Many academic words in English are shared in whole or in part with other languages. Research shows that when teachers help students notice these connections, multilingual learners (MLs) can draw on what they already know to understand new vocabulary and use cognates strategically to support reading and writing (Nagy et al., 1993; García et al., 2020). In our previous blog post, we discussed cognates and the role they play in supporting the vocabulary development of MLs. 

What Are Cognates?

Cognates are words in two languages that share a common origin and have similar spelling, pronunciation, and meaning (e.g., “information” in English and “información” in Spanish). Because of these shared origins—often from Latin or Greek—cognates can help MLs connect new English vocabulary to words they already know. 

Cognate instruction can be beneficial for MLs because cognates share predictable form-meaning relationships across languages with similar origins. This allows students to use their prior language knowledge to support meaning‑making, word learning, and accurate use of words in context (García et al., 2020; Nagy et al., 1993).

How to Incorporate Cognates in Vocabulary Instruction

Planning is a critical stage of instruction. Before a lesson, check if any of the target words in the lesson have cognates in your ML students’ home languages. Ask yourself, “Does this word look familiar in my student’s native language? Does it have a similar meaning?” Online cognate dictionaries can facilitate finding this information.  

For example, in science, the word “antibiotic” has a true cognate in Spanish (antibiótico). 

When teaching students to identify the meanings of unfamiliar words, it helps to teach students to identify cognates such as “antibiótico” and focus on shared word parts and their meanings. One way teachers can do this is by applying the Morphemic Analysis Strategy. This strategy involves breaking words into their constituent parts, including roots (the core meaning of the word), prefixes (word parts that attach before the root), and suffixes (word parts that attach after the root).  The following section illustrates the five steps of implementing the Morphemic Analysis Strategy using the antibiotic example. The Morphemic Analysis Graphic Organizer, located in the Supplemental Resources section at the end of the blog post, outlines the five steps of the strategy, and students can use the graphic organizer as a guide when implementing the strategy independently. 

Example Morphemic Analysis Instruction With “Antibiotic”

Before instruction, the teacher identifies key words and word parts in the lesson, reviews the words’ morphology using the Iowa Reading Research Center’s Word Dissector app, checks for cognates in students’ home languages, and plans on how to highlight both shared meanings and structural differences. 

In the example below, the word “antibiotic” was selected from a secondary science lesson because it is a high‑utility academic word and contains recognizable word parts that build on students’ prior language knowledge.

Step 1: Identify the root word, determine its meaning, and determine if it has a connection with the students’ native language(s). 

Teacher: Today, we’re going to focus on the word “antibiotic.” You’ll see this word often in science and health classes, and it is common in medical contexts. This word also appears in a sentence in a text we are reading in class: “Scientists noticed limited growth of bacteria after the antibiotic was used on the sample.” 

[The teacher displays the sentence on the board with the target word underlined.] 

Before we look closely at the sentence containing the word, let’s break the word “antibiotic” into parts to see how its meaning is built. 

 When we break a word into parts, we look at the root, prefix, and suffix. These parts often carry meaning that can help us understand unfamiliar words—especially if we recognize those parts from another language we know. 

 In our Morphemic Analysis Strategy, first, we look at the root.   

The root “bio” means “life.” Spanish “antibiótico” uses the same root, so you can see the connection. 

• English: bio in antibiotic (means life)
• Spanish: bio in antibiótico (same meaning as English) 

[The teacher displays the Morphemic Analysis Graphic Organizer on the board. The teacher writes the root “bio” in the first row of the graphic organizer under “Find the root” and “life” under “Write what the root means.”]

Step 2: Identify the prefix, determine its meaning, and determine if it has a connection with the students’ native language(s).

Teacher: Second, we look at the prefix, which is the part before the root. I see the prefix “anti” before the root “bio.” “Anti” means against. I notice that the prefix “anti” has the same meaning in English and Spanish. 

