Reference Materials Worksheets 4th Grade

Print worksheet gives 6 questions: which reference does the job, or which word sits between two guide words.

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Add a "Name" and "Date" line at the top Add an answer key as the last page

All 140 questions

Choose the reference 70

A book of facts, records and dates that comes out new each year is ___. a glossary, a thesaurus, an almanac
A book of words from A to Z, each with its meaning and how to say it, is ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
A book that puts words of like meaning side by side is ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an encyclopedia
A set of books with articles on thousands of topics in ABC order is ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
A short dictionary of the special words used in one book is its ___. glossary, index, title page
At the back of the atlas, the ___ lists each place name with its page and map square. glossary, index, title page
At the back of the science book, the ___ gives the meaning of the book's key words. glossary, index, title page
The bold words in a chapter are explained in the book's ___. glossary, table of contents, title page
Every person and place named in a book appears with its pages in the ___. glossary, index, title page
Farmers once checked one book for the year's planting dates and weather. It was ___. a glossary, a thesaurus, an almanac

Show all 140 questions (130 more)

Choose the reference, continued

For a list of last year's sports champions and record holders, check ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an almanac
For a list of synonyms for walk, use ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an atlas
For a report on the history of the bicycle, start with ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
For an overview of the Amazon rain forest, its animals and its people, read ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an encyclopedia
For other words that mean almost the same as smart, check ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an encyclopedia
Kofi needs background facts about penguins for a science report. He opens ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
Lena needs three other ways to say cold in her poem. She uses ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an atlas
The list at the back of a book that reads like a small dictionary is the ___. glossary, index, table of contents
Nia has written nice four times and wants other words for it. She needs ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an index
The part of a book that lists small topics in ABC order with page numbers is the ___. cover, glossary, index
Rae wants to know which pages of her bird book mention owls. She checks the ___. glossary, index, title page
The reference with a map on nearly every page is ___. a glossary, a thesaurus, an atlas
Sam wants a stronger word than said for his story. He opens ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an atlas
Theo wants to see how far his town is from the coast. He needs ___. a glossary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To check how to divide the word elephant at the end of a line, use ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To check the meaning of a math term without leaving your math book, use its ___. glossary, table of contents, title page
To check the spelling of the word receive, use ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To compare the sizes and shapes of the continents, look in ___. a dictionary, a glossary, an atlas
To find antonyms for brave, look in ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an index
To find every page that mentions beavers, turn to the book's ___. glossary, index, title page
To find out how the pyramids were built, look in ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an encyclopedia
To find out how to pronounce colonel, look in ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To find out if run can be a noun as well as a verb, use ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To find several paragraphs about how paper is made, use ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
To find the countries that touch France, use ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To find the dates of this year's full moons, check ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an almanac
To find the lakes along the northern border of the United States on a map, use ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To find the latest population count for each state, use ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an almanac
To find the meaning of the word habitat, open ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To find the mountain ranges of Asia on a map, open ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To find the opposite of generous, the fastest book is ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an atlas
To find the past tense of the verb swim, use ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To find the plural of cactus, look in ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To find the route from Denver to Dallas, use ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To find the times of sunrise and sunset for each day this year, look in ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an almanac
To find the two meanings of the word bark, open ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To find this year's tide tables, open ___. a glossary, a thesaurus, an almanac
To find what erosion means in your science textbook, turn to the book's ___. cover, glossary, title page
To find which pages of a long book mention the word magnet, use the ___. glossary, index, title page
To find which states border Ohio, look in ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To learn about the life of the honeybee from several pages of facts and pictures, open ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an encyclopedia
To learn how a lighthouse works and who built the first ones, check ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an encyclopedia
To learn what part of speech the word quickly is, look in ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To learn what the word nocturnal means, look in ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To locate the capital of each state on a map, open ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To look up last year's weather records, use ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an almanac
To read a long article about how volcanoes form, use ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
To read about the planet Saturn, its rings and its moons, use ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
To see a map of the rivers of Africa, open ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To see a sample sentence that uses the word reluctant, look in ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To see how many syllables the word caterpillar has, check ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To see which ocean lies east of Canada, look in ___. a glossary, a thesaurus, an atlas
To see which syllable of banana is stressed, look in ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
To swap the word good for a more exact word, reach for ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an index
To trade big for a word such as huge or giant, look in ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an atlas
Which book lists happy, glad, cheerful and joyful together? It is ___. a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia
Which book tells where the word pajamas came from? It is ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
Which book would show where the Nile River flows? It is ___. a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas
You are not sure whether a lot is one word or two. Check ___. a dictionary, an almanac, an atlas
Your report uses the word very too often. To find words to use in its place, open ___. a thesaurus, an almanac, an atlas

