Information a reader may obtain from a text that helps confirm the meaning of a word or group of words.

There are nine common categories of context clues:

1. Synonyms - words with similar meanings.
   The loud kids at the movie were churlish and rude.
   
   
2. Antonyms - words with opposite meanings.
   The preceding examples are different from those that follow.
   
   
3. Definition - a phrase or sentence that gives the same idea in different words.
   The passengers were told to look at the dolphins from the starboard, or right side, of the boat.
   
   
4. Restatement - a phrase or sentence that gives the same idea in different words.
   Slogging up the hill in the mud was difficult and slow going.
   
   
5. Example - an example that illustrates the meaning.
   Celestial bodies such as the sun, moon, and stars, move in predictable patterns.
   
   
6. Explanation - a sentence or phrase that explains the meaning.
   I was very industrious Saturday.
   I cleaned my room, did all my homework, helped Dad wash the car, and went to the grocery store for Mom.
   
   
7. Contrast - a sentence or phrase that contrasts with, or has the opposite meaning of, the word.
   The TV program showed the sumptuous home in which the singer now lives, quite different from the small, ordinary home in which he grew up.
   
   
8. Comparison - a sentence or phrase that compares the word to something familiar.
   My grandfather always used a big, heavy pot with legs, which looked like a spider, when he was camping.
   
   
9. Sense or experience: a sentence or phrase the refers to a common experience.
   He felt exhausted, just as he did when he had the flu.