Reading Lesson Plan: Finding Synonyms

This lesson can be done with Antonyms (Greek ANT means opposite, NYM means name), and Homonyms (sound the same but have different meanings, eg. pray/prey, pain/pane), and Homographs (sound the same and spelled the same, eg. mail the letter, letter came in the mail, the knight wore armor and chain mail; swim in pool, ride in car pool, have a pool table).

Objective:

  1. learn what a synonym is  (The secret of  “nym” :  NYM comes from the Greek ONOMA meaning name and the Greek word SYN means like or same)
  2. be able to find and identify a synonym

Materials:

  1. overhead transparency of poem with lots of synonyms
  2. overhead markers
  3. chartboard written with:   Synonym: a word that means the same as another word, such as happy/joyous, hungry/starved, angry/mad, smart/clever, rich/wealthy
  4. students’ writing journals, for them to copy synonym meaning in later.
  5. copies of the poem, shrunk to fit four on an 8 1/2″ X 11″ page, then copied and cut apart to make one print for each student, to be glued into their Poem book.
  6. students’ Poem books (small journal book)
  7. word wall (or separate synonym page)
  8. thesauruses for all students to use   ***See lists of words (synonyms, homonyms, antonyms, homographs) at bottom of lesson.***

Method:

  1. Before lesson, teacher finds poem with lots of synonyms, or on a current learning topic, with some synonyms in it, and makes a transparency of it.  Shrink a copy to fit on 1/4 page, then make 3 more of that size, glue on an 8 1/2″ X 11″ page, and copy 6 or 7 for the entire class.  Save the master sheet (with the 4 small copies) for next year to use again, in your Poem file.  THIS SAVES A LOT OF COPY NUMBERS.
  2. For the lesson, teacher places transparency on the overhead and explains to students what a synonym is, then asks students, one at a time to come up and try to find the synonyms, with the pointer.  Teacher can circle them with the marker on the transparency.  Talk about each synonym and how they use that word or could use that word in their lives.  Have they ever heard the word before?  Where?
  3. Teacher can print the synonym words, or have the student who found them do it, and place them up on the wall for review later (separate synonym page, or alphabetically on the word wall).  Pictures can be added later if students need a little reminder.
  4. In writing journals, students print definition of synonym (see definition in objective), and show at least 3 examples, written words with pictures  (example:    tired, sleepy    picture of their face yawning, hand over mouth).
  5. Poems can also be written, with several verses (each verse is a bunch of related synonyms).  First line has one word, the word you want to find synonyms for.  Second line has up to 5 words, synonyms (that students have found in the thesauruses) for the first word. The third and final line of the verse, has a sentence that tells about the word and ends with a rhyming word for the last word of the second line.  Example:

Happy,

Contented, joyful, cheerful, festive, glad,

Happiness is the opposite of mad.

Word Lists

Synonyms:

  • able/strong;
  • absent/elsewhere;
  • add/sum up;
  • admit/confess;
  • leave/abandon;
  • alive/lively;
  • listen/hear;
  • also/too;
  • little/small;
  • amount/quantity;
  • look/see;
  • ask/inquire;
  • loving/fond;
  • assembly/gathering;
  • loyal/true;
  • bad/evil;
  • mad/insane;
  • beg/implore;
  • margin/edge;
  • begin/commence;
  • mistake/error;
  • behaviour/conduct;
  • most/maximum;
  • big/large;
  • new/modern;
  • blamed/accused;
  • noisy/rowdy;
  • blank/empty;
  • noted/well-known;
  • bottom/foot;
  • obey/submit;
  • brave/daring;
  • old/ancient;
  • bright/shining;
  • omen/sign;
  • broad/wide;
  • oral/verbal;
  • buy/purchase;
  • outside/exterior;
  • careful/cautious;
  • part/portion;
  • catch/capture;
  • policeman/constable/cop;
  • centre/middle;
  • polite/courteous;
  • change/alter;
  • poor/destitute;
  • cheat/deceive;
  • port/harbour;
  • choose/select;
  • praise/compliment;
  • clergyman/minister;
  • pretty/beautiful;
  • close/near;
  • protect/guard;
  • clothes/dress;
  • push/thrust;
  • copy/imitate;
  • queen/empress;
  • correct/accurate;
  • quick/rapid;
  • cunning/sly;
  • quiet/peaceful;
  • cure/remedy;
  • rare/scarce;
  • damp/moist;
  • read/peruse;
  • dangerous/risky;
  • ready/alert;
  • deadly/fatal;
  • real/genuine;
  • dear/expensive;
  • reckless/rash;
  • decrease/reduce;
  • red/ruddy;
  • disease/sickness;
  • remember/recollect.