Guide words 70

The guide words are apple and arm. The word on this page is ___. ant, apron, arrow
The guide words are bark and bench. The word on this page is ___. bank, beach, bird
The guide words are basket and beach. The word on this page is ___. barn, bat, bed
The guide words are beetle and bell. The word on this page is ___. bee, begin, belt
The guide words are bridge and brush. The word on this page is ___. brick, broom, bubble
The guide words are button and cabin. The word on this page is ___. butter, cab, cable
The guide words are camel and candy. The word on this page is ___. cake, camp, cane
The guide words are candle and carrot. The word on this page is ___. cabin, canoe, castle
The guide words are chair and chest. The word on this page is ___. chain, cheese, chicken
The guide words are cloud and coat. The word on this page is ___. clock, clown, coin
The guide words are corner and cow. The word on this page is ___. corn, cotton, crab
The guide words are dance and desk. The word on this page is ___. dairy, deer, dime
The guide words are doctor and dolphin. The word on this page is ___. dock, dog, donkey
The guide words are drum and dust. The word on this page is ___. dress, duck, duty
The guide words are eagle and elbow. The word on this page is ___. each, earth, engine
The guide words are fan and feather. The word on this page is ___. face, farm, fence
The guide words are feast and fern. The word on this page is ___. fear, feet, fever
The guide words are feather and fence. The word on this page is ___. fawn, feed, ferry
The guide words are flag and flour. The word on this page is ___. fish, flock, fly
The guide words are garden and ghost. The word on this page is ___. game, gate, giant
The guide words are giant and glass. The word on this page is ___. ghost, glad, globe
The guide words are grape and green. The word on this page is ___. grab, grass, grin
The guide words are hail and harbor. The word on this page is ___. habit, hammer, hatch
The guide words are hand and happy. The word on this page is ___. ham, hang, harp
The guide words are heart and hill. The word on this page is ___. head, helmet, hive
The guide words are honey and horse. The word on this page is ___. home, hook, hour
The guide words are idea and insect. The word on this page is ___. ice, inch, island
The guide words are island and jar. The word on this page is ___. iron, jacket, jeep
The guide words are jacket and jelly. The word on this page is ___. jab, jar, jewel
The guide words are kangaroo and king. The word on this page is ___. jungle, key, kite
The guide words are kettle and kite. The word on this page is ___. keep, kitchen, knee
The guide words are ladder and lawn. The word on this page is ___. label, lantern, leaf
The guide words are lamp and lion. The word on this page is ___. lake, lemon, lunch
The guide words are lemon and lizard. The word on this page is ___. leg, lettuce, lobster
The guide words are letter and library. The word on this page is ___. lesson, level, lid
The guide words are magnet and maple. The word on this page is ___. magic, mail, market
The guide words are marble and meal. The word on this page is ___. map, mask, meat
The guide words are melon and mint. The word on this page is ___. meadow, middle, mirror
The guide words are mitten and monkey. The word on this page is ___. mirror, mix, moon
The guide words are nap and needle. The word on this page is ___. nail, neck, nest
The guide words are needle and noise. The word on this page is ___. neck, nickel, north
The guide words are ocean and orange. The word on this page is ___. oak, onion, otter
The guide words are paddle and parade. The word on this page is ___. pack, palace, pasta
The guide words are parrot and party. The word on this page is ___. park, part, pass
The guide words are peach and pencil. The word on this page is ___. paw, pedal, penny
The guide words are pear and pebble. The word on this page is ___. peanut, pearl, pen
The guide words are pillow and pizza. The word on this page is ___. pig, pirate, plant
The guide words are planet and plum. The word on this page is ___. plan, plate, pocket
The guide words are quart and quill. The word on this page is ___. quack, queen, quiz
The guide words are race and rattle. The word on this page is ___. rabbit, rain, raven
The guide words are river and rope. The word on this page is ___. ring, robot, rose
The guide words are rocket and rose. The word on this page is ___. robin, roof, round
The guide words are saddle and salad. The word on this page is ___. sack, sail, salt
The guide words are sand and school. The word on this page is ___. salt, scarf, scissors
The guide words are shell and ship. The word on this page is ___. shed, shine, shoe
The guide words are silver and sister. The word on this page is ___. silk, sink, six
The guide words are snail and snow. The word on this page is ___. smile, sneeze, soap
The guide words are spider and spoon. The word on this page is ___. spell, splash, spring
The guide words are star and stone. The word on this page is ___. stamp, stem, storm
The guide words are tail and tent. The word on this page is ___. table, teacher, thumb
The guide words are thunder and tiger. The word on this page is ___. thumb, ticket, tire
The guide words are tooth and towel. The word on this page is ___. tool, tornado, town
The guide words are train and tree. The word on this page is ___. trail, trap, trick
The guide words are umbrella and under. The word on this page is ___. ugly, uncle, uniform
The guide words are valley and vest. The word on this page is ___. vacuum, vase, village
The guide words are wagon and water. The word on this page is ___. waffle, wall, wave
The guide words are whale and wheel. The word on this page is ___. wet, wheat, whisper
The guide words are window and wing. The word on this page is ___. wind, windy, winter
The guide words are yard and yellow. The word on this page is ___. yak, yawn, yogurt
The guide words are zebra and zipper. The word on this page is ___. zap, zero, zoo

