Literal or Not? is a free printable Grade 3 English worksheet on telling words that mean what they say from words that do not, aligned to Common Core standard RL.3.4. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions, 24 of them with different questions, so no two pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.
Set 1 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.
24 of these 25 sets ask different questions — this skill does not have 25 questions to give. The rest reorder them, so no two pupils have the same paper in front of them.
Literal or Not?
RL.3.4
NameDate
Read the text, then answer the questions.
1.Read the text, then answer the questions.
The Violin in the Loft
Nobody in our family plays anything. So the violin in the loft was a mystery for eleven years.
Then Great-Aunt Sylvie came for Christmas and saw the case on the table. She went very quiet.
"That was my brother's," she said. "He played in a café in Marseille before the war."
She opened it. Three strings had gone, and the bridge lay loose in the bottom of the case.
She did not play it. She held it under her chin for about ten seconds, put it back, and closed the lid. Then she asked for more potatoes and did not mention it again.
1. The violin was "a mystery for eleven years". Is that literal?
2. "She went very quiet" — what does this really tell you?
2.Read the text, then answer the questions.
Why Anansi Has Thin Legs
Long ago Anansi the spider had eight fat legs, and a nose for other people's cooking.
One morning he smelled beans at Rabbit's house. "Tie a web to my leg," he told Rabbit, "and tug it when the beans are ready." Rabbit agreed.
Then Anansi smelled fish at Monkey's, and yams at Guinea Fowl's, and soup at Warthog's. To each he said the same thing. By noon he had eight webs tied to eight legs.
At noon every pot was ready at once. Eight tugs came together. The webs pulled so hard that Anansi's legs stretched thin as thread — and he got no dinner at all.
They have been thin ever since.
1. "A nose for other people's cooking" — what does this really mean?
2. "Thin as thread" — is this literal or nonliteral? What does it mean?
LessonPrint · RL.3.4 · Set 1 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — Literal or Not?
Set 1. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. Partly — nobody knew whose it was, so it was genuinely unexplained, described as a mystery. 2. Not just that she stopped talking, but that something had affected her.
2.1. It means he was very good at finding out where food was, not that his nose was unusual. 2. Nonliteral. It compares his legs to thread to show how very thin they became.
Questions about Literal or Not?
What does the Literal or Not? worksheet cover?
It practises telling words that mean what they say from words that do not — 2 questions for Grade 3, all on Common Core RL.3.4: Tell when words mean what they say and when they do not. The instruction to pupils is “Read the text, then answer the questions”, and the answer key follows on the next sheet.
Which Common Core standard does Literal or Not? practise?
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.4 — RL.3.4, in the Reading: Literature domain for Grade 3. The published standard reads: “Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.” The worksheet assesses that standard rather than a paraphrase of it.
What age or grade is this worksheet for?
Literal or Not? is written for Grade 3, typically ages 8-9. It is one of the sheets on RL.3.4, so it suits any pupil working at that standard — including older pupils revisiting it and younger ones working ahead.
Does Literal or Not? come with an answer key?
Yes. All 2 answers are generated from the same problems as the questions, so the key cannot drift out of step with the sheet. It starts on a fresh sheet of paper, after the questions, so it is not handed out with the class by accident.
How many different versions of Literal or Not? can I print?
25 versions, of which 24 ask genuinely different questions — this skill does not have 25 distinct questions to give, so the rest reorder them and no two pupils still share a paper. Set 1 downloads all 25 as one PDF.
Is Literal or Not? free to print and photocopy?
Yes. Literal or Not?, its answer key and its 25 versions are free to print and photocopy for your own class, with no account, no email capture and no subscription at the download step. Please do not resell them or republish them as your own.
Is there a lesson plan to teach RL.3.4?
Yes — “Literal and Non-Literal Language” is a 40-minute Grade 3 plan for RL.3.4, timed section by section, with the misconceptions to expect and an exit ticket. Literal or Not? is the practice that follows it.
More practice for RL.3.4
Tell when words mean what they say and when they do not.