«How do you find your new apartment?»
This question is ambiguous. It can be interpreted in two different ways, making either one of these answers correct:
- «I find it dirty and in need of repair.»
In this interpretation, it’s treated as a question to somebody, asking them what they think of their new apartment. The response is given by somebody else.
- «You find it by looking through rental listings. You could also hire a real-estate agent.»
Here, it’s interpreted as a question that’s asking how people, in general, go about finding new apartments. The response can either be given by the same person who asked the question or it (rhetorically) can be answered by the same person who asked it.
It’s impossible to know from the sentence alone which meaning is meant. It can only be determined from context.
If the author was saying there is only a single meaning that can be assigned to the sentence, then they are wrong. If they were talking about what meaning they had assigned to the sentence, then that’s fine.
-
#1
Hello,
I wonder if the sentence can be ambiguous between the two meaings below.
How do you find your new house?
Meaning #1 I’d like to know the way you find your new house.
Meaning #2 I’d like to know what you think of the house you just moved in.
How about using the past tense?
How did you find your new house?
Well, on second thought, the example I gave might not be a good one, but I hope I have got my point across.
Thank you in advance.
-
#2
«I’d like to know the way you find your new house.» This isn’t completely correct and I’m unsure whether you’d be asking for directions to someone’s new house, or literally asking them how they bought their house. I guess you could be trying to express, «How are you finding your new house?» How are you liking it so far, etc.? This would be much better than the wording you used. Alternatively you could say, «How are you liking your new house?» This is the most standard and straightforward way.
«I’d like to know what you think of the house you just moved in.» This isn’t grammatically correct either, I don’t believe a sentence can end in a preposition in this case. So you could say, «I’d like to know what you think of your new house.» «You just moved in,» would be implied in this case because it’s new.
So yes, the two phrases, now corrected, are more or less communicating the same concept.
«How did you find your new house?» This would be like literally asking them how they found it. Did they find it in a newspaper, through a friend, was it in their neighborhood, etc.? How did they physically find it?
As for the wording, I think it would be a lot less ambiguous if you said, «How are you finding your new house,» and not «How do you find?»
Last edited: Sep 12, 2008
-
#3
Hello,
I wonder if the sentence can be ambiguous between the two meaings below.
How do you find your new house?
Meaning #1 I’d like to know the way you find your new house.
Meaning #2 I’d like to know what you think of the house you just moved in.
How about using the past tense?
How did you find your new house?
Well, on second thought, the example I gave might not be a good one, but I hope I have got my point across.
Thank you in advance.
Yes you are correct, the sentence is ambiguous in each tense exactly for the reasons you give.
If written:-
1) «Please direct me to your new house» or «How can I locate your new house?»
2) «Are you pleased / happy with your new house?»
I think that there would be much less chance of ambiguity.
Cagey
post mod (English Only / Latin)
-
#4
I wonder if the sentence can be ambiguous between the two meanings below.
A How do you find your new house?
Meaning #1 I’d like to know the way you find your new house.
Meaning #2 I’d like to know what you think of the house you just moved in.
How about using the past tense?
B How did you find your new house?
By itself, I would normally understand sentence A to have meaning #2, to be asking how they like the new house. Certain unusual contexts might lead me understand meaning #1; For instance, if someone said that they always get lost when they go anywhere.
When the past is used as in B, the situation is reversed. By itself, I understand it to mean «How did you learn that your new house was available to be bought or rented?» But in some contexts I might understand it to mean, «How did you feel about your new house when you first lived there?»
It is not surprising that the meaning would be clear in context, but ambiguous without a context.
-
#5
Hi! If someone was already in my house and asked me that, I would think that they’re referring to what I think about it. If someone asked me out of my house or on the phone, I would probably say «Can I give you directions?» If you really wanted to use that phrase «How do you find your new house?», I would suggest using a follow up question for clarification. Hope this helps!
