Academic Vocabulary 1

Academic Vocabulary 1

The first 10 words you need to remember.

obtain (verb)

to get something through effort or a request

Mary obtained her degree after four years of hard work.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence correctly uses obtain?

• Jack obtained cancer.

• Jack obtained his goal.

conclude (verb)

to decide after thinking

While there were 7 books in the series, Mary concluded that she had reached the end of the first one.

Multiple Select

Which sentence uses conclude correctly?

• I conclude soda.

• I conclude the answer is yes.

• I conclude corrupt.

seek (verb)

to look for

The boy was "it", and after counting to 100, he had to seek out his friends.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence correctly uses seek?

• When I am reading something difficult, I seek context clues in the reading passage.

• I can't find the seek!

indicate (verb)

to state or express briefly

The signs indicated that there would be roadwork ahead.

Multiple Choice

Which sentences uses the word indicate correctly.

• Indicate is where you are.

• Please indicate with which question you need help.

approach (noun)

a way to do something

Joe wondered which characterization approach would be best for the assignment.

Multiple Choice

Is this sentence correct in how the word is introduced?

Jorge approached the door cautiously.

• Yes

• No

NO? you ask why you got that wrong....

Well, our word is a NOUN. The sentence used it as a verb... tricky! 

Approach can be used many ways, but in this case, we want you to THINK what APPROACH you might take to solving a problem.

assume (verb)

to accept to be true without proof

If you assume you will always be safe, you may run into trouble.

Don't assume I forgot the picture. Perhaps we wanted you to think about it differently!

Multiple Choice

Which scenario would be someone who assumed something?

• The girl listened to the speaker thinking, "This person is nuts!"

• The girl listened to the speaker, and then thought about what they said before deciding what they thought.

analyze (verb)

to study closely

Students analyze what a character feels, does, says, and thinks to determine what type of person they are.

Multiple Choice

Which is an example of a situation where you should analyze what is happening.

• You are looking for theme in the short story.

• You are looking for lunch.

context (noun)

the set of facts or information about a situation or event

Holding your phone in your hand and writing things down in a calendar is VERY different context if you had a test in front of you and were using your phone.

Multiple Select

Click the situations where context is important.

• A child playing on the swings during recess.

• An ambulance arrives at your front door.

• Someone laughs during a funeral.

interpret (verb)

to explain the meaning of something

In case you needed to interpret the beagle's brain, they are primarily food and smell  motivated.

Multiple Choice

In which sentence should you use interpret?

• I ____________ the macaroni and cheese.

• Johnny had to _________ the instructions for me.

• Can you ________ the phone number?

derive (verb)

to conclude by reasoning

After working through the math problem, Betsy was able to derive the answer, even though she hadn't seen it before.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence uses derive correctly?

• I derived from your emojis that you are excited about something?

• I derived to McDonald's for a large Coke.