You pick up a crayon. You make a line on paper. You create a cat.
That is drawing. Today we learn four words.
“Draw,” “drawer,” “drawing,” and “drawn.”
Each word shares the idea of pulling, creating lines, or being attracted. Each does a different job.
Parents and children can learn these words together. They help with art and furniture.
What Does “Same Word, Different Forms” Mean?
One idea takes different shapes. The idea here is pulling or making lines.
“Draw” is a verb. “Please draw a circle.” Action.
“Draw” is also a verb meaning to pull. “Draw the curtains closed.” Pull.
“Drawer” is a noun. “Put socks in the top drawer.” Furniture.
“Drawing” is a noun or adjective. “The drawing is beautiful.” Picture. “A drawing compass.” Describes.
“Drawn” is an adjective or past participle. “The drawn curtain.” Pulled. “I have drawn a tree.” Past action. “She felt drawn to the puppy.” Attracted.
Same root. Different endings. Different jobs. The pulling or marking stays.
Personal Pronouns Change Their Form
Pronouns change for grammar. “I” becomes “me.” “We” becomes “us.”
Our words change for role and time. “I draw a horse.” Present.
“The drawer is stuck.” Noun. “This drawing is lovely.” Picture.
“He felt drawn.” Describes.
Pronouns help us speak faster. Word families help us talk about art and storage.
When children know these four words, they describe creations.
From Verb to Noun to Adjective to Adverb – One Family, Many Words
“Draw” is a verb. “Draw a line down the page.” Action.
“Draw” also means to pull. “Draw the wagon.” Pull.
“Drawer” is a noun. “The desk has three drawers.” Compartment.
“Drawing” is a noun. “The child’s drawing is on the fridge.” Picture.
“Drawing” is also an adjective. “Drawing paper is for sketches.” Describes.
“Drawn” is an adjective. “The drawn blinds kept out light.” Pulled.
“Drawn” is also a past participle. “She has drawn a map.” Completed.
“Drawn” also means attracted. “He was drawn to the music.” Pulled by interest.
We have no common adverbs.
Seven meanings. Very rich family.
One Root, Many Roles – How Words Grow from Actions to Qualities
The root “draw” comes from Old English “dragan,” meaning to pull.
From that root, we add “-er” to make a noun for a piece of furniture that you pull open.
We add “-ing” to name the picture or activity.
“Drawn” is the past participle, also an adjective meaning “pulled” or “attracted.”
Help your child see this pattern. Draw is the action. Drawer is the sliding box. Drawing is the picture. Drawn means pulled or attracted.
Same Meaning, Different Jobs – Is It a Verb or a Noun?
Look at “draw.” Always a verb. “Draw a heart on the card.” Action.
“Drawer” is always a noun. “The drawer is full of spoons.”
“Drawing” is a noun (picture) or adjective. “The drawing is colorful.” Noun. “Drawing paper.” Adjective.
“Drawn” is an adjective or past participle. “The drawn shade.” Adjective. “She has drawn a flower.” Past participle.
Teach children to look at the endings. “-er” noun (furniture). “-ing” noun (picture). “-n” (drawn) adjective or past participle.
“Draw” alone is the verb.
Adjectives and Adverbs – When Do We Add -ly?
We add “-ly” to “drawn” to make “drawnly.” Very rare. “He looked drawnly tired.” Skip it.
We do not add “-ly” to “draw,” “drawer,” or “drawing.”
For children, skip these adverbs. Focus on the main words.
Watch Out for Tricky Spelling Changes (Double Letters, y to i, and More)
Spelling has one irregularity. Past tense is “drew,” but the past participle is “drawn.”
For the noun “drawer,” it is spelled D-R-A-W-E-R. Not “drawer” as in one who draws (that is “draughtsman”). The furniture is “drawer.”
“Drawing” keeps the “aw.” Draw + ing = drawing.
“Drawn” is draw + n (irregular).
No double letters except “drawer” has no double.
Practice with your child. Write “draw.” Add “ing.” You get “drawing.” Write “draw” + “er.” You get “drawer.” Write “draw” + “n.” You get “drawn.”
Let’s Practice – Can You Choose the Right Form?
Try these sentences. Fill in the blank with draw, drawer, drawing, or drawn.
Please _____ a square on the paper. (action verb)
The top _____ is for shirts. (furniture)
Her _____ of a rainbow was very colorful. (picture)
The curtains were _____ to let in less light. (adjective, pulled)
I felt _____ to the friendly cat. (adjective, attracted)
Open the _____ and take out a pencil. (furniture)
Let us _____ a map of our neighborhood. (verb)
She has _____ a beautiful portrait. (past participle)
Answers: 1 draw, 2 drawer, 3 drawing, 4 drawn, 5 drawn, 6 drawer, 7 draw, 8 drawn.
Number 4 uses “drawn” as an adjective meaning “pulled closed.”
Number 5 uses “drawn” as an adjective meaning “attracted.”
Tips for Parents – Help Your Child Learn Word Families in a Fun Way
Draw a picture together. “Let us draw a funny monster.”
Open a drawer. “The silverware drawer is next to the sink.”
Make a drawing. “Your drawing is so creative.”
Explain drawn as attracted. “I feel drawn to the smell of cookies.”
Play a game. You name an object. Your child draws it on a small whiteboard.
Label the furniture in your kitchen: “Drawer 1, Drawer 2.”
Read a book about art. “Harold and the Purple Crayon” draws a whole world.
Do not correct every mistake. If your child says “drawed” for past, gently say “We say drew for past and drawn for have.”
Celebrate when your child uses “drawn” as attracted. That is a poetic use.
Explain that “draw” can mean to pull, to sketch, or to attract. “Magnets draw metal.”
Tomorrow you will draw a flower. You will open a drawer for clothes. You will admire a drawing. You will feel drawn to a new friend.
Your child might say “I am drawn to art.” You will buy more crayons.
Keep drawing. Keep opening drawers. Keep making drawings. Keep noticing what you are drawn to.
Your child will grow in language and in creativity. Drawing is seeing. Words help us share the view.
