Educators, please click here to request a desk copy.

Key Features

The Words-in-Context Approach. Students learn new words by encountering them in meaningful contexts, not through rote memorization.

Abundant Practice. Each book is packed with activities, exercises, unit reviews, and tests that prompt students to interact closely with each new vocabulary word.

Appealing Content. Dull materials discourage learning. Our books avoid that. Each features high-interest passages students will want to read.

Digital Options. This textbook bundle comes with Vocabulary Plus, a powerful online vocabulary-building program that brings ALL the content of our famously clear, user friendly, Vocabulary Series directly to your tablet, smartphone, or computer.  See details in the Vocabulary Plus tab below. 

Affordability. Full version vocabulary books teach 300 key words/word parts and are priced at $12.90 each. Short Versions teach 200 words and cost $10.90 each. Bundles of long version books + Vocabulary Plus are value-priced at just $17.90; bundles of short version books + Vocabulary Plus are value-priced at just $15.90.

Standards Aligned. TP’s Vocabulary Series is a comprehensive, research-based approach to vocabulary instruction aligned with the Common Core Standards for Vocabulary in Grades 5-12. Each book in the series presents vocabulary words in multiple contexts, giving students ample practice in determining “the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text.” In addition, the words-in-context approach requires students to actively figure out definitions though analysis using explicit or inferred meaning—a benchmark of the Common Core.* Looking for a Common Core aligned program to improve students’ vocabulary for success in school and beyond? With TP's Vocabulary Series, you've got it. *Common Core Standards RL.6.4, 7.4, 8.4, 9-10.4, 11-12.4

Relevant Words. Words from the series were drawn from word frequency lists with alignment to state standards and standarized tests. The aim: to equip students with words they need to know.

Outstanding Supplements. Free supplements include:

• Placement Test. The TP Vocabulary Placement Test is made up of 100 multiple-choice items drawn from Townsend Press vocabulary books. A student's score on this test may be used to determine which TP vocabulary book would be most beneficial to that student. Free and available online or in print. 
• Instructor's Edition. Instructor's Editions for all of the vocabulary books are available to teachers with a class adoption of 20 or more students. They are identical to the student books except that they contain answers to all of the activities and tests.
• Instructor's Manual and Test Bank. Available as a PDF for each Vocabulary Series book, the Instructor's Manual and Test Bank contains the Vocabulary Placement Test as well as a pretest and a posttest for the book and for each of its units. It also contains teaching guidelines, suggested syllabi, answer keys, and an additional mastery test for each chapter and unit. Free to educators with an approved account in the Learning Center.
• The Learning Center. Free to educators with an approved account, the Learning Center is a digital learning environment that provides resources to accompany the Vocabulary Series. It includes PowerPoints, assessments, and much more!

New Features include:

• Hundreds of new items
• Photos added to chapter readings
• Updated digital content
• Contemporary design
• Broader, universal appeal for a wide range of readers
• Resequenced chapter and test items

