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Word Play: More Than One Meaning

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April Nicotera

Tier 1
For Schools

Lesson Plan

Multiple Meaning Words Lesson Plan

Students will be able to define and use words that have multiple meanings (homonyms/polysemous words) in context, thereby enhancing their expressive and receptive language skills.

Understanding words with multiple meanings improves reading comprehension, strengthens vocabulary, and helps students communicate more clearly and accurately. This skill is vital for navigating complex texts and everyday conversations.

Audience

6th Grade Students (all on IEPs)

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Direct instruction, visual examples, interactive activities, and practice.

Materials

Slide Deck: More Than One Meaning, Warm Up: What Do You See?, Reading: Tricky Words, Tricky Meanings, Game: Match the Meaning Mania, Worksheet: Meaning Master Challenge, and Quiz: Multiple Meanings Quick Check

Prep

Teacher Preparation

15 minutes

  • Review all generated materials: Multiple Meaning Words Lesson Plan, More Than One Meaning, What Do You See?, Tricky Words, Tricky Meanings, Match the Meaning Mania, Meaning Master Challenge, and Multiple Meanings Quick Check.
  • Print copies of the Worksheet: Meaning Master Challenge and Quiz: Multiple Meanings Quick Check for each student.
  • Ensure projector/smartboard is ready for the Slide Deck: More Than One Meaning and for displaying the Warm Up: What Do You See?.
  • Prepare any physical materials if adapting the Game: Match the Meaning Mania for hands-on play (e.g., word cards).

Step 1

Warm-Up: Picture This!

5 minutes

  1. Display the Warm Up: What Do You See? on the screen.
  2. Ask students to share what they notice or what words come to mind when they see the image/prompt.
  3. Facilitate a brief discussion connecting their observations to the idea that things (and words!) can have more than one meaning.

Step 2

Introduction & Direct Instruction: Unpacking Words

10 minutes

  1. Use the Slide Deck: More Than One Meaning to introduce the concept of words with multiple meanings.
  2. Go through slides, providing clear definitions and visual examples of words like 'bank', 'bat', 'wave', etc.
  3. Read the Reading: Tricky Words, Tricky Meanings aloud with students, pausing to discuss the different contexts and meanings of the words presented.

Step 3

Interactive Game: Meaning Match-Up

10 minutes

  1. Explain the rules for Game: Match the Meaning Mania.
  2. Lead the class in playing the game, reinforcing correct answers and discussing why certain meanings fit specific contexts.
  3. Encourage students to explain their reasoning, focusing on context clues.

Step 4

Worksheet Practice: Show What You Know

3 minutes

  1. Distribute the Worksheet: Meaning Master Challenge.
  2. Instruct students to complete the first few questions independently.
  3. Circulate to provide support and clarification as needed. (Note: Remaining questions can be assigned for homework or finished in a later session if time allows).

Step 5

Cool Down/Exit Ticket: Quick Check

2 minutes

  1. Distribute the Quiz: Multiple Meanings Quick Check.
  2. Instruct students to complete the quiz as an exit ticket.
  3. Collect quizzes to assess understanding and inform future instruction.
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Slide Deck

Word Play: More Than One Meaning!

🔍 Don't Get Tricked By Words! 🔍
Some words are like chameleons – they change their meaning depending on where they are!

Welcome students and introduce the lesson's exciting topic. Ask them if they've ever noticed words that can trick us!

What Are Multiple Meaning Words?

These are words that sound the same AND are spelled the same, but have DIFFERENT meanings!

Think about the word "bank":

  • Meaning 1: The land along the side of a river.
    (Imagine a river with trees on its bank.)

  • Meaning 2: A place where you keep your money.
    (Imagine a building with a dollar sign on it, a money bank.)

Define what multiple meaning words are using simple language. Provide the 'bank' example with clear visuals to illustrate the two different meanings.

Why Are These Words Important?

Knowing words with multiple meanings helps you:

  • Understand what you read better! 📖
  • Communicate clearly when you talk and write! 🗣️✍️
  • Sound super smart! 🧠

It's like having a secret decoder ring for words!

Explain why this skill is important, especially for reading and speaking. Connect it to their language IEP goals.

Let's Look at More Examples!

🦇 Bat ⚾

  • Meaning 1: A flying mammal.
    (Show a picture of a bat animal.)
  • Meaning 2: A piece of sports equipment.
    (Show a picture of a baseball bat.)

👋 Wave 🌊

  • Meaning 1: To move your hand back and forth to greet someone.
    (Show a person waving their hand.)
  • Meaning 2: A ridge of water moving across the surface of a body of water.
    (Show a picture of an ocean wave.)

Introduce more examples with strong visual cues. Encourage students to think of sentences for each meaning.

Time to Play: Match the Meaning!

Get ready to put your detective skills to the test!

We're going to play a game to match words to their correct meanings based on sentences. Listen carefully for clues!

Transition to the interactive game to apply their new knowledge.

Worksheet Time: Meaning Master Challenge!