-
#6
Thank you all for your answers.
I really appreciate your help. =)
-
#7
The ambiguity of this phrase is well-known, notably the subject of a joke told by one of the Beatles:
«How do you find America?»
«Turn left at Greenland.»
-
#8
The ambiguity of this phrase is well-known, notably the subject of a joke told by one of the Beatles:
«How do you find America?»
«Turn left at Greenland.»
Thank you, Matching Mole. Out of curiosity, would people laugh if I made a joke of this sort? Or would it sound lame?
Thank you again. =)
-
#9
Thank you, Matching Mole. Out of curiosity, would people laugh if I made a joke of this sort? Or would it sound lame?
Thank you again. =)
We laughed when John Lennon said it, but that was a long time ago and it has been rather over-worked since.
Still, when you are as famous as he was then, we would laugh if you said it
-
#10
We laughed when John Lennon said it, but that was a long time ago and it has been rather over-worked since.
Still, when you are as famous as he was then, we would laugh if you said it![:)]( "Smile :)")
Thank you, panj.
Then I’d better not use it.
Download Article
Download Article
Maybe you are in the middle of an exam and suddenly come across a word that makes absolutely no sense. This is usually a cue for most people to panic if a dictionary is not handy. But don’t worry! There are several steps you can take to help you figure out the meaning of a word without a dictionary.
-
1
Read the entire sentence. It can be very frustrating to have your reading interrupted by an unknown word. If you are in the middle of an exam or an assignment for school or work, it can also be very stressful. If you can’t reach for a dictionary, take other steps to figure out what the word means.
- Your first step is to go back and re-read the entire sentence. You probably lost track of what your were reading when you stumbled upon the new word.
- Think about the content of the sentence. Do you understand the sentence without using the new word? Or is it incomprehensible?
- Try underlining the unknown word. This will help you separate it from the rest of the sentence.
-
2
Identify words you do understand. You can often use other words in the sentence to help you define the unknown word. Think about what else is happening in the sentence. Hopefully, this will help you figure out whether the unknown word is a noun, verb, or adjective.
- For example, maybe you are looking at a sentence that says, «It was a very sultry day in the middle of the summer.» You probably understand each word except for «sultry».
- Think about what you know about the summer. It is likely that «sultry» has something to do with weather.
- Maybe your biology exam has this sentence, «Many members of the canine family are predators, looking for other animals to eat.» You can surmise that «predators» prey on other animals.
Advertisement
-
3
Look for illustrative examples. Once you have examined the other words in that sentence, you can move on. Start looking at the sentences that follow the unknown word. An author will often give descriptions that can help you figure out the meaning of an unknown word.[1]
- For example, take the sentence, «It was a very sultry day in the middle of summer.» It could be followed by the sentence, «The heat and humidity made it appealing to sit in the shade and drink lemonade.»
- You can now more confidently define «sultry». The descriptive words such as «heat» and «humidity» are further clues that it is a description of the weather.
- Sometimes, the descriptive examples will be right in the original sentence. For example, it could say, «Sultry days are so damp and hot.»
-
4
Think logically. Sometimes, the context clues will not be as clear. You will have to use logic to figure out the word. You can also use experience, or prior knowledge, of the topic.[2]
- For example, maybe a sentence says, «In the antebellum South, many plantation owners kept slaves.» It is likely that «antebellum» is the unknown word.
- The sentence itself does not offer many clues. However, the following sentences are, «But after the Civil War, slavery was outlawed. This was a major change between the two periods.»
- Think about what you know now. You are reading information about two different time periods, right? Before the Civil War and after the Civil War.
- You can now make a pretty logical assumption about the word «antebellum». Based on your experience and reading the following sentences, you know it probably means «before the war».
-
5
Use other context clues. Sometimes an author will offer other types of clues. Look for restatement. This is where the meaning of the word is restated in other words.
- Here is an example of «restatement»: «The pig squealed in pain. The high-pitched cry was very loud.»
