context

context — noun

1. the conditions and events that surround something and give you a clearer underst

1.nounB1
Definition

the conditions and events that surround something and give you a clearer understanding of why it exists or happens

Example

To understand why the factory closed, know the economic context of the region.

in the context of [place] — prepositional phrase showing scope

The novel helps readers understand the social context of rural Japan in the 1930s.

Common collocations
  • in the context of
  • broader context
  • wider context
  • full context
  • historical context
  • political context
  • social context
  • cultural context
  • economic context
  • understand the context
  • provide context
  • place in context
Synonyms
  • background

    focuses on earlier events rather than immediate surroundings; 'background' is broader in time, 'context' is broader in scope

  • circumstances

    refers to specific conditions rather than the overall setting; more concrete but narrower

  • setting

    more concrete and often physical; 'setting' is where something happens, 'context' is why it happens

  • framework

    more formal and structural; suggests an organized system of ideas rather than a messy real-world situation

Grammar Patterns

context + of + noun phrase

in the context of + noun phrase

Usage Note

Often appears in the phrase 'in the context of', followed by a noun phrase that names the surrounding situation.

2. the words and sentences that appear near a word or passage and offer hints about

2.nounB1
Definition

the words and sentences that appear near a word or passage and offer hints about its meaning

Example

Students can guess an unfamiliar word's meaning from the surrounding context.

surrounding context — common phrase for nearby text

Teachers encourage students to use context clues when they meet an unfamiliar word.

context clue — common fixed phrase in language learning

Common collocations
  • context clue
  • surrounding context
  • linguistic context
  • provide context
  • need more context
  • from the context
  • lack of context
Synonyms
  • surrounding text

    more literal and concrete; used when referring to visible written words on a page

  • co-text

    technical term in linguistics; rarely used by general learners

Grammar Patterns

context + for + noun phrase

context clues

Usage Note

Commonly appears in language-learning materials as 'context clue' — a nearby word or phrase that helps a reader infer the meaning of an unknown word.

Common Mistakes

I need more context about the economy' (when referring to surrounding text).
I need to see the surrounding words for the context.
'context' meaning 'general situation' (sense 1) and 'context' meaning 'surrounding text' (sense 2) are related but distinct; use 'surrounding text' or 'context clues' to be clear about the linguistic meaning.

3. when a remark or piece of writing is quoted as a separate fragment without the s

3.nounB2
Definition

when a remark or piece of writing is quoted as a separate fragment without the surrounding explanation, so that the original meaning is changed or lost

Example

The newspaper took the mayor's words out of context to make her sound dishonest.

took [someone's] words out of context — core verb + noun + preposition phrase

Daichi said the review quoted his novel out of context and ignored the happy ending.

Common collocations
  • out of context
  • taken out of context
  • quoted out of context
  • pulled out of context
  • presented out of context
  • see in context
  • place in context
Synonyms
  • misquoted

    focuses on the act of quoting incorrectly; 'out of context' specifically means the distortion came from removing surrounding material, not from changing the words themselves

  • distorted

    broader — can mean any kind of misrepresentation, not just removal of surrounding text

Grammar Patterns

take + noun phrase + out of context

quote + noun phrase + out of context

Usage Note

Almost always appears in the fixed phrase 'out of context', typically with verbs such as 'take', 'quote', 'pull', or 'present'. The opposite form 'in context' is also common ('The quote must be seen in context').

Common Mistakes

The quote was used contextlessly.
The quote was taken out of context.
English does not use 'contextlessly'; the fixed phrase 'out of context' is the standard way to express this idea.

Word family

  • contextual
    adjectiveB2
  • contextually
    adverbC1
  • contextualize
    verbC1
  • contextualization
    nounC1
  • contextualized
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words refer to the larger picture around an event, but they differ in scope and concreteness. 'Background' emphasizes what happened before — the history that led to the present situation ('the background of the war includes years of trade disputes'). 'Circumstances' points to specific conditions at a particular moment ('given the circumstances, the pilot had no choice but to land'). 'Setting' is the most concrete and physical — the time and place where something occurs ('the novel's setting is 1920s Shanghai'). 'Framework' is the most abstract and formal — a structured system of ideas used to analyze or explain ('the report uses a legal framework to discuss human rights'). 'Context' is broader than any of these: it combines background, circumstances, and setting into the full picture that gives something its meaning.

background ↗circumstancessetting ↗framework ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • in context
  • out of context
  • in the context of
  • within the context of
  • provide context for
  • lack of context
  • take out of context

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinEnglish

The word 'context' comes from Latin 'contextus', meaning 'a joining together' or 'woven fabric'. This was formed from 'con-' (together) and 'texere' (to weave). The idea is that surrounding text or circumstances are 'woven together' with the thing they surround, forming a connected whole that gives it meaning. English borrowed the word in the 15th century, first for the linguistic sense (woven text) and later for the broader situational meaning.