Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
New
New
Year 6

Synonyms, antonyms, prepositions and adverbs

I can identify how specific words act on the meaning of a sentence.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils
New
New
Year 6

Synonyms, antonyms, prepositions and adverbs

I can identify how specific words act on the meaning of a sentence.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Words can be related to each other by common features, patterns or meaning.
  2. Synonyms and antonyms can be used by writers to vary vocabulary choice and create text cohesion.
  3. All words have etymology.
  4. Adverbs can describe verbs or adjectives.
  5. Prepositions and adverbs have more than one purpose.

Common misconception

The same words act as prepositions and adverbs or as prepositions and subordinating conjunctions.

Prepositions are followed by nouns; subordinating conjunctions are in clauses; adverbs modify verbs and adjectives.

Keywords

  • Synonym - a word that has the same or similar meaning to another word

  • Antonym - a word that has the opposite meaning to another word

  • Etymology - the study of the origin of words and the ways their meanings have changed over time

  • Preposition - a word or words that connects a sentence to a noun or noun phrase to help show where, when or why something is happening

  • Adverb - a word that can describe a verb or an adjective

Because some words can fall into different word classes depending on their use, talk about words 'acting as' prepositions, adverbs and subordinating conjunctions. Encourage pupils to look at the word in sentence context to find its word class.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Video

Skip video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the sentence to the punctuation used for its parenthesis.
Correct Answer:brackets,Glasgow (a city in Scotland) has a population of 600,000.

Glasgow (a city in Scotland) has a population of 600,000.

Correct Answer:dashes,The eagle swooped – like a lightning bolt – onto its prey.

The eagle swooped – like a lightning bolt – onto its prey.

Correct Answer:commas,Glasgow, a city in Scotland, has a population of 600,000.

Glasgow, a city in Scotland, has a population of 600,000.

Q2.
Which of the following could complete this sentence? 'All kinds of parenthesis __________.'
Correct answer: add extra information to a sentence
Correct answer: have punctuation on either side
contain a verb
Correct answer: could be removed and the sentence would still make sense
Q3.
Tick the sentence that would most suit brackets to indicate the parenthesis.
Correct answer: New York a city in the USA is not the country's capital city.
A sword razor-sharp and jagged slashed through the curtains.
My older brother a hairdresser still lives at our house.
Q4.
Match the type of punctuation for parenthesis to the type of text it is used in.
Correct Answer:commas,used in fiction and non-fiction

used in fiction and non-fiction

Correct Answer:dashes,used in fiction

used in fiction

Correct Answer:brackets,used in non-fiction

used in non-fiction

Q5.
Tick the sentence that could include dashes to show parenthesis.
My older brother a hairdresser still lives at our house.
Correct answer: A sword razor-sharp and jagged slashed through the curtains.
The hill a pleasant, grassy mound sits just outside the village.
Q6.
Why should this sentence use commas for parenthesis and not dashes? 'The hill a pleasant, grassy mound sits just outside the village. '
Correct answer: It is not showing a dramatic effect.
It is showing a strong emotion or description.
It is adding factual information.

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the words to their meanings.
Correct Answer:synonym,a word that has the same or similar meaning to another word

a word that has the same or similar meaning to another word

Correct Answer:antonym,a word that has the opposite meaning to another word

a word that has the opposite meaning to another word

Correct Answer:etymology,the origin of a word

the origin of a word

Q2.
Match the pairs of synonyms.
Correct Answer:happy,elated

elated

Correct Answer:sad,devastated

devastated

Correct Answer:smile,beam

beam

Correct Answer:cook,roast

roast

Q3.
Match the pairs of antonyms.
Correct Answer:believe,doubt

doubt

Correct Answer:improve,worsen

worsen

Correct Answer:adequate,insufficient

insufficient

Correct Answer:positive,negative

negative

Q4.
What always follows a preposition?
a verb
no other word
Correct answer: a noun or noun phrase
an adjective
Q5.
Which two of the following sentences contain a preposition?
Correct answer: We shuffled down the street.
The tower fell down.
Suddenly, I looked up.
Correct answer: He waited at the bus stop.
Q6.
Which of the following can an adverb describe?
Correct answer: a verb
a noun
Correct answer: an adjective
a preposition