SAT II Literature : Context-Based Meaning of a Word
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT II Literature
All SAT II Literature Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #41 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Prose
Passage adapted from Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre (1847)
"Presentiments are strange things! and so are sympathies, and so are signs ; and the three combined make one mystery to which humanity has not yet found the key. I never laughed at presentiments in my life, because I have had strange ones of my own. Sympathies, I believe, exist (for instance, between far-distant, long-absent, wholly estranged relatives ; asserting, notwithstanding, their alienation, the unity of the source to which each traces his origin), whose workings baffle mortal comprehension. And signs, for aught we know, may be but the sympathies of nature with man."
In this context "presentiments" most nearly means _________________.
a new idea
an abstract thought
knowledge of the past
a criticism
a hunch
a hunch
The answer is a hunch. The word "presentiment" implies an intuitive feeling about the future that the word "hunch" acts as a strong synonym for. While it is important to know the meaning of this word, the answer can be inferred from the text or etymologically broken down. Pre- and sentiment implies an idea or thought that occurred before something else, and thus a hunch would be the only fit for that category.
Example Question #42 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Prose
Passage adapted from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice (1813)
"Elizabeth listened in silence, but was not convinced ; their behavior at the assembly had not been calculated to please in general ; and with more quickness of observation and less pliancy of temper than her sister, and with a judgement too unassailed by any attention to herself, she was very little disposed to approve them. They were in fact very fine ladies ; not deficient in good humour when they were pleased, nor in the power of being agreeable where they chose it ; but proud and conceited. They were rather handsome, had been educated in one of the first private seminaries in town, had a fortune of twenty thousand pounds, were in the habit of spending more than they ought, and of associating with people of rank ; and were therefore in every respect entitled to think well of themselves, and meanly of others. They were of a respectable family in the north of England ; a circumstance more deeply impressed on their memories than that their brother’s fortune and their own had been acquired by trade."
The word "unassailed" in this context most nearly means _______________.
unkempt
criticized
ridculed
assaulted
unbeset
unbeset
The answer is "unbeset." The word comes from the phrase "and a judgement too unassailed by any attention to herself" suggesting that her judgment is in some way flawed, specifically because it has been allowed free reign by not having to call attention to its own characteristics. "Unbeset" works in this case because beset and assailed are strong synonyms and thus their negations are as well.
Example Question #191 : Sat Subject Test In Literature
Passage adapted from Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre (1847)
"Presentiments are strange things! and so are sympathies, and so are signs ; and the three combined make one mystery to which humanity has not yet found the key. I never laughed at presentiments in my life, because I have had strange ones of my own. Sympathies, I believe, exist (for instance, between far-distant, long-absent, wholly estranged relatives ; asserting, notwithstanding, their alienation, the unity of the source to which each traces his origin), whose workings baffle mortal comprehension. And signs, for aught we know, may be but the sympathies of nature with man."
In this context the word "sympathies" most nearly means ________________.
feelings of deep concern
feelings of inexplicable affinity
feelings of compassion
feelings of anger
feelings of sadness
feelings of inexplicable affinity
The answer is "feelings of inexplicable affinity." One may be moved to respond with feelings of deep concern or feelings of compassion, but those are connotations of the word with which we use it today. Always remember that these passages usually come from authors who lived centuries ago, and be wary of different word usage. The definition can also be inferred from the text. The author compares sympathies to "the unity of the source to which each traces his origin" implying feelings of affinity, and ends the statement arguing that sympathies "baffle mortal comprehension" rendering them inexplicable.
Example Question #44 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Prose
All that day the heat was terrible. The wind blew close to the ground; it rooted among the tussock grass, slithered along the road, so that the white pumice dust swirled in our faces, settled and sifted over us and was like a dry-skin itching for growth on our bodies. The horses stumbled along, coughing and chuffing. The pack horse was sick -- with a big open sore rubbed under the belly. Now and again she stopped short, threw back her head, looked at us as though she were going to cry, and whinnied. Hundreds of larks shrilled; the sky was slate colour, and the sound of the larks reminded me of slate pencils scraping over its surface. There was nothing to be seen but wave after wave of tussock grass, patched with purple orchids and manuka bushes covered with thick spider webs.
Jo rode ahead. He wore a blue galatea shirt, corduroy trousers and riding boots. A white handkerchief, spotted with red -- it looked as though his nose had been bleeding on it -- was knotted round his throat.Wisps of white hair straggled from under his wideawake -- his moustache and eyebrows were called white -- he slouched in the saddle, grunting. Not once that day had he sung "I don't care, for don't you see, My wife' mother was in front of me!... ” It was the first day we had been without it for a month, and now there seemed something uncanny in his silence. Hin rode beside me, white as a clown; his black eyes glittered, and he kept shooting out his tongue and moistening his lips. He was dressed in a Jaeger vest, and a pair of blue duck trousers, fastened round the waist with a plaited leather belt. We had hardly spoken since dawn. At noon we had lunched off fly biscuits and apricots by the side of a swampy creek.
(1912)
Based on context clues, a "wideawake" is a type of ___________________.
Hairstyle
Jacket
Riding boot
Hat
Bandana
Hat
The context this word appears in: "wisps of white hair straggled from under his wideawake," tells us that it is something that contains hair. The only logical choice from the provided options is a "hat." A "bandana" can also be worn on the head, but we know from the passage that this character is wearing a bandana (not called a wideawake) tied around his neck.
