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use different pa rts of speech
TIP: Remember that it’s often easy to figure out the meaning of a new
word by its context.
DISCOVERING NEW NOUNS
1. Read the following paragraph and circle any words that are new
to you. Pay special attention to their context in words around
them, some of which appear in bold type.
Vacation Planning
Mabel was trying to organize her family’s vacation, and
somehow it was getting more complicated than she’d antic-
ipated. The kids would be at Camp Serenity for the first
two weeks after the summer solstice, and after that, she
planned to take them to Seventeen Flags for a special treat.
The dilemma was finding a hotel or a nearby inn that
offered accommodations for two kids, a mom, a dad, two
dogs, and three pet snakes. “Maybe you should consider a
boardinghouse or a bed-and-breakfast,” suggested her
travel agent, “or try a hostel. Such an establishment might
show you clemency or at least a little mercy.”
Did you encounter any words you didn’t know? If so, list them here:
_____________________ ____________________ _____________________
_____________________ ____________________ _____________________
_____________________ ____________________ _____________________
_____________________ ____________________ _____________________
The paragraph includes several nouns that are more or less synonymous. The
text would not make much sense; however, if the writer had used the familiar
word hotel repeatedly, even though most of the alternative words used are
actually synonyms or near synonyms for it. In fact, the use of different nouns
enabled the writer, in the words of the travel agent, to make several sugges-
tions that potentially widened Mabel’s search for a place where she and her
family and pets could rest their weary bones.
