WORD OF THE DAY
When two people each have something of their own, it's their respective thing. In a boxing match, the opponents each start in their respective or individual corners.
Respective comes from the Latin respectivus meaning "having regard for." Everyone has regard for what's respectively theirs. We have respective opinions, respective responsibilities, respective anxieties. It's basically another word for individual. Each of a set of twins probably has his respective bed, even though they might share a bedroom together.
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Commonly confused words with respective
respectfully / respectively
If you kiss the mob boss’s ring, do it respectfully, or full of respect and admiration. But respectively means “in the order given,” so if you have to kiss up to the rest of the mob, make sure to shake hands and high five Jimmy Rags and Tommy Two Face, respectively because Jimmy prefers a handshake, but Tommy loves a good high five.
read moreVocabulary lists containing respective
Here are 68 Tier 2 words that are likely to be found on the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) ELA exams for 6th - 11th grades. These words may show up in the reading passages, but you are more likely to encounter them in the test questions and possible answers.
In this classic coming-of-age story, Scout Finch recounts her childhood in Maycomb, Alabama. When Scout's father is appointed to defend a black man in a high-profile trial, racial tensions in the small town come to a head.
Just as "history is written by the winners," the historical record often skips over missteps or mistakes made by those same winners. The Articles of Confederation were the founding fathers' first attempt at establishing an central alliance of all the different states in 1777. Although a valiant effort, the provisions laid down in this document didn't quite work the way the writers wanted them to, and they soon realized they had to start again with a new document. That second try is known as The Constitution, and it endures to this day. Here are 43 vocabulary words from The Articles of Confederation. The entire document is available here.
The Constitution is, quite simply, the basis of all American democracy. The document details what the branches of government must do, are entitled to do, and what they cannot do. Abraham Lincoln said: "Don't interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties." In addition to cherishing the Constitution as the tangible basis of all our rights and laws, there is always a lot of controversy in political circles about what is and isn't "constitutional," so it is important to be familiar with what the actual document says to be able to evaluate those claims. The entire document can be read here.
In Nic Stone's unflinching exploration of racism, high school student Justyce McAllister writes letters to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in order to process the violence and prejudice he encounters in his community.
