Helping English

Five Words in Context

Figure out the meanings of the following five words by looking closely and carefully at the sentences below.

1. determine               a. The doctor in the emergency room determined

verb.                              that Fred’s ankle was sprained, not broken.

                                  b. I always take a calculator to the supermarket.   

                                                Otherwise it takes too long to determine whether the

                                      “suer-giant” size or the “family economy” size is the

                                        better buy.

     2  dispose                        a.  The sing said, “Lungs at work. Please dispose of all

           verb                                  cigarettes, cigars, and pipes before entering."                            

                                                b. After losing forty pounds, Herb disposed of all

                                                    the clothes that reminded him of his former size.

3. restore                       a. During the 1980s, millions of people gave money to

verb                                restore the Statue of Liberty. The torch and the 1,600

                                        iron bands that hold the copper skin to the frame

                                        were replaced.

                                    b. Amazingly, there have been cases where a bump on

                                        the head has restored the sight of a blind person.

4. evident                      a. The fact that my aunt dyes her hair is evident – her

adj.                                  grey roots are seen.

                                    b. He signed the agreement with evident satisfaction.

5. preserve                    a. To preserve its valuable old fabrics, the museum

verb                                keeps them away from bright light and extreme

                                        temperatures.

                                    b. Steps are being taken to preserve the remaining

                                         giant redwood trees of California and Oregon.

Exercise: Check your understanding of the five words by matching each word with its definitions.

______1 determine                     a. obvious; clear

______2 dispose                          b. to bring back to a formal normal

                                                              condition; repair

______3 evident                           c. to find out exactly; figure out

______4 preserve                         d. to throw or give away; get rid of

______5 restore                            e. to keep safe; protect; to keep in good

                                                             condition

Answer Key:

1 c – 2 d– 3 a – 4 e – 5 b

Check 1

Complete each sentence below the correct word from the box. Use each word once.

1. Cody’s concern for his sister was  ______________. He kept asking how she was feeling.
2. The twins are so alike that even their aunts and uncles can’t always ________________which is which.
3. We need to ____________of the junk in the garage. Let’s put it on the curb for the garbage pickup.
4. Some people coat their unfinished wood houses with used motor oil in order to _____________the wood against damage from moisture.
5. My brother plans to _______________his 1957 Chevrolet to its original condition. To do so, he’ll have to replace several parts.

Answer Key

1 evident – 2 determine – 3 dispose – 4 preserve – 5 restore