Word List

abrasive
adept
admonish
adroit
advocate
ambiguous
a-, an-
analogy
anima
annihilate
ante-, anti-
antipathy
antithesis
arch-, archy
assimilate
attrition
atrophy
auspicious
austere
autonomy
belligerent
ben-, bene-
berate
bibl-, biblio-
bolster
bureaucratic
charlatan
chide
chron, chrono-
-cian, -ian
-cide
circumvent
clandestine
coalition
cohesive
collaborate
commensurate
complement
connoisseur
connotation
conspiracy
constituent
contention
contingency
contrite
corroborate
criterion
culmination
de-
dec-
decorum
demeanor
denunciation
deplore
depreciate
deprivation
deride
derogatory
despondent
detriment
dexterous
diabolic
dilapidated
discreet
discretion
disparity
disseminate
dissident
dissipate
distraught
diverge
docile
dorm
dormant
duc, duct
-ee
egocentric
emanate
emancipate
embellish
emulate
-en
encompass
entrepreneur
equivocate
eradicate
esoteric
espouse
estrange
euphoric
exacerbate
exhilaration
exhort
exonerate
exorbitant
expedite
extenuating
extra-
extricate
fabricate
facetious
facilitate
facsimile
fastidious
fid
flamboyant
flout
foible
forestall
fortuitous
fraudulent
fritter
germane
gregarious
grievous
grotesque
heinous
hierarchy
hoist
holistic
homo-
homogeneous
idiosyncrasy
illicit
imminent
impeccable
impede
impending
imperative
impetuous
implement
impromptu
inadvertent
inane
incapacitate
inclusive
incongruous
indigenous
indiscriminate
indolent
infallible
inference
inherent
innocuous
innuendo
inquisitive
insidious
insinuate
instigate
integral
interrogate
intuition
inundate
irreparable
irrevocable
-ism
ject
jurisdiction
juxtapose
lethargy
liability
liaison
liber, liver-
log-, logue
lucid
macabre
magnanimous
mandate
masochist
maudlin
mesmerize
metamorphosis
meticulous
misconstrue
miss, mit
mitigate
mort
nebulous
nonchalant
notorious
nov
noxious
objective
oblivious
obsequious
obtrusive
oct-, octo-
omnipotent
opportune
optimum
orthodox
ostentatious
ostracize
-ous
pan-
panacea
paramount
perfunctory
permeate
phil-, phile
pinnacle
placebo
platitude
plight
poly-
precarious
precipitate
predisposed
preposterous
presumptuous
prim, prime
proficient
prognosis
proliferation
prolific
promiscuous
propensity
provocative
quandary
rancor
raucous
rebuke
recourse
recrimination
rect
redeem
regress
reinstate
reiterate
rejuvenate
relegate
relinquish
replete
reprehensible
repudiate
repugnant
resilient
reticent
retribution
retrospect
robust
rudimentary
sanction
scenario
scoff
scrupulous
sedentary
sensory
sham
solace
solicitous
sordid
spontaneous
sporadic
squelch
standardize
staunch
stigma
stint
stringent
subordinate
subsidize
subversive
superficially
superfluous
sur-
symmetrical
sym, syn
synchronize
tantamount
tempo, tempor
ten
tenacious
tenet
tenuous
terse
transgress
travesty
tumult
turbulent
ubiquitous
unassuming
unilateral
unprecedented
utilitarian
utopia
validate
vehement
venerate
ver
verbose
vicariousvindicate
vit, viv
voc, vok
vociferous
vol
yen
zealot
zenith

 

Common Core State Standards Fulfilled by TP's Vocabulary Series

Looking for a Common Core-aligned program to improve students' vocabulary for success in school and beyond? With TP's Vocabulary Series, you've got it.

TP's Vocabulary Series is a comprehensive, research-based approach to vocabulary instruction aligned with the Common Core Standards for Vocabulary in Grades 4–12. Each book in the series presents vocabulary words in multiple contexts, giving students ample practice in determining "the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text." In addition, the words-in-context approach requires students to actively figure out definitions though analysis using explicit or inferred meaning—a benchmark of the Common Core. (For a complete listing of the CCSS, please visit www.corestandards.org.

The TP Vocabulary Series fulfills the following Common Core State Standards:

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards: R.4 and L.4–6

Grade-Level Standards: RF.4.3, 5.3

RL.4.4, 5.4, 6.4, 7.4, 8.4, 9–10.4, 11–12.4

RI.4.4, 5.4, 6.4, 7.4, 8.4, 9–10.4, 11–12.4

L.4.4–6, 5.4–6, 6.4–6, 7.4–6, 8.4–6, 9–10.4–6, 11–12.4–6

For more than two decades, the TP Vocabulary Series has helped millions of students learn the words they need for success in the classroom—and beyond. You be the judge of whether our effective, affordable series can work for your students, too.

This textbook comes bundled with a 10-month subscription to Vocabulary Plus, a powerful online vocabulary-building program that brings the TP Vocabulary Series to your tablet or computer for the cost of a single book.

Download a complete brochure to learn more, or visit our Learning Center.


Key Features of Vocabulary Plus
 

Independent Study (VPi): An adaptive mode of Vocabulary Plus that assesses students and manages assignments automatically. Suitable for classes and/or individual students, VPi dynamically adjusts difficulty to keep students challenged and motivated. And it rewards them too! Learn more about VPi here.

 Integrated eBooks: A subscription to Vocabulary Plus includes eBooks of all nine texts in the TP Vocabulary Series. Pages match exactly to the printed books, and students can even mark or annotate them using their devices.