Passage adapted from Katherine Mansfield's "The Woman at the Store" (1912)
Example Question #81 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word
Now, tell me thou-not in many words, but briefly-knewest thou that an edict had forbidden this?
(Fifth century BCE)
The word "edict" means __________.
unspoken understanding
official proclaimation
lawmaker
cultural norm
foolish man
official proclaimation
An "edict" is an official proclaimation, order or decree issued by someone in power.
(Adapted from the R. C. Jebb translation of Antigone by Sophocles 481-482, Fifth century BCE)
Example Question #82 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word
MEPHISTOPHELES: Within the bowels of these elements,
Where we are tortured and remain forever.
Hell hath no limits, nor is circumscribed
In one self place, for where we are is hell,
And where hell is must we ever be. (5)
And, to conclude, when all the world dissolves,
And every creature shall be purified,
All places shall be hell that is not heaven.
(1604)
Based on context, what does “circumscribed” mean?
Tortured
Cared for
Described
Bounded
Calculated
Bounded
If we read around the word “circumscribed,” we can begin to see what the word signifies: “Hell hath no limits, nor is circumscribed / In one self place.” In other words, the speaker’s Hell does not have any set boundaries. “Bounded” is the only option that makes sense in this context.
Passage adapted from Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus (1604)
Example Question #2 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Drama
KING LEAR: Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! rage! blow!
You cataracts and hurricanes, spout
Till you have drench'd our steeples, drown'd the cocks!
You sulph'rous and thought-executing fires,
Vaunt-couriers to oak-cleaving thunderbolts, (5)
Singe my white head! And thou, all-shaking thunder,
Strike flat the thick rotundity o' th' world,
Crack Nature's moulds, all germains spill at once,
That makes ingrateful man!
(1606)
Based on context, what is the meaning of “rotundity” (line 7)?
Robustness
Obtuseness
Scholarship
Obesity
Wretchedness
Obtuseness
Although “rotund” normally means plump or robust, the context of the passage suggests a different interpretation. The speaker is railing against “ingrateful” and unnatural people, so a more general definition for “rotundity” is needed, one that encompasses not just the size of the world but its quality. Obtuseness is the only answer choice that fits these criteria.
Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s King Lear (1606)
Example Question #4 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Drama
MERCUTIO:
O, then, I see Queen Mab hath been with you.
She is the fairies' midwife, and she comes
In shape no bigger than an agate-stone
On the fore-finger of an alderman,
Drawn with a team of little atomies (5)
Athwart men's noses as they lie asleep…
And in this state she gallops night by night
Through lover's brains, and then they dream of love;
O'er courtiers' knees, that dream on court'sies straight;
O'er lawyers' fingers, who straight dream on fees… (10)
Sometime she gallops o'er a courtier's nose,
And then dreams he of smelling out a suit…
(1597)
What word could be substituted for “agate-stone” (line 3)?
Sprite
Farmer
Insect
Dream
Ring
Ring
We see in line 4 that this “agate-stone” is worn on the “fore-finger” of an alderman, or local councilman, which implies that the stone is part of a piece of jewelry. Although insects, dreams, and sprites (fairies) are mentioned elsewhere in the poem, none of them are the “agate-stone” itself. The lines in question are intended to poetically describe the miniscule size of Queen Mab.
Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (1597)
Example Question #3 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Drama
MERCUTIO:
O, then, I see Queen Mab hath been with you.
She is the fairies' midwife, and she comes
In shape no bigger than an agate-stone
On the fore-finger of an alderman,
Drawn with a team of little atomies (5)
Athwart men's noses as they lie asleep…
And in this state she gallops night by night
Through lover's brains, and then they dream of love;
O'er courtiers' knees, that dream on court'sies straight;
O'er lawyers' fingers, who straight dream on fees… (10)
Sometime she gallops o'er a courtier's nose,
And then dreams he of smelling out a suit…
(1597)
Based on context, what might “atomies” (line 5) mean?
Tiny steam engines
Grasshoppers
Philosophies
Tiny creatures
Study of physics
Tiny creatures
Here, we have to closely consider the context that “atomies” is appearing in. We know from previous lines that Queen Mab is very tiny, and we know that atoms are a tiny unit of physical matter. Putting this knowledge together, we can infer that “atomies” refer to generic tiny creatures; grasshoppers and tiny steam engines are too fanciful and specific for the line in question.
Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (1597)
Example Question #3 : Context Based Meaning Of A Word: Drama
MERCUTIO:
O, then, I see Queen Mab hath been with you.
She is the fairies' midwife, and she comes
In shape no bigger than an agate-stone
On the fore-finger of an alderman,
Drawn with a team of little atomies (5)
Athwart men's noses as they lie asleep…
And in this state she gallops night by night
Through lover's brains, and then they dream of love;
O'er courtiers' knees, that dream on court'sies straight;
O'er lawyers' fingers, who straight dream on fees… (10)
Sometime she gallops o'er a courtier's nose,
And then dreams he of smelling out a suit…
(1597)
Based on context, what does “suit” (line 12) mean?
Specialized uniform
Set of rooms
Lawsuit
Promotion
Formal clothing
Promotion
Based on context, we know that the “suit” in question is something a courtier dreams of “smelling out” or otherwise happening upon. Courtiers are not lawyers, so lawsuit does not make sense, and formal clothing and specialized uniform lack textual support. Courtiers are, however, attendants to the monarchy or nobility, and they would be particularly motivated by a social elevation or promotion.
Passage adapted from William Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (1597)
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