Context CluesPractice

Concealed

Most pirates stole coins to spend, not bury. One pirate who did bury treasure was Captain Kidd. In 1699, he hid gold and silver on an island near New York. People have dug up some loot, but more may still be concealed.

Designate

According to pirate lore, pirates who buried treasure would make a treasure map. On the map, they would mark an “X” to designate where they had put their treasure. In reality, pirates probably did not make treasure maps, let alone bury treasure.

Plundered

Pirates led dangerous lives. They knew they could be killed at any moment. Therefore, they often wasted little time in spending what they had plundered. Burying treasure and going back for it would take too much time and effort!

Marooned

Treasure Island is a novel about the search for treasure a pirate named Flint buried. Other pirates return to the island but cannot find the riches. They do find Benn, a man Flint had marooned on the island. Before the searchers arrived, Gunn had found Flint’s treasure and stashed it in his cave.

Allegedly

In the 1500’s, Spanish explorers searched South America for a city that was allegedly made of gold. It was known as El Dorado. At times, people put El Dorado on maps of South America even though no explorer has ever found it.

Entitled

If a person today finds valuable items that were buried long ago, he may be entitled to keep them. The person who buried the items is dead and it may not be possible to find relatives of that person. There is truth in the saying “finders, keepers.”

Apparatus

Some people hunt for lost coins on beaches using an apparatus called a metal detector. It has a long stem that ends in a circular part called a search head, which hovers just over the ground. When in passes over metal, it makes a sound.

Artifacts

Many metal detectors are not able to locate metal that is deeper than a food underground. Some people who use metal detectors are hoping to find gold or silver. Others are interested in historical artifacts, such as buckles or weapons.

Impediments

Something was buried on Oak Island in Nova Scotia. No one knows who buried it or what it is, but many people have attempted to find it. Since the early 1800’s, group after group has dug deep—and been stopped by various impediments such as wooden platforms, small artifacts, metals, and flooding.

dissuade

A legend states that Captain Kidd buried treasure on an island in the Connecticut River. The crew determined which of them would be killed and buried above the treasure chest. They believed the dead pirate would dissuade future treasure seekers. No known treasure has been found there.

bounty

In 2005, adventurers uncovered what has been called “the biggest treasure in history” off the coast of Chile. Buried 50 feet, the bounty included 600 barrels of jewels and gold coins. The adventurers found the riches on Robinson Crusoe Island, named for the fictional castaway.

probe

In 2005, adventurers found a $10 billion treasure on Robinson Crusoe Island in the Pacific Ocean. Actually, it was a robot who detected the massive fortune. This robot was able to probe the foil for metal. It had previously been used to find buried weapons and even a murdered man.

yielded

In 2007, scientists in Norway found what they believed was a Viking burial site. The site yielded pearls and jewelry, including a bronze brooch featuring two bear heads. These items date back to the eigth and ninth centuries, yet they were well-preserved.

elaborate

Since the late 1700s, people have searched for a rumored treasure on Oak Island in Nova Scotia. They have dug and drilled more than a hundred feet down, encountering elaborate booby traps along the way. They have found shoes and tools, but almost no treasure---just three gold links.

safeguard

Someone built a deep and complex series of booby traps on Oak Island in Nova Scotia. They possibly safeguard a buried treasure. Many have searched for it, and six have died in the process. Who created it? Some believe it was pirates, French or British soldiers, or perhaps even Vikings.

excavating

While excavating a possible treasure site on Oak Island in Nova Scotia, someone once found a stone with a message in symbols carved into it. It is not a commonly known language. According to one translation, it reads “forty feet below two million pounds are buried.”

Cache

People worldwide play a game called geocaching. Geocaching is a high-tech “treasure” hunt. The goal is to use a GPS device to find a small, hidden cache. The cache may be everyday items such as books, toys, or coins in a waterproof container.

Lionize

In 1847, outlaw Sam Bass died in a Texas shootout on this twenty-seventh birthday. Stories tell how he’d buried stolen loot in caves and other places around the state. Though he was a bank and train robber, some lionize him as an Old West hero.

Fabricated

In 2005, several men in Massachusetts claimed they discovered a box buried in a backyard filled with cash. The old bills were from 1899 to 1929 and worth $125,000. However, the men had fabricated the story. They were arrested for stealing the money.

Lucrative

The Crater of Diamonds is an Arkansas park that contains the only diamond mine in the world open to the public. Anyone can search and keep what they find. Many diamonds there are too small to be valuable. However, some people have made lucrative finds.

Saunter

When Lake Wendouree in Australia dried up, people were able to saunter onto the lake bed. Some were treasure hunters looking for items people may have dropped or thrown into the water. One such item is a medal from the 1956 Olympics, which has not yet been found.

