- In "The class planned a transportation schedule," how should you break transportation into syllables?
Answer: trans-por-ta-tion
Trans-por-ta-tion breaks the word into its correct four syllables. Tran-spor-tat-ion shifts the syllable breaks by a letter, which does not match the real sound pattern. Trans-port-a-ti-on splits the word into too many small pieces that do not match natural syllable sounds. Trans-por-tation combines the last two syllables into one, so it has too few syllable breaks.
- In the sentence "Please rearrange the desks," which word parts help you figure out what rearrange means?
Answer: Break the word into re, ar, range: re means again, and arrange means to put things in order.
The best answer splits rearrange into re and arrange. The prefix re- means again, and arrange means to put things in order, so rearrange means to put things in order again. That fits desks being moved around. Splitting it into rear and range is a good try, but rear is not really a part of this word, and the sentence is about moving desks, not moving them to the back. Splitting it into re, arr, and ange breaks the word at spots that are not real word parts, and re does not mean before here, so that meaning does not work. Splitting it into rea and range also breaks the word at a spot that is not a real part, and rea is not a word part that means read, so "read the desks over again" does not make sense.
- In the sentence "The ending of the movie was predictable," which part of the word predictable is the suffix?
Answer: -able is the suffix because it comes at the end and means "able to be."
A suffix is a word part added to the end of a word, and -able means "able to be," so predictable means able to be predicted. The part pre- also has a real meaning, "before," but it sits at the beginning, which makes it a prefix, not a suffix. The part dict carries the main meaning in the middle, so it is the root, not the suffix. And predict can stand alone as a word, which makes it the base word here, not the suffix. Only the ending -able fits what a suffix is: a part joined to the end of a base word to change its meaning.
- In "The storm was unpredictable," which breakdown best helps you decode unpredictable?
Answer: Break un-pre-dict-a-ble; un- means not; predict means tell ahead; -able means can be
The best breakdown splits the word into un-pre-dict-a-ble and matches each part to its real meaning: un- means not, predict means to tell ahead, and -able means can be. Together, unpredictable means "cannot be told ahead," which fits a storm you can't guess. One choice invents word parts like unp- and redict and gives them made-up meanings, so the breakdown falls apart. Another keeps some real parts but pretends pred means storm and -ict means weather; those aren't real word parts, and it just borrows the sentence's topic instead of truly decoding. The last choice breaks off re- at the front, but the word begins with un-, not re-, so "re-predict-able" is not this word. Only the first breakdown uses the true prefix, root, and suffix.
- In the sentence, "We made a rearrangement of the desks," what does the prefix re- mean?
Answer: Re- means again, so rearrangement means arranging again.
The prefix re- means again, so rearrangement means arranging the desks again, or in a new way. The choice that says re- means not is wrong, because that negative meaning belongs to prefixes like un- or dis-, not re-. The choice that says re- means before is wrong, because that meaning belongs to the prefix pre-. The choice that says re- means back sounds close, since re- can suggest returning, but rearrange does not mean arranging backward. Only 'again' fits how the word is used in this sentence.
- In "Unfortunately, the bus was late," which shows the correct syllable breaks for unfortunately?
Answer: un-for-tu-nate-ly
The word unfortunately has five syllables: un-for-tu-nate-ly. Each part is a beat you can hear when you say the word slowly. The choice un-fort-un-ate-ly is wrong because it keeps the t with 'for' instead of starting the next syllable, so 'fort' takes a sound that belongs ahead. The choice un-for-tun-ate-ly is wrong because it pulls the n back to make 'tun,' splitting the middle sounds in the wrong place. The choice un-for-tu-nat-ely is wrong because it breaks between 'nat' and 'ely,' cutting the word after the wrong letter and leaving 'ely' instead of the clear ending 'nate-ly.' Only un-for-tu-nate-ly matches the beats you say when you sound the word out one syllable at a time.
