As you're reading, you can often figure out the meaning of an unknown word by looking at the words and phrases that surround it. The familiar words and phrases that help you determine the meaning of an unfamiliar word are called context clues.

Here are some examples of how context clues can be used to determine the meaning of unknown words:

Marta attempted to placate the angry customer by offering him a free cup of coffee.
From the sentence, you can guess that Marta's kind gesture was meant to calm the angry customer. The context helps you understand that placate means "to make someone less angry."

Avoid deleterious actions such as eating junk food and smoking.
The sentence tells you that eating junk food and smoking are examples of deleterious actions. You know that eating junk food and smoking are both harmful behaviors, which helps you understand that deleterious means "causing harm or damage."

>>> Read the passage below and then answer the question.

In the summer of 1978, a group of geologists stumbled upon a tiny, dilapidated homestead in a remote and otherwise unoccupied corner of Siberia. Upon further investigation, the researchers discovered that the crumbling cabin and overgrown garden were home to a family of five. Karp Lykov, his wife Akulina, and their children had fled to this desolate region in 1936 in order to escape religious persecution.

What is the meaning of dilapidated as used in the passage?
*
1 point
abandoned
ancient
peculiar
run-down

1 answer

In the passage, the word "dilapidated" is used to describe the homestead as being in a state of disrepair, which suggests it is run-down. Therefore, the correct answer is:

run-down