Compound Words Quiz Game for Children and Students | Compound Words in English Grammer

What are Compound Words?
Compound words are formed when two or more words are joined together to create a new word that has an entirely new meaning.

For example, “sun” and “flower” are two different words, but when fused together, they form another word, Sunflower. These words are formed by either adding a hyphen or just using the two words as a single term. The spelling of the two words is not necessarily changed when they are joined together, but the definition becomes unique.

Consider the words “make up” and “makeup”. This is a more advanced example of a compound word because the resulting combination is a homonym and can be used in more than one way.

Make up your mind fast.

My makeup was ruined by the rain!

I have a makeup exam tomorrow.

In the first sentence, make up is a verb. In the second sentence, makeup is used as a noun. In the third sentence, we see makeup as an adjective describing “exam.”

Types of Compound Words

There are three types of compound words;

Closed Compound words: These words are written as a single word, such as haircut, newspaper, grandmother, etc.
Open Compounds: Compound words that are written as separate words such as high school, living room, school bus, etc.
Hyphenated Compounds: Words that use a hyphen in between two words, such as well-known, second-rate, merry-go-round, etc.
Fun ways to teach Compound Words

Every child has a different way of learning. What works for one may not work for another so we have created these fun ways to teach your kid compound words. Choose the best activity that tailors to your kid’s learning style.

Visual learning style – Prepare flashcards, half with words and half with pictures. Have your child lay them out in grid style and flip two cards over at a time. The goal is to find a word and a picture to create a compound word. Students will have to use their memory to succeed at this game.
Kinesthetic learning style- Give students a compound word and have them draw the two “parts” of the compound word. For example, for “doghouse” a kid would draw a dog and a house.
Help the kids make compound word daisies. Have them write a word in the middle of the paper flower and ask them to write compound words that utilize the word on the petals.
Once your students know the basics of compounds, you can help them move onto more difficult words.

Practice with these 150 examples of compound words:

Airplane
Airport
Angelfish
Antfarm
Ballpark
Beachball
Bikerack
Billboard
Blackhole
Blueberry
Boardwalk
Bodyguard
Bookstore
Bow Tie
Brainstorm
Busboy
Cabdriver
Candlestick
Car wash
Cartwheel
Catfish
Caveman
Chocolate chip
Crossbow
Daydream
Deadend
Doghouse
Dragonfly
Dress shoes
Dropdown
Earlobe
Earthquake
Eyeballs
Father-in-law
Fingernail
Firecracker
Firefighter
Firefly
Firework
Fishbowl
Fisherman
Fishhook
Football
Forget
Forgive
French fries
Goodnight
Grandchild
Groundhog
Hairband
Hamburger
Handcuff
Handout
Handshake
Headband
Herself
High heels
Honeydew
Hopscotch
Horseman
Horseplay
Hotdog
Ice cream
Itself
Kickball
Kickboxing
Laptop
Lifetime
Lighthouse
Mailman
Midnight
Milkshake
Moonrocks
Moonwalk
Mother-in-law
Movie theater
Newborn
Newsletter
Newspaper
Nightlight
Nobody
Northpole
Nosebleed
Outer space
Over-the-counter
Overestimate
Paycheck
Policeman
Ponytail
Post card
Racquetball
Railroad
Rainbow
Raincoat
Raindrop
Rattlesnake
Rockband
Rocketship
Rowboat
Sailboat
Schoolbooks
Schoolwork
Shoelace
Showoff
Skateboard
Snowball
Snowflake
Softball
Solar system
Soundproof
Spaceship
Spearmint
Starfish
Starlight
Stingray
Strawberry
Subway
Sunglasses
Sunroof
Supercharge
Superman
Superstar
Tablespoon
Tailbone
Tailgate
Take down
Takeout
Taxpayer
Teacup
Teammate
Teaspoon
Tennis shoes
Throwback
Timekeeper
Timeline
Timeshare
Tugboat
Tupperware
Underestimate
Uplift
Upperclassman
Uptown
Video game
Wallflower
Waterboy
Watermelon
Wheelchair
Without
Workboots
Worksheet