Home›Lesson Plans›English Language Arts›Reading: Vocabulary · Grade 8

Analogies: Finding the Same Relationship

Students learn to solve analogies by identifying the relationship between the first pair of words — opposites, part-to-whole, cause-and-effect — and finding the pair with the same relationship, sharpening both vocabulary and logic.

Grade 8Vocabulary50 minutes1 class periodReading WorkshopExplicit teaching4 StandardsCommon Core
Start the Lesson
Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Explain how an analogy works.
  • ✓Identify the relationship in a word pair.
  • ✓Complete an analogy.
  • ✓Name common analogy types.
Essential Question

“Hot is to cold as up is to ___.” How do you crack an analogy — and why do they show up on so many tests?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Complete the Analogy · Interactive

Complete the Analogy

Project each analogy and have students figure out the relationship in the first pair, then find the word that completes the second pair the same way.

🔗 Find the relationship — complete the analogyTry it
Find the relationship in the first pair, then complete the second.
The Lesson · Reading Workshop (Mini-Lesson · Practice · Share)

50 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Connect — Same Relationship

5 min

“Hot is to cold as up is to ___” — what fills the blank?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show an analogy.
  • Ask for the pattern.
  • Set the goal: analogies.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Read the analogy.
  • Find the pattern.
  • Predict the answer.
2

Teach — Name the Relationship

12 min

Teacher models.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Identify the first pair’s relationship.
  • Name the type (opposites, part-whole…).
  • Apply it to the second pair.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Find the relationship.
  • Name the type.
  • Complete it.
3

Active Engagement — Solve Together

13 min

Class uses Complete the Analogy.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Solve each analogy.
  • State the relationship.
  • Reject wrong-relationship options.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Solve each one.
  • State the relationship.
  • Explain rejections.
4

Independent Practice — Independent Practice

15 min

Students solve analogies.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Give analogies to complete.
  • Name each relationship type.
  • Write an original analogy.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Complete analogies.
  • Name the types.
  • Write one.
5

Share — Share

5 min

Students share an analogy.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Invite an original analogy.
  • Name its relationship.
  • Hand out the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share an analogy.
  • Name the type.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.

CCSS
L.8.5b

Use the relationship between particular words to better understand each of the words (analogies).

CCSS
L.8.5

Demonstrate understanding of figurative language and word relationships.

CCSS
L.8.4

Determine the meaning of unknown words using context and relationships.

CCSS
RL.8.4

Analyze the impact of word choices, including analogies.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Relationship-type cards (opposite, part-whole).
  • Sentence frame: “___ is to ___ as ___ is to ___.”
  • Solve with picture pairs.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with opposites and young-to-adult.
  • Give two answer choices.
  • Name the relationship aloud.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Identify tricky relationship types.
  • Write analogies for classmates.
  • Solve verbal-reasoning analogies.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 📓Reading notebooks
  • 💻Complete the Analogy
  • 🗂️Word-pair cards
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

analogya comparison of two pairs with the same relationshiprelationshiphow two words connectantonyma word with the opposite meaningsynonyma word with a similar meaningpart-to-wholea piece and the thing it belongs tocause-and-effectone thing leading to anothercategorya group things belong topatterna repeated relationship
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
Complete: Big is to small as fast is to ___.
slow (they are opposites).
QUESTION 2
In the analogy “finger is to hand,” what is the relationship?
Part to whole (a finger is part of a hand).
QUESTION 3
How do you solve an analogy?
Figure out the relationship in the first pair, then find the word that makes the second pair have the SAME relationship.

Going deeper? Build an analogy set.

Have students create analogies of different types (opposites, part-whole, cause-effect) and trade them with classmates to solve. A printable analogy sheet is in the ELA library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 AnalogiesFlip
Card 1
Term
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Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 AnalogiesQuiz
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Question 1
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Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ AnalogiesPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: analogy, antonym, category, cause-and-effect, part-to-whole, pattern, relationship, synonym
  1. a comparison of two pairs with the same relationship
  2. one thing leading to another
  3. how two words connect
  4. a word with the opposite meaning
  5. a word with a similar meaning
  6. a piece and the thing it belongs to
  7. a repeated relationship
  8. a group things belong to

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. Complete: Big is to small as fast is to ___.
  2. In the analogy “finger is to hand,” what is the relationship?
  3. How do you solve an analogy?
Answer key — Part A: 1) analogy · 2) cause-and-effect · 3) relationship · 4) antonym · 5) synonym · 6) part-to-whole · 7) pattern · 8) category
Part B: 1) slow (they are opposites). 2) Part to whole (a finger is part of a hand). 3) Figure out the relationship in the first pair, then find the word that makes the second pair have the SAME relationship.