- You can also look for «appositives». This is where an author highlights a specific word by placing a further description between two commas.
- This is an example of the use of an appositive: «The Taj Mahal, which is a massive white marble mausoleum, is one of the most famous landmarks in India.
- You may not know the words «Taj Mahal», but the use of appositives makes it clear that it is a landmark.
Advertisement
-
1
Look for a prefix. Etymology is the study of the meanings of words. It also looks at the origins of words, and how they have changed over time. By learning about etymology, you can find new ways to define unknown words without using a dictionary.
- Start by looking at each part of the word in question. It is very helpful to look to see if the word has a common prefix.
- Prefixes are the first part of the word. For example, a common prefix is «anti».
- «Anti» means «against». Knowing this should help you figure out the meanings of words such as «antibiotic» or «antithesis».
- «Extra» is a prefix that means «beyond». Use this to figure out words such as «extraterrestrial» or «extracurricular».
- Other common prefixes are «hyper», «intro», «macro» and «micro». You can also look for prefixes such as «multi», «neo» and «omni».
-
2
Pay attention to the suffix. The suffix are the letters at the end of the word. There are several suffixes in the English language that are common. They can help you figure out what kind of word you are looking at.
- Some suffixes indicate a noun. For example, «ee» at the end of the word almost always indicates a noun. Some examples are «trainee» and «employee».
- «-ity» is also a common suffix for a noun. Examples include «electricity» and «velocity».
- Other suffixes indicate verbs. For example, «-ate». This is used in words such as «create» and «deviate».
- «-ize» is another verb suffix. Think about the words «exercise» and «prioritize».
-
3
Identify root words. A root word is the core word, without a prefix or suffix. Most words in the English language come from either a Latin or Greek root word.[3]
- By learning common root words, you can begin to identify new words more easily. You will also be able to recognize words that have had a prefix or suffix added.
- An example of a root word is «love». You can add many things to the word: «-ly» to make «lovely».
- «Bio» is a Greek root word. It means «life, or living matter». Think about how we have adapted this root word to become «biology», «biography», or «biodegradable».
- The root word mater- or matri- comes from the Latin word mater, meaning mother. By understanding this root, you can better understand the definitions of words like matron, maternity, matricide, matrimony, and matriarchal.
Advertisement
-
1
Keep notes. If you can increase the size of your vocabulary, you will find yourself less likely to encounter unknown words. There are several steps you can take to effectively build your vocabulary. For example, you can start by writing notes.
- Every time you encounter an unfamiliar word, write it down. Then later, when you have access to a dictionary, you can look it up for a precise definition.
- Keep a small pack of sticky notes with you while you read. You can write the unfamiliar word on a note and just stick it on the page to return to later.
- Start carrying a small notebook. You can use it to keep track of words that you don’t know and new words that you have learned.
-
2
Utilize multiple resources. There are a lot of tools that you can use to help you build your vocabulary. The most obvious is a dictionary. Purchase a hard copy, or book mark an online dictionary that you find useful.
- A thesaurus can also be very helpful. It will give you synonyms for all of the new words you are learning.
- Try a word of the day calendar. These handle desk tools will give you a new word to learn each day. They are available online and at bookstores.
-
3
Read a lot. Reading is one of the best ways to increase the size of your vocabulary. Make it a point to read each day. Both fiction and non-fiction will be helpful.
- Novels can expose you to new words. For example, reading the latest legal thriller will likely expose you to some legal jargon you’ve never heard before.
- Read the newspaper. Some papers even have a daily feature that highlights language and explores the meanings of words.
- Make time to read each day. You could make it a point to scroll through the news while you drink your morning coffee, for example.
-
4
Play games. Learning can actually be fun! There are many enjoyable activities that can help you to build your vocabulary. Try doing crossword puzzles.
