📖 ReadingGrade 3Lesson 3
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Build Word Families

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Learning Objectives

  • 1Define what a word family is and explain how words in a family are related
  • 2Identify the root word shared by members of the same word family
  • 3Match a root word to a related word-family member
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Mini Lesson

A word family is a group of words that all share the same root word. They look similar and are related in meaning. Knowing one word in a family helps you understand all the others in that group.

Word Family Examples

  • Root: play → player, playground, playful, playmate, replay
  • Root: happy → unhappy, happiness, happily, happier
  • Root: hope → hopeful, hopeless, hopefully, hoping
  • Root: friend → friendly, friendship, friendless, unfriendly

How Word Families Help You Read

  • If you know "help", you can work out "helpful", "helpless", and "helper".
  • Spotting the root in an unfamiliar word gives you a clue to its meaning.
  • Word families show how a single idea (the root) can be expressed in many ways.
Word Family — playThe root word play in the center with family members branching outward.Word Family: playplayplayerplayfulreplayplayground
Four Word Families — roots and membersFour root words with their word family members listed below each one.Word Familieshappyhappinessunhappyhappilyhopehopefulhopelesshopingfriendfriendlyfriendshipunfriendlyhelphelpfulhelplesshelper
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When you learn a new root word, challenge yourself to think of at least three words in its family.

Vocabulary
Word family
A group of words that share the same roote.g. "Play, player, playful" are part of one word family.
Root
The main part of a word that holds its meaninge.g. The root of "actor" is "act".
Related words
Words that share a root and a similar meaninge.g. "Helper" and "helpful" are related words.
Build
To make new words by adding parts to a roote.g. I build "unhappy" by adding "un-" to "happy".
Pattern
A way that words change in a regular waye.g. I see the pattern: read, reader, reading.
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← Lesson 2: Learn Root Words, Prefixes, and SuffixesLesson 4: Find Synonyms and Antonyms →