Hello, Sherlock: Looking for Context Clues

Detective Edogawa Conan/Shinichi Kudo from anime.com

  One important skill we need to acquire for a more powerful communication is the skill to decipher messages the  originating party has sent. This skill is called decoding. Decoding is also present while we are reading.

  It will be very hard, however, to decode, if one has limited vocabulary and the item to be read is full of difficult words. Colloquialism, idiomatic expressions, jargon, and words deep in meaning are hard to understand for the beginner and novice. There are also denotative, connotative, and contextual meanings behind every word. These things enumerated we are now convinced that we must master the skill of decoding.

 Aside from grabbing Mr. Noah Webster, a technique you have in your possession is looking for context clues. Context clues are hints the author gives the reader to understand difficult words. This is especially essential in fictional works set in the fantasy genre--perhaps Tolkien's LOTR saga.

Now this is a step-by-step direction to help you look for those context clues.

Ask. What is the unknown word? What sentence the word is in? Ask, then, what the sentence is trying to decipher. If you can, go back to the previous sentence and the next, thinking of what the sentences collectively mean. What are the other words in the sentence?  What part of speech is the word?

Link. Decipher how the other words in the sentence connect or relate to your unknown word. For instance, the sentence is John ate the boudin noir. You don't know what boudin noir is, but the sentence here includes the  verb ate.


Create your guess. Since the verb is ate, what might boudin noir be? It might be some kind of food. But then, look at the other sentences, too, to be sure.


John ate the boudin noir. As he finished, he thanked the mistress for the delightful meal and left.


Now, it is said that John thanked the mistress for the delightful meal. With those connections, we can now be rest assured that boudin noir is a dish. Reading the first sentence alone, without any knowledge of what boudin noir might mean, we might have assume that it was toxic material that could've killed John.

So that's a rough outline on looking for context clues. If you want to improve your decoding skills using context clues, just surf 'round Google or visit this website.

Best wishes, Sherlock.

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Reading the Letter C

photo from peaceluvmunchies.wordpress.com

urrently crazed your conscious concerning accurately reading the letter C? Can you cure this clouded confusion of yours circling the letter C? Certainly, you can 'cause there are simple clues to help you. Claim your victory over the letter C.

C is pronounced as /s/ when it is followed by e, i, or y.

instance, scent, city,

C is pronounced as /k/ when it is not followed by e, i, or y.

Cure, cat, claim, core.

C is pronounced as /k/ when it is preceded by s and followed by h, as with school.

When there are two C's in a word, pronounce the first c as /k/ and the second c according to the next letter.

Accent is pronounced as /aksent/ because the second c is followed by an 'e,' which will make it an /s/ sound.

C is pronounced as /CH/ when it is followed by h except if CH is preceded by an A.
Chocolate, chose, charity
Bach, ache.

Cultural Accents--Why Everybody Wants a Fork

photo from images.all-free-download.com

Every time I speak English in my class, I get differing opinions on the way I speak in English. To some, the way I speak is 'cool,' because of my American accent. Some detest the manner, because, naturally, most people will be hostile to anything that is not familiar to many (in this case, the way I speak). Some raised questions as to why I have to speak in such a manner.

I do not consider my accent as American, rather, it is neutral. A neutral accent is a manner in speaking which could be understood globally: by all people 

who speaks English.

On the contrary, a cultural accent is a manner of speaking influenced by the speaker's mother tongue. Every country has its own cultural accent--even the native speakers--and must be neutered. In the Philippines, the number of cultural accent equates the number of dialects we have. In Japan, they have such a stressed way of speaking, and turn the letter 'l,' to 'r.'

In the United States, the people of California has a different way of speaking from the New Yorkers. The people of Mississippi has such a heavy, stressed, southern accent. In the United Kingdom, the Britons have  a distinguished way of speaking.

Why, then, should we bother neutralizing our accents when everybody else has a different way of speaking? There is nothing wrong with cultural accent, really, sometimes it's cute when used for aesthetic purposes. It's just that most of the time, cultural accents cause miscommunication. Such a problem must be avoided, as it creates a catastrophe. Don't believe me? Learn from our Italian friend (see vid below.)