CALT CALT Vocabulary Development and Word Knowledge 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which prefix means 'against' or 'opposite,' as seen in words like 'antidote,' 'antisocial,' and 'antonym'?
- pre-
- anti- (Correct answer)
- sub-
- inter-
Correct answer: anti-
The prefix 'anti-' derives from Greek meaning 'against' or 'opposite,' and recognizing it unlocks the meaning of a large family of English words.
Question 2: A CALT is planning vocabulary instruction and wants to prioritize words most likely to improve reading comprehension across multiple subjects. Which tier should be the primary focus?
- Tier 1 — everyday conversational words
- Tier 2 — general academic vocabulary (Correct answer)
- Tier 3 — highly technical domain-specific terms
- All tiers equally
Correct answer: Tier 2 — general academic vocabulary
Tier 2 words have the greatest instructional leverage because they appear frequently across content areas and are rarely learned through casual conversation.
Question 3: The word 'manuscript' contains the root 'manu.' What does this root mean?
- Mind
- Many
- Hand (Correct answer)
- Made
Correct answer: Hand
The Latin root 'manu' means 'hand,' as seen in words like 'manual,' 'manufacture,' and 'manuscript' (originally written by hand).
Question 4: Which strategy asks students to rate their familiarity with a word on a scale before and after instruction to monitor vocabulary growth?
- Vocabulary self-collection strategy
- Word sort
- Knowledge rating scale (Correct answer)
- Frayer model
Correct answer: Knowledge rating scale
A knowledge rating scale has students rank words from 'never seen it' to 'can use it,' building metacognitive awareness of their own vocabulary knowledge.
Question 5: Which term describes a single word form that carries multiple related meanings, such as 'bright' meaning both luminous and intelligent?
- Homophone
- Polyseme (Correct answer)
- Antonym
- Morpheme
Correct answer: Polyseme
A polyseme is a single word with multiple related meanings, unlike homophones which are different words that happen to sound alike.
Question 6: When a student learns the word 'inspect' and then rapidly understands 'spectacle,' 'spectator,' and 'introspection,' this is an example of which vocabulary learning mechanism?
- Rote memorization
- Morphological generalization (Correct answer)
- Semantic priming
- Incidental acquisition
Correct answer: Morphological generalization
Morphological generalization occurs when knowledge of a root or affix enables a student to infer the meaning of new words containing that same morpheme.
Question 7: Which of the following best describes the role of robust vocabulary instruction as defined by Beck, McKeown, and Kucan?
- Brief, incidental exposure to new words during read-alouds
- Multiple encounters with words in varied contexts combined with deep processing activities (Correct answer)
- Assigning dictionary definitions to copy and memorize
- Teaching phonics rules alongside new vocabulary weekly
Correct answer: Multiple encounters with words in varied contexts combined with deep processing activities
Robust vocabulary instruction requires frequent, varied encounters and activities that promote deep processing, not superficial or single-exposure methods.
CALT CALT Vocabulary Development and Word Knowledge 5
Which prefix means 'against' or 'opposite,' as seen in words like 'antidote,' 'antisocial,' and 'antonym'?