Students need to be able to determine how antonyms change the meaning of a given idea and how synonyms may enrich their written and oral communication. Students should also be able to explain which elements of idioms, homographs, and homophones are parallel to the context in which they are being used to understand why they were included.

An important aspect of understanding the Spanish language is recognizing that some words share spellings but mean different things (homographs) and some share pronunciation but have different spellings (homophones). The following are some examples of homographs, nada (nothing) /nada (swim), clavo (metal nail)/ clavo (clove). Homophones are words that are pronounced the same but have different spelling and meaning, as hola (hello) and ola (wave).

Students should be able to identify words that have similar and opposite meanings in the Spanish language. The former refers to synonyms, whereas the latter refers to antonyms. Some examples of synonyms are, alegre, contento, and feliz. An antonym is a word opposite in meaning to another. For example, rápido/ lento, alto/ bajo, and grande/ pequeño. Students should also remember from instruction in previous grades that an important aspect of understanding the Spanish language is to recognize when words and phrases are purposefully placed out of context for effect. Idioms are statements that on first reading might not appear to be related to the idea being discussed because they often use figurative rather than literal language to communicate a complex idea (e.g., Hablar hasta por los codos). Similarly, homographs and homophones require the reader or listener to use context to determine the intended meaning to understand the message in a text.

An antonym refers to a word opposite in meaning to another. For example, the usual antonym of bueno (good) is malo (bad). Students should know that antonyms can change the meaning of a whole idea. Consider the following examples, El tren se deslizaba rápidamente sobre la vía/ El tren se deslizaba lentamente sobre la vía. A synonym is a word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another in the same language. For example, the words lentes, anteojos, and gafas generally refer to the same object. Students should know that synonyms improve their vocabulary and enrich their oral and written communication.

An important part of understanding the Spanish language is recognizing when words and phrases rely on figurative rather than literal language to communicate an idea. Idioms are expressions that use figurative language to create imagery that is intended to make the idea being expressed more familiar to the recipient. For example, stating that a student usually makes the same mistake when solving a problem suggests that the student “siempre se tropieza con la misma piedra”. Students should be aware of common idiomatic expressions and have the opportunity to identify and explain the comparisons being drawn so they are able to not only interpret idioms they hear or read, but also are able to incorporate them effectively into their own communications. They will need to provide adequate context to support the recipient of the message in determining the intended use of the idioms.

Students should have a thorough enough knowledge of antonyms, synonyms, idioms, homographs, and homophones to be able to incorporate them into their written and oral communications. They should accurately use antonyms and synonyms and be able to provide adequate context to support the intended use of the idiom, homograph, or homophone to avoid creating confusion.