Tests & Activities: Vocabulary Plus includes digital versions of all chapter activities from our printed books. In addition, two digital bonus tests have been added to each chapter. The result: Vocabulary Plus has even more content than our books!

Enhanced Items: Vocabulary Plus takes advantage technical abilities unavailable to books. Vocabulary in Context items have been doubled and feature pictures to help visual learners. Sentence Check 2 items now offer more challenging answer choices. All items feature instructive feedback.

Sights and Sounds: Each vocabulary word in Vocabulary Plus includes a pronunciation guide AND a clickable audio link of the word being spoken. In addition, many words also feature lively pictures to help students better understand and remember their meanings.

Review and SAT Words: Words taught in previous chapters are reinforced as review words in Vocabulary Plus. Review words refresh students’ memories and help them retain what they learned. In addition, SAT and GRE high-frequency words are given extra attention.

Data and Administration: Vocabulary Plus allows teachers to set assignments and monitor individual progress. Educators can also view the exact items students complete, the correct answers for those items (with explanations), and the answer choices students submitted. This data allows you to focus instruction where it's needed.

Automatic Assessment: VPi begins by individually assessing each student's vocabulary level. Students log in, click "Begin" and complete their assessment. Within minutes, they know their level and where to start. You do too.

Differentiated Instruction: Based on students' unique assessment scores, VPi places them into one of six levels that correspond to the grade level of our books. It then monitors progress, allowing students to advance chapters and skill levels when they've shown mastery.

 Motivation & Incentives: VPi rewards student progress. Earning high scores, completing chapters, mastering words, and advancing to a higher level are all achievements for which VPi awards students badges.

Want to Know More?

Download a complete brochure or visit our Learning Center to explore Vocabulary Plus for your classes.

Supplementary Materials

Advancing Vocabulary Skills includes the following supplements:

Placement Test. The TP Vocabulary Placement Test is made up of 100 multiple-choice items drawn from Townsend Press vocabulary books. A student's score on this test may be used to determine which TP vocabulary book would be most beneficial to that student. Free and available online or in print.



 

An Instructor's Edition. Instructor's Editions for all of the vocabulary books are available to teachers with a class adoption of 20 or more students. They are identical to the student books except that they contain answers to all of the activities and tests.


 

A combined Instructor's Manual and Test Bank. Available as a PDF for each Vocabulary Series book, the Instructor's Manual and Test Bank contains the Vocabulary Placement Test as well as a pretest and a posttest for the book and for each of its units. It also contains teaching guidelines, suggested syllabi, answer keys, and an additional mastery test for each chapter and unit. Free to educators with an approved account in the Learning Center.
 

The Learning Center. Free to educators with an approved account, the Learning Center is a digital learning environment that provides resources to accompany the Vocabulary Series. It includes PowerPoints, assessments, and much more! Along with these free materials, the Learning Center also hosts Vocabulary Plus, a comprehensive subscription-based word-building program that brings all the content of our vocabulary text to students' fingertips. Learn more here.
 

Print supplements can be obtained quickly by calling Townsend Press toll-free at (800) 772-6410, by sending a fax on school letterhead to 1-800-225-8894, or by e-mailing Customer Service at cs@townsendpress.com.

Measures of Success

Vocabulary Plus Independent Study provides educators with comprehensive class and individual progress data. It also supplies information to students so they can see and track their accomplishments. Here's some of the data that's provided in VPi.
 

Weekly Progress Summary: Students can view their weekly and cumulative results each time they log in. Summaries include average scores, number of words mastered, assignments completed, and amount of time spent working.

Detailed Activity Feed: Teachers can view a detailed Activity Log for each student. The log shows which assignments students completed, when and how long they worked, and the scores they achieved. Items that challenged students appear in gray, alerting teachers to areas in which students may need assistance.

Achievement tracking: To motivate and encourage students, VPi awards acheivement badges. High scores, chapter and test completion, levelling up, and mastering words are events for which badges are awarded.

Class Score Reports: Teachers can access detailed class reports at any time. They include students' initial assessment results; the number of activities, chapters, and units they've completed; the scores for each, along with the amount of time they've worked; and any achievements they've earned. Individual and class averages are also provided.

Download a complete brochure or visit our Learning Center to explore Vocabulary Plus Independent Study for your classes.