Question

Read the excerpt from The Hot Zone. She took up a scalpel and slit the monkey's abdomen, making a slow and gentle cut, keeping the blade well away from her gloved fingers. The spleen was puffed up and tough, leathery, like a globe of smoked salami. She did not see any bloody lesions inside this monkey. She had expected that the monkey's interior would be a lake of blood, but no, this monkey looked all right, it had not bled into itself. Which strategy would be most helpful in determining the meaning of the word “scalpel”?

Answer 1

The most helpful strategy that can be used to determine the meaning of the word "scalpel" is the use of context.

If one does not know the meaning of the word "scalpel" used in this excerpt from "The Hot Zone" a good way to infer its meaning would be through the analysis of the context.

With the information given, we can deduce that the scalpel is a sharp object used to cut things, in this case: flesh. A woman cutting flesh with "gloved fingers" (meaning she is wearing gloves) produces the image of a doctor.

With this in mind, one can deduce that a scalpel is a medical tool used to cut open pacients.

Answer 2

Knowing what it does and how it performs