Connect Challenging Synonyms

You may have already looked at antonyms (words which mean the opposite to each other) but now here’s a challenge about synonyms.  

Can you help us out with these, word detective?

What do you notice about the words below?

giggle        chortle        chuckle

They all mean the same thing: laugh.

These words are called synonyms.

Synonyms are words that mean the same or have a very similar meaning to other words.

We could also use the following words as synonyms for laugh: snigger, titter, snort

Which of the following are synonyms for holiday?

break        rest        sleep        nap         vacation

Break, rest and vacation are all synonyms for holiday as they mean the same or a similar thing.

A thesaurus is a great resource to use to look up synonyms for words.

Let’s try another:

Which of the following words is a synonym for honest?

fair        equal        truthful

The answer is truthful as it has the closest meaning to honest.

Pssst!!             Here's a handy hint to help you reach superstar status:             The first letter of the word synonym is the same as the first letter for similar.   It’s a clever trick to remember what synonym means.

If you come across any new words in this activity, make a note of them so that you can use them in your writing.

It’s now your turn to identify synonyms.  

Good luck!