inherently paradoxical—it claimed to promote freedom while simultaneously imposing restrictive regulations. This self-contradictory nature confused many citizens.

What does "paradoxical" mean?

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Exercise 3

The Renaissance represented a cultural paradigm shift from medieval thinking. This fundamental change in worldview affected art, science, philosophy, and every aspect of European society.

What is a paradigm shift?

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Exercise 4

The data suggested a causative relationship between the variables, not mere correlation. The experiments demonstrated that changes in variable A directly caused changes in variable B.

What does "causative" mean?

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Exercise 5

The author employed allegory throughout the novel, using symbolic characters and events to represent abstract ideas about morality and justice. Readers had to look beyond the literal story to understand the deeper meaning.

What is allegory?

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Exercise 6

Unlike renewable resources that regenerate naturally, fossil fuels are finite and non-renewable. Once depleted, they cannot be replenished within any reasonable timeframe.

What does "finite" mean?

Cross-Curricular Strategies

🔬 Scientific Vocabulary

Recognize technical definitions and process descriptions

📚 Literary Terms

Understand specialized literary and rhetorical vocabulary

🌍 Social Studies

Navigate historical and political terminology

💡 Abstract Concepts

Use context to understand complex, abstract vocabulary