CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.4

ELAGrades 9–10Craft and Structure

The Standard

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).

Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Reading Standards for Literature

What This Standard Means

Students need to figure out what words and phrases mean in context, not just from a dictionary. They should notice figurative language, emotional associations, and patterns in word choice. Then they explain how those choices shape tone, mood, setting, character, or theme.

Mastery looks like a student pointing to specific words, explaining their effect, and connecting those effects across a passage. Common trouble spots are vague tone labels, ignoring context, treating every word as equally meaningful, or naming a device without explaining what it does.

Ways to Teach It

Give pairs a poem excerpt, highlighters, and tone word cards, then have them mark five words that support one tone choice.
Ask students to write: Which three words most change how you feel about the speaker, and why?
Project a short paragraph and ask students to define one bolded phrase in context, then name its tone effect.
Bring in a movie review or song lyric and have students identify words that make the subject sound praised, mocked, or feared.