As we have already said, homonyms are some words that sound similar or share the same spelling. The definition of homonyms is more general, as it has strong links with homographs and homophones. In this sense, homonyms are sort of a big tree with its fruits: homographs and homophones.

What are homophones? These are words that have the same pronunciation but different meanings. For example:

Ann ate three candies. I came home at eight o’clock.

Tom was playing with a ball all day long. Mary ate a bowl of cereal for breakfast.

Here are the examples of other frequently used homophones:

They’re/There/Their/His/He’s

A large number of homophones are built up of possessives and pronouns with the verb ‘to be’. Thus, we say: They’re friends. Their dog is big. The keys are there. His car is red. He’s so kind.

Too/Two/To

Despite being spelled very similarly, these are different words. “To” is a preposition that shows direction: I’m going to school. “Two” is a number: Ben bought two books. “Too” is an adverb that means “also” or “very”: It’s too hot today. Alex wants to go there too.

For/Four

“For” is a preposition and conjunction that indicates the purpose: I bought this present for my friend.

“Four” is a number: There were four candies in the box.

Now let's dive into homographs. They have the same spelling but different meanings and pronunciations. We can easily recognize them when speaking, but sometimes might be confused while writing. Let’s have a look at these examples:

Autumn leaves are falling down.

The train leaves at 8:00.

Can you find similar words here? You will spot the word “leaves”. In the first sentence, it is the plural noun that indicates the leaves of a tree. In the second, it denotes the action.

Here are more examples of homographs. The context will help you get them correctly:

It is a beautiful ring. I could hear a phone ring.

My granny was right. You need to turn to the right.

Practice Using Homonyms:

The first game will help young learners identify homophones. All you need is to cut out small pieces of paper and write down various examples of homophones. Put the cards in front of your kids and ask them to find all the words that sound similar. You can use hourglasses to set a time limit and help children be more involved.

To play the following game, you will need to prepare illustrations of homophones. You can find some cards above in this article. Print these pictures, cut them out, and let the game start. Read various sentences and omit the homophones. For example:

Steve bought a new … of shoes. (pair)

Do you know the benefits of the … fruit? (pear)

Can you … these bright stars in the night sky? (see)

We spent last summer at the … (sea)

Ask children what words are missing and let them find a suitable picture. Students can play in pairs or several groups. Then you can challenge kids to give their examples of using the homophones.

Kids will love practicing homographs with the fun puzzles. Write various homographs on the board and challenge your students to illustrate these words. There should be one pair of homographs on one piece of paper. When finished drawing, ask children to cut them as puzzles and give them to their friends. Kids will memorize the frequently used homographs while having fun.

We hope these activities will bring some joy to your studying process.

Find our fun worksheets, and keep on practicing with us every day!