Take a look at the paint strip below. How are the colors on the strip alike? How are they different? Turn and talk with a neighbor to discuss.

That cake looks yummy. We use words constantly and with a specific purpose in mind. When we are speaking or writing, we need to use words that communicate exactly what we are trying to say. Take a look at the sentence below. This sentence tells the reader that I think this cake looks yummy. My word choice, however, doesn’t tell the reader how yummy I think this cake looks. I can use synonyms for yummy to help. Can you think of any synonyms for the word yummy? Let’s take a look at the words delicious, scrumptious, and delectable. While these words each have similar meanings, they each mean something a little stronger than the word before. That cake looks delicious. That cake looks scrumptious. That cake looks delectable. Just like colors, words have shades and each shade means something a little different. Some words imply something stronger than others. Which sentence below sounds the strongest to you?

Let’s take another look at that paint strip from earlier. These colors are all from the same family. They are all hues or shades of the color red. The first shade only has a little red in it—it’s a weak color. The last shade has a lot of dark red—it’s a strong color. Weak Strong Words that are related can be the same way. Some words are weak and others are very strong. Let’s look at some synonyms for the word hungry: ravenous, hungry, starved. Which word do you think has the strongest meaning? Which word has the weakest meaning? Hungry tells us that the person is ready to eat. Ravenous tells us that the person is extremely hungry and that they really want to eat. Starved means that the person has not eaten in such a long time that they will not survive much longer without food. Let’s check our answers.

Many words can have positive or negative affects on a sentence. For example: The candle was fragrant. The candle was odorous. The word fragrant is positive and brings to mind a pleasant scent. The word odorous is negative and makes the reader imagine a not-so-pleasant smell.

Using different synonyms for an everyday word can really make the things you say and write much more interesting and exciting. Sometimes we can mistakenly use words that are too strong or too weak for what we are trying to communicate. The boy was upset that his team lost. We can use synonyms for upset to make this sentence more interesting. Let’s choose from the synonyms seething, unhappy, and frustrated. The boy was seething that his team lost. The boy was unhappy that his team lost. The boy was frustrated that his team lost. Seething implies that the boy is so angry that he cannot contain his anger. He would be stomping and yelling. Seething is too strong for our situation. Unhappy suggests that the boy has no joy. He is sad and depressed. While the boy is certainly sad, he is also angry. Unhappy is too weak for this situation. Frustrated implies that the boy is both disappointed and angry but still in control. Frustrated is just right for our situation. This is the shade of upset that we need to use.

Even though synonyms mean about the same thing or have similar meanings, you cannot always substitute a word with any of its synonyms in a way that makes sense. You need to be able to choose the best synonym for the job. Let’s try a few! Our word to substitute is: All of my plants shriveled beneath the sun’s hot rays. Alex was running a lot outside. Now his face is flushed and hot. I can’t wait to spend a day on the beautiful, hot beach! Our synonyms are: All of my plants shriveled beneath the sun’s blistering rays. Alex was running a lot outside. Now his face is flushed and feverish. I can’t wait to spend a day on the beautiful, tropical beach! Awesome job! It is easy to see that the words feverish, tropical, and blistering cannot be used to replace one another, even though they all have similar meanings as the word hot. So, not only does our shade need to match our level of meaning, it also needs to fit in with our context.

Look at the synonyms below. Order them from weakest to strongest.

Look at the synonyms below. Order them from strongest to weakest.

Choose the synonym that best completes the sentence below.

Well done word wizards! You are really catching on to the shades of meaning! Keep up the remarkable reading and terrific thinking and nothing will get by you!

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