- Crossword puzzles are a great way to learn new words. They will also stretch your brain by giving you interesting clues to figure out the right word.
- Play Scrabble. You’ll quickly learn that unusual words can often score the most points.
Advertisement
Add New Question
-
Question
Is there a list of prefixes/suffixes, or a simple etymology handbook, that I can obtain from the Internet or someplace else?
I’m sure there are many! Check websites like Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or other booksellers who might sell grammar handbooks. You could also try checking your local book stores.
-
Question
How does one find out and understand the formation of words?
If you can recognize the prefixes, suffixes, and anything else that might alter the root word, then you’ll know how the root is being altered. For example, ‘amuse’ is made up of ‘a’ as in ‘not’ and ‘muse’ referring to ponderous thought. Even if you don’t recognize the root ‘muse’ because it’s a more archaic term, you know that the ‘a’ inverses it’s meaning.
-
Question
How can I know the exact meaning of a word using dictionaries from many leanings given?
Substitute each meaning into the sentence where you encountered the word, and see which definition makes the most sense within the context of that sentence.
See more answers
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
Advertisement
-
Keep a notebook. This could be useful if you come across a word that you want to learn later, if you want to list any words that share suffixes or prefixes (both of which are known as «roots», which also include anything that goes into the middle.)
-
Read etymology dictionaries. They are found online and presumably in bookstores if you look hard enough.
-
Make your own notes in your personal English notebook to remember important points later on.
Advertisement
References
About This Article
Article SummaryX
To understand a word without a dictionary, try re-reading the entire sentence to see if the context helps you to find out what the word means. If it’s unclear, try to figure it out by thinking about the meaning of the words you’re familiar with, since the unknown word might have a similar meaning. Additionally, look for common prefixes in words, such as «anti,» which means against, or «extra,» which means beyond. Next, check the following sentences for clues, such as the topic the word is related to. Alternatively, keep a list of unknown words so you can check them in a dictionary at a later date. For tips on how to identify root words and how to learn words by doing crossword puzzles, read on!
Did this summary help you?
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 215,260 times.
Reader Success Stories
-
Aaron Junior
Jul 26, 2016
«This article has really helped me especially finding the meaning of the word using prefixes, suffixes, and word…» more
Did this article help you?
How to Guess What a Word Means
Need to know what a new word means now? Did you know the English language has over 1,000,000 words? Yet the average adult learner has a vocabulary of only 40,000-50,000 words. With so many words out there, how can you learn them all? There are various strategies that you can learn which will help you to deduce what a word means. Yes, you could just look them up in an English dictionary; but, studies show that you most likely won’t remember the word after a while. However, by making your brain figure it out, a trail of understanding is left and you are more likely to remember the meaning, thus improving your vocabulary!
Perhaps you are taking a standardized test and are being asked about particular words. These strategies will help you immensely! We also provide some example sentences to help find the meaning of the word needed or of any individual words you need help with.
Context — If the word is used in a sentence, look at the other words and see if they give you clues to the word’s meaning. This may help to guess, at least, part of the word’s meaning.
EX. «‘Proximal’ refers to points on the body that are close to the torso, as opposed to ‘distal.
Given the context of the sentence, we can see the word «opposed» which means «to be opposite of.» If ‘proximal’ is opposite of ‘distal’ we can conclude that the word distal likely is used to refer to parts of the body that are far from the torso, like fingers. At this point, you can look in the dictionary to check our guess. You can also look at similar antonyms or synonyms for meaning of the new or unfamiliar words as well. While most English words act as idioms, the meaning of a word can be tricky if you are learning English or are learning more advanced words. Collocations can also help in the word meaning process by using context clues to find the correct answer or meaning to the word’s meaning.
STRUCTURE- Probably the most important skill when it comes to understanding words. The internal structure of words is called morphology. Morphology consists of morphemes—which are minimal units of meaning, rules for combining them into words, and rules for pronouncing the resulting words. For this article, we will keep it simple and go over a few key things.
