WORD OF THE DAY
The tricky word conundrum is used to describe a riddle or puzzle, sometimes including a play on words or pun.
One of the most famous conundrums is the riddle of the Sphinx, famously in the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles. Oedipus encounters the Sphinx, a mythical beast, who asks him, "What walks on four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three in the evening?" The answer is "A person": crawling as a child, walking as an adult, and using a cane in old age. The scary thing is that if the Sphinx asked you the riddle and you didn't know, she'd eat you!
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Vocabulary lists containing conundrum
Looking to build your vocabulary? Then practice this list of 100 "top words" — the kind that used to be tested on the SAT before 2016. If you're a high school student prepping for the SAT, check out Vocabulary.com's Roadmap to the SAT, which focuses on the vocabulary you'll need to ace today's SAT test.
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Nonfiction writer Jon Krakauer retraces the steps of Christopher McCandless, a young man who gave up his material possessions and met a tragic end in the wilds of Alaska.
As you read Anna Quindlen's "A Quilt of a Country," learn this word list. Here are links to lists for texts in Grade 9's Collection 1: A Quilt of a Country, Once Upon a Time, Rituals of Memory, The Gettysburg Address
