Question

Does the warranty cover “consequential damages”? Many warranties do not cover damages caused by the product, or your time and expense in getting the damage repaired. For example, if your freezer breaks and the food spoils, the company will not pay for the lost food. Source: “Warranties.” Federal Trade Commission. 24 Apr. 2009. Web. 28 July 2011. What context-clue technique can you use to determine the meaning of “consequential damages”?

Answer 1

I can look at the words around "immersion" to help me understand what it means in this context. Because the sentence speaks of "immersion in water," I can assume that the concern is getting the passport book wet. The passage also mentions that it contains an electronic chip, and I know that electronics generally shouldn't get wet, so the sense of the passage also tells me what "immersion" means.

Answer 2

The context-clue technique that can be used to determine the meaning of "consequential damages" is example or explanation. Context-clues are hints contained within the same text that can help the reder understand the mening of certain words. In this excerpt, the second sentence is an explanation of "consequential damages", the reader can infer that they are "damages caused by the product, or your time and expense in getting the damage repaired." The last sentence is an example of this explanation.