User:Tech-head-for-life

Homonyms or Multi-meaning words

Homonyms or Multi-meaning words are words that have the same spelling and pronunciation but have different meanings. The word “homonym" comes from a Greek word that means “having the same name."

check out this Homonym Word Bank online. []

How should you teach or target multiple meaning words?
 * Find/point to the multiple meaning word given a definition.
 * Identify the multiple meaning word in a joke.
 * Highlight the multiple meaning word in a sentence.
 * Find and highlight multiple meaning words in a text.
 * Identify the correct definition given a set of definitions.

Homonyms Lesson Plan: Beginning Readers

Get the homonym instruction started early with preschoolers and kindergartners. As kids are just beginning to read, they can benefit from common sight words that sound the same but are spelled differently. Try out this lesson plan for beginning readers that includes a homonyms worksheet.


 * Introduction - Write the word "bat" on the board. Lead a discussion about what "bat" means. (Students should identify at least two meanings of the word: the flying animal and a baseball bat, and possibly the verb form "to hit a ball"). See if students know other words that are spelled the same but have different meanings.
 * Direct Instruction - Explain that these types of words are homonyms, which means "same" (homo) and "name" (nym). Homonyms sound and are spelled the same, but they have different meanings.
 * Guided Practice - Read a book about homonyms (such as See the Yak Yak by Charles Ghigna). At each pair of homonyms, see if students can identify the multiple meanings. Write each pair on the board along with "bat" and other student examples.
 * Independent Practice - Pass out the homonym worksheet below. Have students work individually or in pairs to cut out and paste the picture next to the correct word.
 * Closure - Ask students to share their worksheets in front of the class or on a document viewer. Discuss which words were the trickiest and which ones were the easiest. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFKDrCCg4kM