day 62: merriam webster online

by | Mar 10, 2011

Want to share a super source for those helping kids with homework, reading a difficult book, teaching…well, really, anybody. It is Merrriam Webster’s Online Dictionary.

Some of the features we like:

1. Type in any word–it finishes them for you (for those who say, “I can’t use a dictionary if I don’t know how to spell the word to begin with”!)
2. Type in any word and get the definition
3. Type in any word and click “thesaurus” to get synonyms and even some antonyms
4. Click on the speaker and listen to someone say the word–we do this every week before we give spelling tests to ensure that we are pronouncing harder words correctly for our students
5. Links at the bottom of the dictionary page for each word with more sites, etymologies, and much more!

Trust me…you will love Merriam Webster Online!

https://www.merriam-webster.com/

day 36: prepositions that are synonyms

by | Feb 8, 2011

We have already learned prepositions that are antonyms (opposite). Now for our last day of preposition work, we will learn prepositions that are synonyms (meaning the same or almost the same).
First a little mnemonic for antonyms and opposites!
Antonyms—Opposite (both begin with vowel sounds—ant—opp)
Synonyms—Same (both begin with S—syn—same)
When you consider that prepositions show position, it makes sense that if you know one preposition that means a certain direction (i.e. over), then other words that mean the same thing may also be prepositions (above, on top of, etc.).
Consider these prepositions that might be considered synonyms—if you know one from each list, you are likely to be able to think of the others:
1. aboard
            a. on
            b. atop
            c. atop of
            d. astride
2. about
    1. amid
    2. amidst
    3. among
    4. amongst
    5. around
    6. by
    7. near
    8. next to
    9. round
  1. above
    1. atop
    2. atop of
    3. on
    4. on top of
    5. over
    6. up
    7. upon
  1. Against
    1. anti
    2. barring
    3. despite
    4. in spite of
    5. opposite of
  2. Ahead
    1. ahead of
    2. before
    3. in front
    4. in front of
  3. Along
    1. about
    2. alongside
    3. alongside of
    4. Along with
    5. Amid
    6. Amidst
    7. Among
    8. Amongst
    9. At
    10. Beside
    11. Besides
    12. Round
    13. Close
    14. Close to
    15. By means of
    16. Near to
    17. Next to
  4. amid/amidst
    1. about
    2. against
    3. among
    4. amongst
    5. around
    6. at
    7. beside
    8. beside of
    9. by
    10. next to
    11. round
    12. through
    13. throughout
  5. anti
    1. across from
    2. against
    3. barring
    4. opposite
    5. opposite of
    6. versus
  6. around
    1. about
    2. amid
    3. amidst
    4. among
    5. amongst
    6. aside
    7. aside of
    8. circa
  7. aside
    1. along
    2. alongside
    3. alongside
    4. aside of
    5. beside
    6. beside of
    7. by
    8. next
    9. next to
    10. close to
    11. near to
  8. astride
    1. a. atop
    2. atop of
    3. on
    4. on top of
    5. over
    6. up
    7. upon
  9. at
    1. beside
    2. beside of
    3.  by
    4. toward
    5. close to
  10. barring
    1. anti
    2. opposite
    3. opposite of
    4. outside
    5. outside of
    6. due to
    7. except for
    8. save
  11. before
    1. ahead
    2. ahead of
    3. in front of
  12. behind
    1. beyond
    2. following
    3. in back
    4. in back of
The purpose behind the “synonym prepositions” is two-fold: (1) help students realize that if a word is a preposition (and they know that one), then more than likely other words that mean the same thing and fit in the same space are probably prepositions as well; (2) to help students think of even more prepositions—that they might not realize they know. Again, if a student learns to recognize prepositions well, he will recognize prepositional phrases well and will be able to isolate them (mentally, at least) in his sentences to achieve correct subject-verb agreement. (Also, it will help in using prepositional phrase openers in sentences  and punctuating them correctly.)

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