Using your understanding of morphology helps you break down a word into smaller pieces so that you can guess what it means. For example, let’s use a nonsense word, say, POIB.
*What would POIB-able mean? (Capable of being POIBed)
*What is the word class of POIB-able? (Adjective)
*So, what is the word class of POIB? (Verb)
This exercise is to show how we can make some assumptions about the word we don’t know simply by how it is used in the sentence and what affixes are attached to it (affixes are a type of morpheme). This is how we can tell the word’s word class: noun, verb, adjective, adverb, etc.
MORPHEME- A morpheme may be a word or less than a word. (EX. nation, re-, -al). Morphemes cannot be broken down into smaller units.
TYPES OF MORPHEMES- Prefixes, Suffixes, Infixes, Plurals, Possessives, and base(root) words.
**Free morphemes are words that can stand on their own and have meaning.
For example, «nation» does not require a prefix or a suffix attached to it to make sense. It’s a word by itself.
**Bound Morphemes cannot stand on their own and must be attached to another morpheme to create a word.
For example, «dental»= dent + al. Together they make a word, but neither «dent» nor «al» are words themselves. All affixes are boundmorphemes. Some base (root) words are bound.
AFFIXES — anything that is added to a base (root) word. Determine how the affix affects the base (root) word it is attached to.
*Examples of affixes that change word class (i.e. from a verb to adverb)-er, -ly, -al, -y, -ish
*Examples of affixes that add to meaning of the base (root) word.anti-, omni-, re-, -s, -ed, dis-
***There are only about 75 prefixes in English. There are less suffixes. Memorize them.
Now that you understand what a morpheme is. The next step is to take your word and try to break it down into morphemes. Let’s use the word «predetermined» as our example. Predetermined= pre + determine + ed
We may know that the base (root) word ‘determine’ means to decide; the prefix ‘pre’ means before, and the suffix ‘ed’ is used to mean the past tense of a verb.
Therefore, «predetermined» would mean to have already decided the outcome of something before it happened.
Another example: quadruped = quadru + ped, meaning four feet. Both «quad» and «ped» are bound morphemes that must be attached to another morpheme to create a word.
KNOW YOUR ROOTS — Sometimes after you break down your word, you still may not know the meaning because you don’t know what the base (root) word means. Let’s say that you didn’t know the above root word «ped» was a Greek origin word meaning ‘feet.’ How could you try to guess what it meant?
*Think of other words you know that have «ped» in them?
- What do these words have in common?
EX. pedestal, pedal, pedestrian, millipede
You guessed it, FEET!
With the strategies above you can usually guess what a word means. If you are taking a test, use what you’ve assumed about the word to help with the process of elimination. Looking at word lists can also help in the meaning process.
Happy vocabulary building!
There are a few things that can help you estimate the meaning of a word, even if you have never read or heard it before. If you are taking a standardized test and will be asked about particular words, if you are learning English or if you just want to expand your vocabulary these strategies will help you immensely. Use the words around the unfamiliar word to help you guess the meaning, or use your knowledge of suffixes and prefixes to help you estimate the meaning of the new word. By figuring out the meaning of a new word, you may be more likely to remember the meaning and the new word.
Sound out the unfamiliar word if you are reading it. A word that seems unfamiliar at first may be a word you already know once you hear it out loud.
Look at the other words in the sentence to see if they give you clues to the new word’s meaning. This is called «context,» and may help you guess at part of the word’s meaning. For example, «proximal» refers to points on the body that are close to the torso, as opposed to «distal.» Here you can see the words «opposed to» which mean «to be opposite.» If «proximal» is the opposite of «distal,» you can conclude that the word «distal» likely is used to refer to parts of the body that are far from the torso such as fingers.
