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Common Core ELA4th GradeReading: Literature

RL.4.4: Word Meaning and Words from Mythology

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.4 · Cluster: Craft and Structure.

Get the Word MapAll 43 4th Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including those that allude to significant characters found in mythology (e.g., Herculean).

Common Core State Standards, Grade 4, Reading: Literature · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What RL.4.4 Means in Plain English

Fourth graders work out what words and phrases mean in the story they are reading, including words borrowed from myths. Herculean comes from Hercules, the hero of Greek and Roman myths famous for his strength, so a Herculean job takes enormous effort. Students use the myth and the context together.

In 3rd grade (RL.3.4) students told literal from nonliteral language, like cold feet. Fourth grade adds words that allude to mythology, like Herculean and odyssey. In 5th grade (RL.5.4) students name and explain figurative language, such as metaphors and similes, as it is used in a text.

RL.4.4 I Can Statements

  • I can use context to work out what a word means.
  • I can recognize words that come from characters in myths.
  • I can explain how a myth helps me understand a word.

RL.4.4 Worked Example

A long, hard Saturday told with two words borrowed from Greek myths. The question asks about the first one.

Read the Story
Clearing out Aunt Odette’s barn loft before the yard sale was a Herculean job.Silas hauled down rusty rakes, a three-legged stool and forty years of seed catalogs. He dragged a cast-iron stove across the floor an inch at a time. By noon his arms were shaking, and the loft still looked full.Then the pickup got a flat tire on the way to the dump, a detour sent them down a dirt road, and a wrong turn put them on the far side of the county.When they finally rolled into the driveway after dark, Aunt Odette laughed. “Well,” she said, “that was an odyssey.”
A short passage written for this page.
Question: What does Herculean mean in “a Herculean job”? Explain how the story and the myth behind the word help you figure it out.
Not Yet“Herculean means hard.”It is close, but it misses the size of the effort and cites nothing: no detail from the loft and no word about where Herculean comes from.
Meets the Standard“Herculean means needing enormous strength and effort. It comes from Hercules, the hero in Greek and Roman myths who was stronger than everyone. The story shows it: Silas drags a cast-iron stove ‘an inch at a time,’ his arms are shaking by noon, and the loft ‘still looked full.’”It gives a precise meaning, connects the word to the character it alludes to, and proves that meaning with details from the sentences around it.
Question Stems to Use
Does this word look like the name of a character from a myth?What is that character known for?Which details around the word show what it means here?Can you say the sentence again with your own word in its place?Why might the author pick this word instead of an ordinary one?

Common Mistakes with RL.4.4

Guessing from the sound of the word

“Herculean is something to do with a hurricane.”

Try this: Have students check every guess against the sentence it came from, swapping their meaning in to see whether the sentence still makes sense.

Knowing the myth but skipping the context

“Hercules was a strong guy.”

Try this: Ask for both halves every time: what the character in the myth is known for, and which story details match that.

Treating odyssey as an ordinary trip

“An odyssey is when you drive to the dump.”

Try this: Teach the story behind the word first: Odysseus spent ten years trying to get home, so an odyssey is a long, eventful journey.

Where RL.4.4 Fits

Comes BeforeRL.3.4Tell literal from nonliteral language and work out what phrases mean in a story.
AlongsideL.4.4Use context clues and Greek and Latin roots to work out unknown words.L.4.5Explain simple similes, metaphors, idioms and proverbs.
Comes NextRL.5.4Work out word meanings in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.

Practice RL.4.4

Vocabulary Worksheet GeneratorFree ToolLoad a list of words from myths, like Herculean, odyssey and echo, and get a definition, a sentence and a picture for each.Words from mythsGrade 4
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Quick Check

  1. Name two things Silas hauls out of the loft.
  2. What goes wrong on the way to the dump?
  3. What does Aunt Odette mean when she calls the trip “an odyssey”?

RL.4.4: Other Names

RL.4.4CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.4

Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Official wording from the Common Core State Standards PDFs at corestandards.org, last checked October 14, 2026. The explanation, I can statements, example, mistakes and practice on this page are EMStudio’s own, written beside the official wording. They are not part of the standard.