Question

Mrs. ellen was always so kind when she had to chastise me: she never scolded, but gently corrected my blunders. which word provides the best clue to the meaning of chastise? kind scolded gently blunders

Answer 1

Chastise is a verb meaning rebuke or reprimand severely or to discipline, especially by corporal punishment. scold, upbraid, berate, reprimand, reprove, rebuke, admonish, chide, censure, lambaste, castigate, and  lecture are some of its synonyms 

Answer 2

Answer: B) Scolded.

Explanation: context clues are words or phrases that the author includes in the text to help the reader to understand the meaning of a word or phrase in a sentence or paragraph. The definition of the word "chastise" is punish or reprimand severely, the word that provides the best clue to the meaning of this word is "scolded" because it has a similar meaning (it is a synonym), so the correct answer is option B.