Break the new word down into its smallest parts. These small parts are called «morphemes.» A morpheme may be a word or less than a word. For example, «nation,» «re-,» and «-al» are all morphemes. Morphemes cannot be broken down into smaller units. There are many types of morphemes including prefixes, suffixes and root words. Free morphemes are words that can stand on their own and still have meaning. For example, «nation» does not require a prefix or a suffix attached to it to make sense. It’s a word by itself. Bound morphemes cannot stand on their own and must be attached to another morpheme to create a word. For example, the «s» in the word «dogs» is a bound morpheme. Without the word «dog,» the «s» has no meaning.
Learn about the structure of English words. English words have their roots in Greek, Latin and Germanic languages. Sometimes after you break down your word, you still may not know the meaning because you don’t know what the root word means. For example, let’s say you read the word «millipede.» There are two roots in this word. The root word «ped» is a word of Latin origin meaning «feet.» You can guess what it means by thinking of other words that have the root «ped.» You might think of «pedestal,» «pedal» and «pedestrian.» From these words, you can guess that your new word has something to do with feet. You might guess that «mille» has something to do with «million,» and you’d be on the right track. It means «thousand,» but in this word just means «many.» So, a millipede is something with many legs. If you check your dictionary, you will find that a millipede is an insect with many legs. This means you guessed most of the meaning of the word simply from looking at the root words.
Learn English affixes. Anything that is added to the beginning or end of a root word is an affix. Affixes include suffixes, prefixes and pluralization. Knowing the affixes can help you determine how the affix affects the root word it is attached to. Some affixes change the word class, for example from a verb to adverb. These include affixes like «-er,» «-ly» and «-ish.» Some affixes add to the meaning of the root word. These include affixes like «anti-,» «re-» and «-ed.» While it may take some time to learn them all, by breaking words down into morphemes you will begin to recognize which are affixes and which are roots. For example, let’s use the word «predetermined» as an example. «Predetermined» is made up of the prefix «pre,» the root «determine» and the suffix «ed.» You may know that the root word «determine» means to decide, the prefix «pre» means before and the suffix «ed» is used to mean the past tense of a verb. Therefore, «predetermined» means to have already decided the outcome of something before it happened.
Tip
Read. The more you read, the more words you will know, without even realizing it. Keep your dictionary on hand, so you can check your guesses.
На основании Вашего запроса эти примеры могут содержать грубую лексику.
На основании Вашего запроса эти примеры могут содержать разговорную лексику.
что означает это слово
что значит это слово
что это слово обозначает
что это слово значит
значении этого слова
I forget what this word means.
Most of us know what this word means.
I don’t know what this word means.
It is not worth thinking what this word means.
Not everyone knows what this word means, and call him any big brick house.
What this word means will be best illustrated by examples.
Who knows what this word means?
Who knows what this word means?
This is the first post of heading phraseology, so let’s all see what this word means.
Это первый пост из рубрики Фразеология, поэтому давайте вообще разберемся, что значит это слово.
I don’t know what this word means. I’ll look it up in the dictionary.
Do you know what this word means?
You remember what this word means?
Anyone know what this word means?
You then have a chance of using your senses to tell you what this word means and also what language the patient is talking.
Тогда у вас появляется возможность, используя ваши чувства, понять, что значит это слово и на каком языке говорит пациент.
How about we continue to pretend to ask people what this word means.
«Do you remember what this word means?»
Do you know what this word means? Brotherhood.
We have already forgotten what this word means.
You pronounce it with different colors and meanings, and try and figure out what this word means to you.
Вы произносите его разными цветами и значениями и пытаетесь понять, что это слово значит для вас».
Description: Can you figure out what this word means?
Результатов: 35. Точных совпадений: 35. Затраченное время: 98 мс
Documents
Корпоративные решения
Спряжение
Синонимы
Корректор
Справка и о нас
Индекс слова: 1-300, 301-600, 601-900
Индекс выражения: 1-400, 401-800, 801-1200
Индекс фразы: 1-400, 401-800, 801-1200