Meaning of Words in Nonfiction
Aligned to RI.6.4 — Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.
What this lesson teaches
Informational texts use words in figurative, connotative, and technical ways. Use surrounding context to unlock a term, and notice when a field-specific word carries an exact meaning you must respect.
Worked example
In 'the engine's core temperature spiked,' 'core' is technical (the central part) and 'spiked' is figurative (rose sharply). Context — an engine and temperature — tells you both meanings without a dictionary.
Practice questions
- Find a technical term in an article and define it from context.
- Find a word used figuratively and restate its meaning plainly.
- Explain how one word's connotation shapes how you read the sentence.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
El Significado de las Palabras en Textos Informativos
Los textos informativos usan palabras de forma figurada, connotativa y tecnica. Usa el contexto para descifrar un termino, y nota cuando una palabra propia de un campo tiene un significado exacto que debes respetar.
Ejemplo: En 'la temperatura del nucleo del motor se disparo', 'nucleo' es tecnico (la parte central) y 'se disparo' es figurado (subio de golpe). El contexto — un motor y la temperatura — te da ambos significados sin diccionario.
More Reading: Informational lessons
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