How do you lean homonym spelling lists?

Multiple Meaning Words/Homonyms Lists

How Do You Learn Homonym Spelling Lists?

Homonyms, or multiple-meaning words, are words that have the same spelling and usually sound alike, but have different meanings (e.g. dog bark, tree bark).

Beginning in kindergarten, children learn to use context to determine which meaning of a multiple-meaning word is correct in a sentence. Word study including homonym practice games and multiple meaning word activities and lists continues as students progress and their vocabularies increase.

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Examples of homonyms from spelling lists used in sentences:

I left my phone on the left side of the room.
The baseball pitcher asked for a pitcher of water.
The committee chair sat in the center chair.
The crane flew above the construction crane.
While they are at the play, I’m going to play with the dog.
She will park the car so we can walk in the park.

Learn about more Frequently Confused Words: homophones, heteronyms/homographs and capitonyms.

View Common Core State Standards Related to Homonyms Close

Common Core State Standards Related to Homonyms

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.1.g
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking: Correctly use frequently confused words (e.g., to, too, two; there, their).

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.4
Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 4 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.4a
Use context (e.g., definitions, examples, cause/effect relationships and comparisons in text, or restatements in text) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.5.4.a
Use context (e.g., cause/effect relationships and comparisons in text) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.K.4.a
Identify new meanings for familiar words and apply them accurately (e.g., knowing duck is a bird and learning the verb to duck).

View Words at a Glance Close

Multiple Meaning Words (K-2):

List 1: bolt, bat, bowl, bat, bark, bowl, bark, bolt, bit, bit
List 2: clip, can, box, clip, can, club, club, box, check, check
List 3: eye, dip, down, down, dip, fair, dress, fair, dress, eye
List 4: foot, hard, gum, gum, fly, hard, file, fly, foot, file
List 5: hit, jam, last, left, last, hide, left, hide, jam, hit
List 6: mean, mean, lie, miss, miss, over, nails, nails, lie, over
List 7: play, pet, pet, play, park, pen, park, pen, punch, punch
List 8: row, root, rock, scale, row, ring, ring, scale, rock, root
List 9: stamp, seal, seal, star, stamp, shake, star, sink, sink, shake
List 10: tap, swing, tire, stuff, stick, stick, swing, tire, tap, stuff

Multiple Meaning Words (3-5):

List 1: blue, before, bore, bear, bear, bore, bill, before, blue, bill
List 2: brush, chest, clear, chest, count, count, change, change, brush, clear
List 3: fence, game, fan, game, ear, fork, fence, ear, fork, fan
List 4: kind, jerk, head, kind, kid, kid, head, jerk, handle, handle
List 5: log, leaves, light, mold, mine, leaves, mine, mold, light, log
List 6: paste, plain, pitcher, organ, pitcher, paste, plain, organ, note, note
List 7: pupil, pool, racket, pound, pool, racket, range, range, pound, pupil
List 8: scale, saw, rose, rent, saw, right, scale, right, rent, rose
List 9: shed, space, ship, sole, sole, spring, ship, spring, shed, space
List 10: steer, stern, squash, stoop, stern, stable, squash, steer, stable, stoop
List 11: watch, store, trunk, trunk, yard, train, train, yard, store, watch

Multiple Meaning Words (6-8):

List 1: against, bluff, bluff, batter, case, case, batter, bank, bank, against
List 2: charge, chair, charge, column, company, cobbler, cobbler, column, chair, company
List 3: dread, date, either, date, dread, dusting, crane, dusting, crane, either
List 4: fuse, hail, junk, fuse, hail, fire, initial, initial, fire, junk
List 5: loom, lash, marker, loom, marker, like, like, lash, late, late
List 6: patient, novel, novel, mint, monitor, mint, minor, patient, minor, monitor
List 7: period, period, present, present, peer, raise, press, press, raise, peer
List 8: scale, rash, rare, right, right, scale, runner, rare, rash, runner
List 9: shower, second, skin, school, shower, skin, scan, school, scan, second
List 10: staple, speaker, soil, spell, soil, spell, state, staple, state, speaker
List 11: trace, suit, strike, terrific, tackle, terrific, trace, suit, strike, tackle

Multiple Meaning Words (9-12):

List 1: board, awful, atmosphere, bow, blunt, atmosphere, board, awful, bow, blunt
List 2: certain, buckle, coach, cabinet, cabinet, certain, channel, coach, buckle, channel
List 3: custom, doctor, cobble, draft, current, doctor, draft, custom, cobble, current
List 4: firm, fast, flounder, fast, figure, frank, firm, flounder, figure, frank
List 5: harbor, harbor, hatch, ground, ground, grave, hamper, grave, hatch, hamper
List 6: overlook, overlook, lounge, lean, incomparable, might, lean, lounge, might, incomparable
List 7: page, pitch, pawn, periodic, palm, periodic, page, pawn, palm, pitch
List 8: plane, refrain, riot, prune, refrain, reservation, prune, reservation, riot, plane
List 9: solution, spare, sentence, sanction, solution, sanction, season, spare, season, sentence
List 10: taxes, spruce, temper, taxes, spruce, swallow, temple, temper, swallow, temple

VocabularySpellingCity.com provides word lists, printables, interactive homonym practice games, and multiple meaning word activities that give students the opportunity to understand that some words really do have multiple meanings and to practice distinguishing their meanings through context.

Try Sentence Writing Practice with the Grade 3-5 Homonyms list.