Compound Word Review

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

I hope you didn't say ruined pancakes because the answer is butterfly!

When you have two very different words and put them together to make a whole new word, that new word is called a compound word.

• Can you think of any compound words?

Now, think about the separate, smaller words that you combined to make those compound words.

For example, look at the word online. You probably use this word many times a day. You are online right now, but before 1950, this word did not even exist!

Here are two words that seemingly have little to do with one another, fused to make a new word. Each of the individual words — on and line — are the base words of the word online just like the words butter and fly are the base words of butterfly.

As you can see, compound words are made up of two words that function as a single unit of meaning.

There are three types of compound words.

1. Closed-form compound words are made up of two base words that are joined together. The meaning of each word may or may not help you define the meaning of the new compound word.

Many closed-form compound words are part of compound word families, meaning they share a similar base word, such as book. From book, you get notebook, textbook, schoolbook, sketchbook, and so on.

2. There are also hyphenated-form compound words. As the name suggests, these are compound words whose roots are separated by a hyphen (-).

Some examples include mother-in-law and ten-year-old.

3. Finally, there are also open-form compound words, meaning they go together but are separated by a space, like post office and full moon.

This lesson will stick with closed-form compound words, but it is important to know that the other types exist as well.

Now, remember the compound words you thought of earlier.

• What are the base words of each one?

When you are comfortable identifying compound words, move to the Got It? section for some practice.