Homonyms:

  • ant/aunt;
  • ate/eight;
  • bare/bear;
  • berry/bury;
  • blew/blue;
  • brake/break;
  • capital/capitol;
  • cent/scent/sent;
  • colonel/kernel;
  • dear/deer;
  • fair/fare;
  • feat/feet;
  • flew/flu/flue;
  • flour/flower;
  • heal/heel/he’ll;
  • hear/here;
  • heard/herd;
  • hole/whole;
  • hour/our;
  • know/no;
  • loan/lone;
  • mail/male;
  • main/mane;
  • meat/meet;
  • one/won;
  • pail/pale;
  • pain/pane;
  • pair/pear;
  • peace/piece;
  • plain/plane;
  • pray/prey;
  • principal/principle;
  • rain/reign/rein;
  • right/write;
  • role/roll;
  • sail/sale;
  • scene/seen;
  • soar/sore;
  • some/sum;
  • son/sun;
  • stair/stare;
  • stationary/stationery;
  • steal/steel;
  • suite/sweet;
  • tail/tale;
  • their/there/they’re;
  • threw/through;
  • to/too/two;
  • waist/waste;
  • wait/weight;
  • way/weigh;
  • weak/week;
  • wear/where;
  • weather/whether;
  • which/witch.

Antonyms:

  • able/weak;
  • absent/present;
  • add/subtract;
  • absence/presence;
  • accept/refuse;
  • accurate/inaccurate;
  • advantage/disadvantage;
  • alive/dead;
  • always/never;
  • ancient/modern;
  • answer/question or query;
  • approval/disapproval;
  • approached/receded or departed;
  • abundant/scarce;
  • admit/deny;
  • advance/
  • retreat or retire;
  • artificial/natural;
  • arrival/departure;
  • ascend/descend;
  • attack/defense;
  • attractive/
  • repulsive;
  • attention/inattention;
  • asleep/awake;
  • ally/enemy;
  • agree/disagree;
  • bad/good
  • backward/forward, onward
  • bend/straighten
  • beautiful/ugly
  • beginning/ending
  • below/above
  • bent/straight
  • big/small, little
  • blunt/sharp
  • better/worse
  • best/worst
  • blame/praise
  • bless/curse
  • bitter/sweet
  • borrow/lend
  • bravery/cowardice
  • build/destroy, demolish
  • bold/timid, meek
  • bright/dull
  • broad/narrow
  • clear/vague, cloudy
  • careful/rush, careless
  • calm/troubled
  • capable/incapable
  • captivity/freedom, liberty
  • cellar/attic
  • cheap/dear, expensive
  • close/distant
  • clever/stupid
  • cold/hot
  • combine/separate
  • clockwise/anti-clockwise
  • correct/incorrect
  • conceal/reveal
  • come/go
  • common/rare
  • comfort/discomfort
  • courage/cowardice
  • cruel/kind
  • courteous/discourteous, rude
  • cunning/simple
  • dainty/clumsy
  • danger/safety
  • dark/light
  • deep/shallow
  • decrease/increase
  • definite/indefinite
  • demand/supply
  • despair/hope
  • disappear/appear
  • disease/health
  • discourage/encourage
  • dismal/cheerful
  • doctor/patient
  • dry/wet
  • dull/clear, bright
  • dusk/dawn
  • early/late
  • easy/difficult
  • ebb/flow
  • East/West
  • economise/waste
  • encourage/discourage
  • entrance/exit
  • employer/employee
  • empty/full
  • excited/calm
  • end/beginning
  • expand/contract
  • expensive/inexpensive, cheap
  • export/import
  • exterior/interior
  • external/internal
  • fail/succeed
  • false/true
  • feeble/sturdy, strong, powerful
  • foolish/wise
  • fast/slow
  • few/many
  • famous/unknown
  • forelegs/hind legs
  • fat/thin

Homographs:

  • mail:  mail the letter, letter came in the mail, the knight wore armor and chain mail
  • pool:  swim in pool, ride in car pool, have a pool table, water pools at your feet
  • rest:  rest on a line of music (notes and rests), have a rest (nap), eat rest of apple, rest assured it’ll get done (be convinced)
  • leaves:  leaves on vacation, leaves on a tree
  • leave:  on leave from the army (away from it), leave me alone (go away)
  • fire:  house on fire, fire the gun (shoot it), fire the worker (let him go), you’re on fire (doing really well)
  • pitcher:  pitcher of lemonade (container), baseball pitcher (throws ball)
  • book:  book to read, book a flight (reserve), book a prisoner (do paperwork to put in jail)
  • drive:  drive a car, drive a golf ball (hit it), hit a line drive (hit it straight in baseball), drive someone crazy (make them nuts)
  • floor:  stand on the floor, floor the gas (step on it fast)
  • shower:  shower her with gifts, take a shower, rain shower outside, bridal shower (party)
  • light:  light the fire, the light is on, light on his feet (agile), he’s light (not heavy), it’s light out (bright outside)
  • dark:  it’s dark (not much light), he’s in a dark mood (crabby), in the dark ages (prior to modern day)
  • past:  in the past (before today), go past the store (go by it), past tense (did it before)
  • passed:  I passed grade 2,  he passed me a book (gave me), I passed the store (went by it)
  • bridge:  I went over the bridge, we played bridge (card game), grandma has a bridge (joining teeth), bridge the generation gap (joining)
  • duck:  flying ducks, duck your head (avoid)

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