What does optical mean?
Word: Optical
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Optical means connected with sight, or with the way lenses and light are used to help people see.
Word origin: Formed from optic, which goes back to Greek optikos.
How do you spell optical?
Syllables: op - ti - cal
Tricky part: The end is where it goes wrong. Students think of article and particle and write opticle, but this is a describing word, not a thing.
Watch out for: opticle, optickal
Memory tip: Is it a thing or a description? Things such as an icicle close with le; a describing word such as this one closes with al.
Optical in a sentence
Example 1: My cousin works in an optical shop in Jaipur, fitting lenses into spectacle frames.
Example 2: A microscope is an optical instrument that makes tiny things look much larger.
Example 3: The computer mouse has an optical sensor underneath that follows every small movement.
Fun Fact
An optical fibre is a glass thread about as thin as a human hair, and it can carry internet signals as pulses of light.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Tally
Each word below has lost one letter. How many of them have lost the letter i?
optcal, verticl, tropcal, musicl, nautcal
a) 4
b) 2
c) 3
d) 1
Show answer
c) 3. Optcal, tropcal and nautcal have each lost an i; the other two have lost an a.
Word Champ
Choose the correct word for the blank:
An ___ illusion is a picture that tricks the eye into seeing something that is not there.
a) optical
b) acoustic
c) oral
d) actual
Show answer
a) optical. This kind of illusion fools the eyes, so the word linked with sight is needed.
Spell Spies
Choose the pair which has a spelling error:
a) ethics : ethical
b) mathematics : mathematical
c) optics : optical
d) physics : phisical
Show answer
d) physics : phisical. The y of physics stays in the adjective made from it.
Back to the Roots
Choose the correct option:
Optical goes back to a Greek word. Which of these words comes from the same Greek root?
a) optician
b) option
c) opinion
d) optimist
Show answer
a) optician. An optician tests eyes and supplies glasses; optimist, option and opinion look similar but come from Latin.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these is an optical instrument?
a) a tuning fork
b) a measuring tape
c) a pair of binoculars
d) a pair of scales
Show answer
c) a pair of binoculars
2. Optical is linked with the eyes. Which word is linked in the same way with the ears?
a) nasal
b) dental
c) auditory
d) tactile
Show answer
c) auditory