Endeavor

In the 1990’s, divers searched a Scottish river for a historic shipwreck. They found what they believed was a ship of King Charles I that sank in 1633. It may hold royal treasures. The ship is buried in mud. It would be a challenging endeavor to unearth it.

Staggering

1n 2002, three friends using metal detectors in Wales made a staggering discovery. Buried in a field were gold and bronze jewelry and ceramic tools. They were approximately 3,000 years old. A museum paid a substantial sum for the pieces—half to the land owner, half of the discoverers.

Descendants

People debate who owns sunken treasure—the country it came from or the people who find it. Some feel it belongs to the descendants of whoever it belonged to. People who find wrecks sometimes have to go to court to get the right to claim them as their own.

Disposition

Harry wondered what the disposition of his new teacher would be. His last teacher was quite strict. As soon as Ms. Molaver walked in, Harry sensed she might be strict, but also fun. She said one day a week the kids could give her a homework assignment.

Obscured

The Verillo family was driving to a theme park when a storm surprised them. Even with the windshield wipers on top speed, the rain obscured Mr. Verillo’s view of the road. He slowed down until the rain let up.

demean

The judge on the reality TV show told the aspiring singer that she sounded like a confused donkey. Backstage she said she felt like the judge wanted to demean her. Another contestant reminded her that the judge made harsh comments to all of them at one time or another.

Simulate

Mr. Stevens told his class that they would simulate a moon landing. Everyone walked funny and pretended they could jump higher than usual. They collected rocks he had placed out for them. They looked at a photo of Earth as it would be seen from space.

Engrossed

Grace and her friends watched a romantic movie about a boy who loved a girl but had to move 1,000 miles away. At the end of the movie, they were all crying—and hungry. They been so engrossed with the movie that they hadn’t touch their popcorn.

Amenable

On the prairie, Jack needed to buy a new horse. He headed to a nearby ranch and picked out one he liked. The ranched named a price and said he hoped Jack found that amenable. Jack said it was a fair price and he bought the horse.

resilient

Scott watched his toddler cousin Jane scamper around the room. Once, Jane tumbled over and Scott was worried. Jane, however, picked herself up and began to run around again without a tear. Scott’s aunt, said kids are resilient at Jane’s age.

Spontaneous

My family had no plans for the weekend. After breakfast Saturday morning, my dad said, “Let’s be spontaneous. How about going cross-country skiing?” Next thing I knew, we were all in the car heading to the ski rental place.

Disintegrate

Eddie and Carlos built a fort in the woods. They brought magazines there to read on long summer days. As inter approached, they forgot about their fort. In the late spring, Eddie went back to find that the weather had caused the magazines to disintegrate.

Pacify

Peter borrowed a CD from Wendy. When she asked for it back, he searched everywhere in his room but could not find it. He tried to pacify her by offering to buy her a replacement. Just then, Peter’s sister Emily came in holding the CD.

Fracture

Bill’s father was an inspector for the city. His job was to make sure buildings and other structures were safe. He went to the dam at the reservoir and noticed that it had a fracture. The city fixed it promptly.

Surmise

Several archeologists were exploring an ancient Egyptian pyramid. They were looking for the burial tomb of a certain pharaoh. One said, “ I surmise that the tomb is behind the smallest door.” They gently tried every door there and found that she was correct.

Recur

On Sunday night, Wally watched the eclipse. He asked his dad when an eclipse would recur. His dad said he didn’t know but he would find out. However, he forgot. So something else recurred—Wally’s question.

Extricate

Molly was in a hurry to get to the playground. She pulled up the zipper on her coat so fast that her sweater got stuck in it. She struggled to unzip it but she couldn’t do it. Luckily, her mom was able to extricate the sweater.

Splurge

Nick saved up enough money to buy a new surfboard. At the store, he saw one he liked even better than the one he planned to buy, but it was more expensive. He decided to splurge because he had worked hard.

Encompass

The teacher told the class what their next test would encompass. He said they should refresh their memories about chapters 6—10 of their textbooks. Amy planned to study for several nights in a row. It was a lot to learn but she knew she could do it.

Exquisite

Sophia organized a surprised vacation for her husband Phil. She chose Italy as their destination. When her husband saw their hotel, he said, “This place is exquisite. Every surface shines!” Sophia flashed a broad smile. “That smile is exquisite, too,” Phil said.

Diligent

Rudy was determined to plant her garden in one afternoon. She had chosen to start with eight vegetables. She was diligent, stopping only to drink water. By dinnertime, she was finished. She told her family that in a few weeks, they’d be eating vegetables grown in their backyard.

Impel

Tim was preparing to leave for summer camp. For the campers’ safety, the camp had to impel all campers to get certain shots, so Tim went to the doctor. He also had to buy a sleeping bag and some mosquito spray.