Determine the Meaning of Domain-Specific Words

Critical academic vocabulary & domain specific words - unit 5

You need to know academic & domain specific vocabulary to understand the text. Understanding both help you tackle complex texts, learn to read more closely, add to your vocabularies, improve speaking and listening skills, and become well-rounded learners. (Sprenger, p. 3) 

Academic vocabulary

Academic Vocabulary is defined as words that are traditionally used in academic dialogue and text. Specifically, it refers to words that are not necessarily common or frequently encountered in informal conversation. For example: . For example, instead of saying “he walked,” one may say “he sauntered. Think of it like using big words over simple words to demonstrate knowledge or intelligence

Critical academic vocabulary for "Life at Home in the 21st Century"

Vocabulary terms: Observation, proliferation, municipal, taper, precipitous. assemblage, agentive, hearth, artifacts, CELF,strata, chronology

When you don't have a dictionary is it necessary to use context clues to determine the meaning of a word.

Multiple Choice

In this sentence: These facts are based on close observation of the birds in the wild. Observation most likely means...

• watching

• hearing

• collecting

• examining

Multiple Choice

In this sentence: The past two years have seen the proliferation of TV channels. proliferation means...

• viewing

• increase

• hearing

• variety

Multiple Choice

In this sentence: Your town's city council may have offices in the municipal building downtown. municipal likely means

• a building for workers

• a city's government offices

• the city meeting spot

• the city's hangout

Multiple Choice

In this sentence: The more I sketched my drawing, the more my pencil began to taper. taper likely means

• get larger

• get darker

• get uglier

• get thinner

Multiple Choice

In this sentence: Last night she risked her life climbing down a precipitous cliff in total darkness in an effort to save Billy Langstrom. precipitous likely means

• fun

• scary

• little

• steep

Domain specific vocabulary

Put simply, domain-specific words, also known as Tier 3 words, are technical or jargon words important to a particular subject. For instance, chemistry and element both fall under science-related vocabulary, while allusion and verse relate closely to English language arts, so they are domain specific or specific to a certain subject

Domain specific

 Domain-specific vocabulary means a set of words about a particular topic that someone needs to know in order to understand that topic.

. Sometimes, words have different meanings depending on the context, or domain, in which they are used.

 If a word means one thing in one domain, it does not automatically mean the same thing in a different domain.

Multiple Choice

Domain-specific vocabulary means a set of words about a particular topic that someone needs to know in order to understand that topic.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Sometimes, words have different meanings depending on the context, or domain, in which they are used.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

If a word means one thing in one domain, it automatically means the same thing in a different domain.

• True

• False

Multiple Select

Domain: zoology (the study of the animal kingdom)

Check all of the words that would be considered domain-specific vocabulary for this topic.

• zoology

• habitat

• shoes

• technology

Multiple Select

Domain: science

Check all of the words that would be considered domain-specific vocabulary for this topic.

• data

• note

• axis

• observe

• playing

Multiple Select

Domain: language arts

Check all of the words that would be considered domain-specific vocabulary for this topic.

• writing

• reading

• vocabulary

• adding

Multiple Select

Domain: Archaeology

Check all of the words that would be considered domain-specific vocabulary for this topic.

• money

• Artifacts

• time

• Bones

• skills

Multiple Choice

Academic vocabulary...

• words you might find in informational texts on many different topics

• words about a particular or specific topic

Multiple Choice

Domain-Specific vocabulary...

• words about a particular/specific topic

• ords you might find in informational texts on many different topics

Multiple Choice

Is the word assemblage (a collection of people or tings) an academic vocab word or a domain-specific?

• academic

• domain-specific

Multiple Choice

Is the word strata ( layers) an academic vocab word or a domain-specific?

• academic

• domain-specific

• Both

Multiple Choice

Is the word agentive (having the power to cause an effect)an academic vocab word or a domain-specific?

• academic

• domain-specific

Multiple Choice

Is the word CELF (abbreviation for the "Center on the Everyday Lives of Families")an academic vocab word or a domain-specific?

• academic

• domain-specific