Interpret Words and Phrases

Common Core Reading Standards for Literature K-5
Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

Kindergarten
Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

First Grade
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

Second Grade
Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.

Third Grade
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.

Fourth Grade
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including those that allude to significant characters found in mythology (e.g., Herculean).

Fifth Grade
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.