Homonyms, Homophones and Homographs - What are they?
Homonyms can sometimes be confusing for children when writing and spelling.
BUT
What are Homonyms?
Homonyms:- are words that sound or are spelt the same but are different in meaning. ('Homo' meaning the same and 'nym' meaning name)
There are two types of Homonyms:
Homophones:- are words that sound the same but have different meanings and sometimes different spellings. ('Homo' meaning the same and 'phone' meaning sound)
Homographs:- are words that are spelt the same but have different meanings and sometimes are pronounced differently. ('Homo' meaning the same and 'graph' meaning to write)
The following is a list of Homonyms:
Example of Homophones:
- Air /
Heir
- Aisle /
Isle
- Allowed /
Aloud
- Altar /
Alter
- Ate /
Eight
- Ball /
Bawl
- Bare /
Bear
- Barren /
Baron
- Base /
Bass
- Bean /
Been
- Berry /
Bury
- Birth /
Berth
- Blue /
Blew
- Border /
Boarder
- Bow /
Bough
- Boy /
Buoy
- Brake /
Break
- Buy /
By
- Ceiling /
Sealing
- Cent /
Scent /
Sent
- Cereal /
Serial
- Check /
Cheque
- Chews /
Choose
- Coarse /
Course
- Complement /
Compliment
- Corps /
Core
- Council /
Counsel
- Creek /
Creak
- Current /
Currant
- Dear /
Deer
- Dessert /
Desert
- Dew /
Due
- Die /
Dye
- Doe /
Dough
- Draw /
Drawer
- Faint /
Feint
- Fair /
Fare
- Fate /
Fete
- Father /
Farther
- Flee /
Flea
- Flower /
Flour
- For /
Four /
Fore
- Fought /
Fort
- Foul /
Fowl
- Fur /
Fir
- Gate /
Gait
- Great /
Grate
- Guessed /
Guest
- Hair /
Hare
- Hail /
Hale
- Heal /
Heel /
He'll
- Heard /
Herd
- Hear /
Here
- Him /
Hymn
- Hole /
Whole
- Hoarse /
Horse
- Hour /
Our
- Idle /
Idol
- In /
Inn
- Its /
It's
- Key /
Quay
- Knead /
Need
- Knew /
New
- Knit /
Nit
- Knot /
Not
- Know /
No
- Lead /
Led
- Liar /
Lyre
- Load /
Lode
- Made /
Maid
- Mail /
Male
- Main /
Mane
- Mare /
Mayor
- Meat /
Meet
- Medal /
Meddle
- Mettle /
Metal
- Missed /
Mist
- Naval /
Navel
- Night /
Knight
- One /
Won
- Or /
Oar /
Ore
- Pain /
Pane
- Pair /
Pare /
Pear
- Pale /
Pail
- Past /
Passed
- Pause /
Paws /
Pours
- Peace /
Piece
- Peel /
Peal
- Plain /
Plane
- Pour /
Poor /
Paw /
Pore
- Practice /
Practise
- Praise /
Preys /
Prays
- Principal /
Principle
- Profit /
Prophet
- Rain /
Reign /
Rein
- Rap /
Wrap
- Read /
Reed
- Read /
Red
- Real /
Reel
- Right /
Write
- Ring /
Wring
- Root /
Route
- Rose /
Rows
- Rote /
Wrote
- Rung /
Wrung
- Sail /
Sale
- Sauce /
Source
- Saw /
Soar /
Sore
- See /
Sea
- Seen /
Scene
- Sell /
Cell
- Sew /
So /
Sow
- Sheer /
Shear
- Site /
Sight
- Stair /
Stare
- Stationery /
Stationary
- Steal /
Steel
- Steak /
Stake
- Stork /
Stalk
- Story /
Storey
- Strait /
Straight
- Sun /
Son
- Tail /
Tale
- There /
Their /
They're
- Threw /
Through
- Throne /
Thrown
- To /
Too /
Two
- Toe /
Tow
- Vain /
Vein /
Vane
- Wade /
Weighed
- Waist /
Waste
- Wait /
Weight
- Wave /
Waive
- Way /
Weigh
- Weak /
Week
- Wear /
Ware /
Where
- Weather /
Wether /
Whether
- Whale /
Wail
- Wheel /
We'll
- Which /
Witch
- Whose /
Who's
- Yolk /
Yoke
- Your /
You're
Example of Homographs:
- there are many words that have more than one meaning that to list would be too large.
Some of the more common ones are:
Back, Ball, Bank, Bar, Bark, Base, Bat, Bear, Beat, Bill, Block, Board, Bow, Calf, Case, Cast, Change, Coat, Court, Cricket, Cross, Duck, Felt, Fit, Foot, Hail, Hand, Hide, Iron, Jam, Jump, Kid, Kind, Lap, Lay, Leaves, Left, Lie, Lock, Mail, Match, Nail, Note, Organ, Page, Patient, Play, Post, Ring, Rock, Roll, Sack, Season, Sign, Spell, Spring, Star, Stick, Tear, Top, Train, Watch, Wave, Wind.
And there are some words that are both Homophones and Homographs:
Bow, Check, Deer, Fair, Right
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