How to Read a Dictionary and Thesarus
Understand Alphabetic Order., Understand multiple meaning words., Understand Syllables., Understand Guide Words., Understand Homophones., Understand Homographs., Understand antonyms and synonyms., Understand Parts of Speech abbreviations...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Understand Alphabetic Order.
Alphabetic order is used in both the Dictionary and Thesaurus.
It means to arrange in the order of the alphabet.
Ex:
Apple, Banana, Coconut -
Step 2: Understand multiple meaning words.
Multiple meaning words are words that have 2 or more definitions or meanings.
Using context clues, you can pick which meaning has been used.
Ex:
You may see flowers in May.
The first may is might and the second is the Month May , Syllables are beats of sound.
Place your hand under your chin and say bananas.
How many times did your chin touch your hand? That is the amount of syllables in the word.
Ex:
Rab-bit , There are 2 guide words at the top of the dictionary and thesaurus page.
These are called guide words.They tell you the first or last words on the page.
Ex: abet·above , Homophones are words that sound-alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings.
Ex:
Carat & carrot , Homographs are words that may or may not sound alike or carry the same meaning but have the same spelling.
Ex:
Bow , Synonyms are words that mean the same thing and antonyms are words that mean the opposite.
Ex:
The synonym for hate is dislike and and the antonym is love , In the dictionary, there are little letters after the word telling you the parts of speech.
These are called parts of speech abbreviations.
A list of abbreviations are:
Adjective
- adj.
Adverb
- adv.
Verb
- vb., v., or vi.
Noun
- n.
Pronoun
- pron.
Preposition
- prep.
Conjunction
- conj.
Interjection
- interj.
Article
- art. , Root words are words that can have suffixes or prefixes added to it.
Ex:
Kind , Prefixes are attached to the front of a root word to add a function.
Ex:
Unkind , Suffixes are attached to the end of a root word to add a function.
Ex:
Unkindly -
Step 3: Understand Syllables.
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Step 4: Understand Guide Words.
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Step 5: Understand Homophones.
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Step 6: Understand Homographs.
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Step 7: Understand antonyms and synonyms.
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Step 8: Understand Parts of Speech abbreviations.
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Step 9: Understand root words.
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Step 10: Understand prefixes.
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Step 11: Understand suffixes.
Detailed Guide
Alphabetic order is used in both the Dictionary and Thesaurus.
It means to arrange in the order of the alphabet.
Ex:
Apple, Banana, Coconut
Multiple meaning words are words that have 2 or more definitions or meanings.
Using context clues, you can pick which meaning has been used.
Ex:
You may see flowers in May.
The first may is might and the second is the Month May , Syllables are beats of sound.
Place your hand under your chin and say bananas.
How many times did your chin touch your hand? That is the amount of syllables in the word.
Ex:
Rab-bit , There are 2 guide words at the top of the dictionary and thesaurus page.
These are called guide words.They tell you the first or last words on the page.
Ex: abet·above , Homophones are words that sound-alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings.
Ex:
Carat & carrot , Homographs are words that may or may not sound alike or carry the same meaning but have the same spelling.
Ex:
Bow , Synonyms are words that mean the same thing and antonyms are words that mean the opposite.
Ex:
The synonym for hate is dislike and and the antonym is love , In the dictionary, there are little letters after the word telling you the parts of speech.
These are called parts of speech abbreviations.
A list of abbreviations are:
Adjective
- adj.
Adverb
- adv.
Verb
- vb., v., or vi.
Noun
- n.
Pronoun
- pron.
Preposition
- prep.
Conjunction
- conj.
Interjection
- interj.
Article
- art. , Root words are words that can have suffixes or prefixes added to it.
Ex:
Kind , Prefixes are attached to the front of a root word to add a function.
Ex:
Unkind , Suffixes are attached to the end of a root word to add a function.
Ex:
Unkindly
About the Author
James Kelly
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow home improvement tutorials.
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