- In "The international fair had many flags," which shows the correct syllable breaks for international, using syllables and known word parts?
Answer: in-ter-na-tion-al
International breaks into five syllables: in, ter, na, tion, and al, matching answer A. Answer B is wrong because it splits the sounds at the wrong points, joining letters that do not belong together. Answer C is wrong because it starts with a single letter as its own syllable, which does not match how the word sounds. Answer D is wrong because it groups letters into chunks that are too large to be true syllables.
- The prefix im- means not. Which word means not able to move?
Answer: immobile
Mobile means able to move, so im- plus mobile makes immobile, meaning not able to move. Impossible means not possible, impatient means not patient, and improper means not proper, but none of those describe movement.
- In the sentence "The coach gave the team encouragement after practice," what does the suffix -ment tell you about the word encouragement?
Answer: -ment means "action or result," so encouragement means the act of encouraging.
The suffix -ment turns a verb into a noun that names an action or result, so encouragement means the act of encouraging someone. The choice saying it means "in a certain way" describes what the suffix -ly does, and it also makes an adverb, not a noun. The choice saying it means "full of" describes the suffix -ful, so it does not fit -ment. The choice saying it means "a person who" describes the suffix -er or -or, which name people, not actions. Only "action or result" correctly explains what -ment does to encourage.
- In "The storm was unfortunately loud," which shows the correct syllable breaks for unfortunately?
Answer: un-for-tu-nate-ly
The word unfortunately breaks into five syllables: un, for, tu, nate, and ly, matching answer A. Answer B is wrong because it splits the sounds in the wrong places, like breaking off just an f. Answer C is wrong because it starts with a single letter as its own syllable, which does not match how the word sounds. Answer D is wrong because it joins nat and at together instead of keeping nate as its own syllable.
- In the sentence "The coach showed good sportsmanship," how should a reader decode the word sportsmanship?
Answer: Break the word into sports-man-ship, read each part, then use man plus -ship to figure out the meaning.
The best plan splits sportsmanship into the real parts sports, man, and ship. Each part is easy to say, and man plus the ending -ship helps you understand what the whole word means. Another choice splits the letters into spo-rtsm-an-ship, but those groups are not real syllables, so blending them makes a nonsense sound. One choice claims sportsmanship has the prefix re-, but there is no re- anywhere in this word, so "re-sport" is wrong. The last choice says to read the whole word as one long sound without pausing, but a long word like this is much harder to decode when you do not break it into parts. Only the first plan uses the word's true parts to help you both say it and know its meaning.
- In the sentence "The bus provides transportation to school," what does the root port mean?
Answer: Port means "carry," so transportation means carrying across.
The root port means "carry," so transportation is the act of carrying people or things from one place to another—just like a bus carries students to school. The choice saying port means "write" is wrong because writing has nothing to do with a bus moving people. The choice saying port means "look" is also wrong, since seeing something is not the same as moving it. The choice saying port means "talk" is wrong too, because talking does not carry anyone anywhere. Knowing that port means "carry" also helps you understand words like transport and portable.
- Dis- means not; -ment means state of. What does disagreement mean?
Answer: state of not agreeing
Break disagreement into dis- and agreement: dis- means not, so disagreement is not agreeing, and -ment makes it a state. So disagreement is a state of not agreeing. The tempting wrong answer is "full of agreement," but that treats dis- as adding to agreement instead of negating it.
- In "The puppy was playfully jumping," how do suffixes help you decode the word playfully?
Answer: Break it into play-ful-ly; -ful means full of, -ly means in a way; then sound out and blend the parts
The best answer splits playfully into play, ful, and ly. Knowing that -ful means "full of" and -ly means "in a way" helps you sound out and blend each part to read the whole word. One choice breaks the word at the wrong spots, like pla-yfu-lly, and skips vowel sounds, so it does not decode the word correctly. Another choice finds a real suffix, -ly, but then invents a meaning; -ly does not turn a word into its opposite, so "not playing" is wrong. The last choice sees the suffixes but only sounds out play and guesses the rest, which leaves out word parts you need to read the whole word. Only the first choice uses every part to decode playfully.
