Context Clues

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Context Clues: Substitution

At times, rereading a sentence that contains an unfamiliar term and substituting a word or phrase for it that makes sense can help you to unlock the meaning of the unfamiliar word. To understand the substitution strategy, read the following sentence:

"When we stayed at the military base, each Saturday we went to the commissary to buy the food and supplies we would need for the next week."

Although you may never have visited a commissary, given the use of the word in this sentence, you immediately can substitute the word store for the word commissary. You probably can wrestle an even more complete meaning for commissary from the overall context of the sentence: a store for food and supplies that is located on a military base.

Steps in the substitution strategy are as follows:

Step 1: When you read a sentence that you have trouble understanding because of an unfamiliar word in it, reread the sentence and substitute a word that seems to make sense in the context.

Step 2: Read on. If the word you substituted does not make sense in the context of the rest of the paragraph, try again.

Step 3: If the sentence still does not make sense to you and you do not understand the main point the author is making in the paragraph, look for synonym, definition, and antonym clues. If you are still uncertain, check a dictionary.