Analogies

What is an analogy? An analogy shows a relationship between words. In an analogy, the relationship between the first pair of words is the same as the relationship between the second pair of words.

For Example: Cow : Milk :: Chicken : Eggs This analogy reads: a cow is to milk like a chicken is to eggs. The colon (:) between the cow and milk is read as “is to” and the two colons (::) between the two sets of words is read as “like”. So what is the relationship? A cow produces milk, just like a chicken produces eggs. **Remember, the relationship between the first pair of words should always be the same as the relationship between the second pair of words.

Can you read this analogy? Write out the relationship in sentence form. Dog : Animal :: Oak : Tree Dog is to animal as oak is to tree. OR Dog is to animal like oak is to tree.

To Complete an Analogy: Identify how the two elements in the first pair are related. State their relationship in a general way. Identify another pair of elements that share a similar relationship. Become familiar with common types of relationships.

There are 7 types of common relationships for analogies. Similar Concepts: words in relationships are synonyms Example – Hungry : Starving :: Tired : Exhuasted Infant : Baby :: Adult : _____________________

Example - Quick : Slow :: Bumpy : Smooth 2. Dissimilar Concepts : words in the relationships are antonyms Example - Quick : Slow :: Bumpy : Smooth Hard : Soft :: Wet : _______________________

3. Same Category: The words in each pair belong to the same class/category. Example - Carrot : Green Bean :: Red : Yellow Carrots and green beans are vegetables (category), like red and yellow are colors (category). Basketball : Football :: Apple : _________________

Example – Red : Color :: Knife : Silverware 4. Category/Category Member : One Word in the pair is a category name, the other word is a member of the category. Example – Red : Color :: Knife : Silverware Red (category member) is a type of color (category), like a knife (category member) is a type of silverware (category). Crest : Toothpaste :: Sprite : _____________________

Example – Seed : Apple :: Elbow : Arm 5. Part to Whole: One word in the pair is a part of the other word in the pair Example – Seed : Apple :: Elbow : Arm A seed is part of an apple (whole), like an elbow is part of a pair of your arm. Lead : Pencil :: Inch : __________________________

Example – Tadpole : Frog :: Caterpillar : Butterfly 6. Change : One word in the pair turns into the other word in the pair. Example – Tadpole : Frog :: Caterpillar : Butterfly A tadpole changes into a frog, like a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. Kitten : Cat :: Puppy : ________________________

Example – Engineer : Train :: Principal : School 7. Function : One word in the pair performs a function on or for another word in the pair. Example – Engineer : Train :: Principal : School An engineer operates the train, like a principal operates or runs a school. Eye : See :: Ear : ___________________________