- Which syllable split is correct for the word incredible?
Answer: in-cred-i-ble
Break incredible into its spoken beats: in / cred / i / ble, so in-cred-i-ble is the correct split. The tempting mistake is "in-cred-ible," which combines "i" and "ble" into one syllable and leaves the word with only three syllables instead of four.
- In "That was an extraordinary trick," which strategy correctly helps you decode extraordinary?
Answer: Break the word into syllables, ex-tra-or-di-na-ry, then blend the syllables together to say it.
The best strategy is to break the word into its real syllables, ex-tra-or-di-na-ry, and blend them smoothly together, because sounding out each part in order helps you read a long word correctly. Looking only at the first letters and guessing from the sentence skips most of the word, so you never really read it. Breaking it into ext-raor-din-ary uses the wrong syllable chunks, which makes the sounds come out wrong, like saying "ext" for "exit." Splitting it into extra and ordinary and only saying the second part leaves off the beginning, so you never say the whole word. Only blending all the real syllables lets you decode extraordinary the right way.
- How could you decode the word "invention" using syllables and a suffix?
Answer: Break it into in-ven-tion, sound out each syllable, and use -tion to signal a noun.
The best choice splits invention into in-ven-tion, sounds out each syllable, and knows that the suffix -tion signals the word is a noun. This uses both syllables and a real suffix correctly. One choice keeps inven as one chunk and then tells you to skip the middle syllable sound, but skipping a syllable means you lose part of how the word actually sounds. Another choice splits it as in-vent-ion and calls -ion its own separate word, but -ion is only part of the true suffix -tion, not a word on its own. The last choice breaks the syllables correctly but names -vent as the suffix; -vent is not a suffix, and it is the ending -tion that tells you the word is a noun. Only the first choice uses both the syllables and the suffix the right way.
- The international game had many teams. Which shows the correct syllable breaks for the word international?
Answer: in-ter-na-tion-al
The correct answer is A because international correctly breaks into the syllables in, ter, na, tion, and al. Choice B is wrong because it splits sounds in the wrong places, such as int and ion. Choice C is wrong because tern and io do not match how the word is actually pronounced. Choice D is wrong because i and nter break the first syllable incorrectly.
- In "The coach praised her responsibility," which breakdown best helps you decode responsibility?
Answer: re-spon-si-bil-i-ty; read each syllable, then blend them, noticing that -ity is a suffix
The best breakdown is re-spon-si-bil-i-ty, because it splits the word into real syllables you can read one at a time and then blend together. It also points out that -ity is a suffix, which combines phonics with word parts to help you say the whole word.
The choice that reads res-pons-ibi-lity is wrong because it groups letters that do not match syllable patterns, and treating the ending as one long chunk hides the beat of each syllable. The choice that reads resp-on-sib-il-ity is wrong because splitting between the two s letters cuts across sounds instead of following syllable breaks, so the pieces do not sound right. The choice that reads re-sponsi-bility is wrong because sponsi is not a real word part, and -bility is not the true suffix; the actual suffix is -ity. When you break a long word, look for syllable patterns and known word parts like -ity, then blend the syllables smoothly.
- In the sentence "The map was unreliable during the hike," how should a reader break the word unreliable into syllables to decode it?
Answer: Break the word into un-re-li-a-ble, sound out each part, then blend them together.
The correct answer breaks the word into its real syllables and blends them, which is the strategy skilled readers use for longer words. Choice A is wrong because guessing without sounding out the word can lead to misreading it. Choice C is wrong because it groups the letters into syllables that do not match how the word is actually broken up. Choice D is wrong because skipping the prefix leaves out part of the word's meaning and sound.