Now it's your turn to be the 'Meaning Master'!

Take out your worksheets and show what you've learned about tricky words.

Announce the worksheet activity.

Quick Check: How Did We Do?

One last quick challenge to see how much you've mastered!

This will help me know what we might need to review later.

Prepare students for the short quiz as a cool-down/exit ticket.

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Warm Up

Warm Up: What Do You See?

Take a look at the image below. What do you see? What different ideas or words come to mind?





(Teacher Note: Display a visual illusion or a picture that could be interpreted in two distinct ways, e.g., the 'duck-rabbit' illusion, an old woman/young woman illusion, or a word like 'read' and ask students for two different meanings/usages.)

Discussion Prompts:

  1. What is the first thing you noticed in the picture?
  2. Can you see anything else in the picture? How does looking at it differently change what you see?
  3. Just like pictures, sometimes words can have more than one meaning! Can you think of any words that might be like that?
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lenny

Reading

Tricky Words, Tricky Meanings!

Have you ever heard a word and thought it meant one thing, but then in a different sentence, it meant something else entirely? These are called multiple meaning words! They are words that are spelled the same and sound the same, but have different meanings depending on how they are used.

It's like words have different hats they can wear, and you need to look at the whole sentence to know which hat they have on!

Let's look at some examples:

Bark

  • Meaning 1: The sound a dog makes.
    Example: My dog likes to bark loudly at squirrels.


  • Meaning 2: The outer covering of a tree.
    Example: We carved our initials into the bark of the old oak tree.


Right

  • Meaning 1: The opposite of left.
    Example: Turn right at the next corner to get to the park.


  • Meaning 2: Correct or true.
    Example: You got all the answers right on the quiz!


Ring

  • Meaning 1: A piece of jewelry worn on a finger.
    Example: She wore a beautiful diamond ring on her wedding day.


  • Meaning 2: The sound a bell makes.
    Example: The school bell will ring to start class.


Remember: Always pay attention to the other words in the sentence. They are like clues that help you figure out which meaning the tricky word is using! This skill will make you a fantastic reader and a super clear communicator!

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lenny

Game

Game: Match the Meaning Mania!

Objective: To correctly identify the meaning of a word based on the context of the sentence.

Materials:

  • Slide Deck: More Than One Meaning (for displaying words/sentences)
  • Optional: Index cards with words and separate cards with sentences or meanings for physical matching.

How to Play:

  1. Teacher reads a sentence from the list below, highlighting the multiple-meaning word.
  2. Students (individually or in small groups) state or show which meaning of the word is being used in that sentence.
  3. Teacher reveals the correct meaning and provides a quick explanation if needed. Each correct answer earns a point for the student/group.

Round 1: "Fall"

  • Sentence A: The leaves fall from the trees in autumn.

    • Meaning 1: To drop down.
    • Meaning 2: The season after summer.



  • Sentence B: My favorite season is fall because of pumpkin spice lattes.

    • Meaning 1: To drop down.
    • Meaning 2: The season after summer.



Round 2: "Fly"

  • Sentence A: I watched the bird fly high in the sky.

    • Meaning 1: To move through the air with wings.
    • Meaning 2: A small insect.



  • Sentence B: A pesky fly kept buzzing around the picnic basket.

    • Meaning 1: To move through the air with wings.
    • Meaning 2: A small insect.



Round 3: "Foot"

  • Sentence A: He hurt his foot playing soccer.

    • Meaning 1: A part of the body at the end of the leg.
    • Meaning 2: The bottom or base of something.



  • Sentence B: Please stand at the foot of the stairs.

    • Meaning 1: A part of the body at the end of the leg.
    • Meaning 2: The bottom or base of something.



Round 4: "Pen"

  • Sentence A: I need a pen to write my name.

    • Meaning 1: A writing instrument.
    • Meaning 2: A small enclosure for animals.



  • Sentence B: The farmer put the sheep in the pen.

    • Meaning 1: A writing instrument.
    • Meaning 2: A small enclosure for animals.



Teacher Tip: Display these sentences one by one on the Slide Deck: More Than One Meaning for better visual engagement!

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Worksheet

Meaning Master Challenge

Directions: Read each sentence carefully. The underlined word has more than one meaning. In the space provided, explain what the underlined word means in that sentence. Then, write a new sentence using the same word with a different meaning.

1. The baseball bat hung upside down in the cave.

  • Meaning in this sentence:




  • New sentence with a different meaning:




2. We waited for the bus at the bank of the river.

  • Meaning in this sentence:




  • New sentence with a different meaning:




3. I got a light jacket because it wasn't very cold.

  • Meaning in this sentence:




  • New sentence with a different meaning:




4. The seal clapped its flippers at the zoo.

  • Meaning in this sentence:




  • New sentence with a different meaning:




5. My alarm clock has a loud band that plays music.

  • Meaning in this sentence:




  • New sentence with a different meaning:




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Quiz

Multiple Meanings Quick Check

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