Using Word Analogies

Using words analogies is a useful way of building vocabulary. Word analogies can be created using many different categories. Here is a simple example of a word analogy:

Hot is to cold as up is to down OR hot -> cold | up -> down

This is an example of a word analogy using antonyms. Here are a number of word analogies in a wide variety of categories. 

Word Analogies: Antonyms or Opposites

hot -> cold | up -> down
black -> white | happy -> sad
laugh -> cry | rich -> poor
crazy -> sane | large -> small

Word Analogies: Relationships Expressing a Part of the Whole

eye -> head | finger -> hand
cent -> dollar | inch -> foot
eraser -> pencil | CPU -> computer
wheel -> car | sink -> plumbing

Word Analogies: Relationships Between Numbers

one -> two | two -> four
1/2 -> 1 | 10 -> 20
six -> thirty-six | two -> four
100 -> 1,000 | 1,000 -> 10,000

Word Analogies: Sequences

breakfast -> lunch | morning -> afternoon
Monday -> Tuesday | AM -> PM
work -> earn | plant -> harvest
leave -> arrive | get up -> go to sleep

Word Analogies: Objects and Their Uses (noun -> verb)

pen -> write | food -> eat
lawn -> mow | coffee -> drink
sugar -> sweeten | ball -> throw
button -> push | letter -> mail

Word Analogies: Objects and Their Users (thing -> person)

library -> student | computer -> programmer
car -> driver | piano -> musician
brush -> painter | football -> quarterback
doll -> child | cell phone -> teenager

Word Analogies: Grammatical Relationships

I -> me | He -> him
drive -> driven | fly -> flown
to think -> thinking | to shout -> shouting
some -> any | already -> yet

Word Analogies: Group Relationships

student -> class | member -> club
player -> team | representative -> congress
judge -> court | policeman -> police force
violin player -> orchestra | teller -> bank

Word Analogies: Cause and Effect (adjective -> verb)

thirsty -> drink | tired -> sleep
dirty -> wash | funny -> laugh
wet -> dry | hot -> cool down
curious -> ask | sad -> cry

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Your Citation
Beare, Kenneth. "Using Word Analogies." ThoughtCo, Jan. 29, 2020, thoughtco.com/word-analogies-1211732. Beare, Kenneth. (2020, January 29). Using Word Analogies. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/word-analogies-1211732 Beare, Kenneth. "Using Word Analogies." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/word-analogies-1211732 (accessed March 19, 2024).