• English: anti in antibiotic (means against)
• Spanish: anti in antibiótico (same meaning as English) 

I will write the prefix “anti” and its meaning in the “Prefix” row of my graphic organizer and move on to the “Suffix” row.

Step 3: Identify the suffix, determine its meaning, and determine if it has a connection with the students’ native language. 

Teacher: The suffix “ic” in English means “of or pertaining to.” In Spanish, “ico” has the same meaning. 

[The teacher writes “ic” in the third row of the graphic organizer under “Find the suffix” and “of, pertaining to” under “Write what the suffix means.”]

Step 4: Put the word parts together. 

Teacher: Now, let’s put the word meanings together. 

The root “bio” means “life,” the prefix “anti” means “against,” and the suffix “ic” means “of or pertaining to.” Putting it together, “antibiotic” means “something that works against living things.” In Spanish, “antibiótico” has the same parts. 

• English: anti + bio + (t)ic (something that works against living things) = antibiotic
• Spanish: anti+ bió + (t)ico (same meaning as English) = antibiótico

[The teacher writes “something that works against living things” in the fourth row of the graphic organizer under “Write the meanings of the word’s parts together. What do you think the word means?”]

Step 5: Try the word meaning in the sentence.

Teacher: Let’s return to our English sentence: “Scientists noticed limited growth of bacteria after the antibiotic was used on the sample.” I’m going to substitute my meaning in the sentence to test it: “Scientists noticed limited growth of bacteria after the something that works against living things was used on the sample.” Does this meaning make sense? I think it does! 

[The teacher writes “yes” in the fifth row of the graphic organizer under “Does it make sense? Why?”]

While this example works well for teaching a new English word using Spanish, it is important to recognize that many scientific terms do not have direct equivalents across languages. In addition, many languages do not share the same morphemic or syntactic structures as English. This difference makes direct morphemic analysis across languages challenging.   

The following list contains other science words that have cognates in Spanish. You can also use cognate dictionaries, such as those linked in the Supplemental Resources section, to find cognates in your students’ home languages.

Examples of English Science Words With Cognates in Spanish

Cognates are a powerful asset-based tool that can activate students’ linguistic knowledge in their first language to support vocabulary learning and comprehension across content areas. To apply cognate knowledge, students benefit from explicit instruction, modeling, and opportunities to use cognates in meaningful contexts. Using cognates provides MLs opportunities for equitable access across different academic areas (García et al., 2020).

Tips for Successful Cognate Instruction

Supplemental Resources

• Morphemic Analysis Graphic Organizer: This graphic organizer guides students through the steps of applying the Morphemic Analysis Strategy to understand the meaning of unfamiliar words.
• Cognate List: English and Spanish: This guide from Colorín Colorado lists common words in English and their Spanish cognates.
• Bilingual Glossaries and Cognates: This resource from NYU Steinhardt Metro Center provides downloadable, subject‑area glossaries and cognate lists in multiple languages.
• English-Spanish Online Cognate Dictionary: This online source has English-Spanish cognates available alphabetically and by subject area. 

References

Collins Dictionary. (n.d.). Antibiotic. Collins English–Spanish Dictionary. https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english-spanish/antibiotic

Colorín Colorado. (n.d.). Using cognates with English language learners. https://www.colorincolorado.org/using-cognates-ells

García, G. E., Sacco, L. J., & Guerrero‐Arias, B. E. (2020). Cognate instruction and bilingual students’ improved literacy performance. The Reading Teacher, 73(5), 617–625. 

Nagy, W. E., García, G. E., Durgunoğlu, A. Y., & Hancin-Bhatt, B. (1993). Spanish-English bilingual students' use of cognates in English reading. Journal of Reading Behavior, 25(3), 241–259. 

Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Antibiotic. Oxford English Dictionary. https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1205836661

Paterson, K. (2021). Using home language as a resource in the classroom: A guide for teachers of English learners. TESOL Press.