Building Vocabulary | Word of the Day
1. difficult or irritating to deal with
2. always finding things to argue or complain about
3. bad-tempered, argumentative, and uncooperative.
Cantankerous is a popular way to describe someone difficult or irritating to deal with.
– Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Part of Speech (POS):
Why is it important to know a word’s part of speech?
Understanding the different parts of speech is important for understanding how words work and how words can and should be joined to make sentences grammatically correct. If a word has multiple meanings, then how are people supposed to differentiate which definition is applicable?
Context clues are hints found within a sentence, paragraph, or passage that a reader can use to understand the meanings of new or unfamiliar words. Readers will need to especially pay attention to context clues. Doing so will allow them to decide upon the appropriate definition to fit the context in which the word is being used.
Synonyms for the word cantankerous:
Remember, a synonym is a word or phrase that has the exact or near-exact definition as another word or phrase.
Other word forms of cantankerous
cantankerously = adverb
cantankerousness = noun
Why is knowing various forms of a word important?
Knowing the various forms of a word allows the writer to use a word they like in many ways. This allows for creativity and varied sentence structure, which is important for writing well.
Below are forms of cantankerous used correctly in different sentence types:
• Because the gun control bill was so controversial, the cantankerous senators procrastinated, but they eventually passed the legislation. (Compound-Complex Sentence)
• The Lawmakers cantankerously advanced the bill, and the Senate passed the new gun control legislation. (Compound Sentence).
• Even though the Republicans and Democrats agreed on gun control legislation, the infighting and cantankerousness between both parties continued. (Complex Sentence)
• “The cantankerous Senator is wrong,” yelled the Chairman. (Simple Sentence)
In the above examples, we have provided the four English sentence types as examples to give you a visual of how each sentence type should be structured.
1. Write three complex sentences using the word cantankerous.
A complex sentence is a sentence that contains one independent and at least one dependent clause.
An independent clause is a complete thought that can stand alone as a sentence.
A dependent clause is not a complete thought. It is a sentence that depends on the independent clause and usually begins with a subordinating conjunction.
2. Write two compound sentences using the word cantankerous.
A compound sentence is a sentence containing two or more independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction or semicolon.
3. Write four simple sentences using the correct noun and adverb word form for cantankerous.
4. After proofreading your sentences, type them into the Leave a Reply/Leave a Comment section below (keep scrolling down).
5. Please review the 4 Types of Sentences workshop in our Basic Rules of Grammar category. At the very bottom of this page, you will find a search bar section where you can type the words “The 4 Types of Sentences” to find it and other helpful workshops.
6. Please review the Context Clues workshop in our Basic Rules of Grammar category. At the very bottom of this page, you will find a search bar section where you can type the words “Context Clues Workshop” to find this workshop and other helpful workshops.
A member of our teaching staff will provide helpful feedback for the sentences you provide in the comment section below. If you have any questions regarding this workshop, please feel free to post those as well.
Writing Tip: Use the word during a conversation today. The more you familiarize yourself with this word by consistently incorporating it into your vocabulary and writing, the easier it will be to remember the word.
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