Student Name: _______________________________

WORD POWER – USING CONTEXT CLUES

Key Words

Elegant Dowdy Dilapidated

The city was restoring an old, run-down building. The deserted building had once been an
elegant hotel. Nothing in the grand hotel had been simple or dowdy. The once beautiful
building would no longer stand dilapidated and deserted.
A. Based on the passage write down what you think each word means.

1. elegant ____________________________________________________________

2. dowdy ____________________________________________________________

3. dilapidated ____________________________________________________________

B. Replace the words in parentheses with the appropriate key words.

1. The abandoned school had become (decayed) from years of neglect. ____________
2. The actress’s part called for her to have a very (frumpy) appearance. ____________
3. The guests at the formal dinner were dressed in (elaborate) clothes. ____________

C. Circle the synonyms.

1. elegant: luxurious unusual refined lovely dismal elaborate
2. dowdy: unattractive messy fancy unstylish bright frumpy
3. dilapidated: perfect crumbling decayed sagging neat deteriorating

D. Check to appropriate box to correctly finish the sentence.

1. If you were dressed in elegant clothing you would

be dressed in a neat, sporty out. be dressed in a luxurious, dressy outfit

2. If you were dressed in dowdy clothing, you would

be dressed in an unstylish, messy outfit be dressed in a bright, floppy outfit

3. A dilapidated building would be

inhabitable uninhabitable