How this list was compiled: Written for this page. In the first set each question names a job and three references, and only one does that job: a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia, an almanac, or the glossary or index of a book. What each one holds follows its entry in the English Wiktionary, en.wiktionary.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0), read on 2 October 2026. In the second set each question gives the two guide words of a dictionary page and three words, one of which falls between them in ABC order; the order of every question was checked letter by letter. No brand of dictionary or encyclopedia is named. Licence: own work

How it works

Each question names a job, such as finding a synonym or a map, and three references to choose from. A second set gives the two guide words of a dictionary page and asks which word is on it.

Read the full guide

What each reference holds

A dictionary gives a word's meaning, spelling, syllables and how to say it. A thesaurus lists synonyms and antonyms. An atlas is a book of maps. An encyclopedia has articles on many topics. An almanac is a yearly book of dates, records and tables. A glossary explains one book's key words, and an index lists its topics with their pages.

Guide words

Pick Guide words under Set. On these sheets the two guide words are the first and last words of a dictionary page, and a word is on the page if it falls between them in ABC order: lemon sits between lamp and lion.

When two words start alike, such as wind and window, the shorter one comes first.

Questions and answers

What are reference materials?

They are the books and tools you look things up in and do not read from start to finish: a dictionary, a thesaurus, an atlas, an encyclopedia, an almanac, and the glossary and index inside another book.

What grade uses reference materials?

The Common Core asks fourth graders to consult reference materials such as dictionaries, glossaries and thesauruses, in print and digital form, to find how a word is said and what it means (L.4.4c).

What are guide words in a dictionary?

They are words printed at the top of a page to help a reader find an entry. Compare your word with them letter by letter; if it comes after the first and before the second, it is on that page.

Does the sheet come with answers?

Yes. The answer key is the last page, with the right choice circled and written in. To print the questions alone, uncheck Add an answer key as the last page under More options.

All 140 questions

Choose the reference 70

Choose the reference, continued

Guide words 70

How it works

What each reference holds

Guide words

Questions and answers

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