Please note the difference between HOMOPHONES and HOMONYMS:
HOMOPHONES are words that sound the same but have different meanings.
- wait (the verb) and weight (how heavy something is)
- they’re (they are) and their (belonging to them) and there (adverb of place)
HOMONYMS are a kind of homophone, words that are written and said the same way but have different meanings.
Examples of HOMONYMS are:
- book – something we read and . . .
- book – to schedule something.
- Spring – the season and . . .
- spring – to jump up.
To help you improve spelling skills, for each word listed, I have included the most common meanings focusing on:
- part of speech (sometimes)
- a very brief definition
- a sentence to test your understanding of the homophone word/s.
Please note that the following scenarios are the most commonly used cases; but as is quite common in our language, there are always exceptions!
1. than/then
- Use than for comparisons; eg: Tad is much taller than his brother.
- Use then to indicate passage of time, or when; eg: We went to the park in the morning, and then we left to pick up lunch.
2. to/too/two
- To can be a preposition; eg: We are going to the park.
- Too is an adverb that can mean excessively (too much) when it precedes an adjective or adverb; eg: I ate too much ice cream for dessert.
- Too is a synonym for also; eg: I ate too much ice cream for dessert, too.
- Two is a number; eg: Shona ate two pieces of pie.
3. you’re/ your
- You’re is a contraction for you are; eg: You’re going to absolutely love this new recipe.
- Your is a pronoun; eg: Please bring your books to class with you tomorrow.
4. fair/fare
- fair (adj.) means just, proper under the rules, or ample; eg: The judge made a fair decision.
- fare (n.) means money paid to ride in a bus, taxi or other vehicle; eg: He paid his fare when he got on the bus. OR
- Used as a verb, fare means to get by, perform; eg: She fared well on the job interview.
5. flew/flu/flue
- flew (v.) past tense of fly; eg: The bird flew past my window.
- flu (n.) short for influenza; eg: Sam missed three days of work because he had the flu.
- flue (n.) passage for smoke in a chimney; eg: The chimney flue needs to be cleaned regularly.
6. heal/heel/he’ll
- heal means to make healthy; eg: Extra rest and fluids will help to heal your sickness.
- heel is the back part of the foot; eg. Place your heel firmly into the boot.
- he’ll (contr.) he will; eg: He’ll be happy when he comes.
7. lone/loan
- A loan is money lent; eg: The car loan was for $5,000.
- Used as a verb, loan means to lend something; eg: Can you please loan me enough money for lunch?
- lone means single, only; eg: The truck driver was the lone customer at the all-night diner.
8. male/mail
- mail are items sent in the postal system; eg: I received six letters today in the mail.
Used as a verb, mail means to send something by mail or e-mail; eg: She will mail her car payment today.
- male (n.) a boy or man; eg: There were ten male passengers on the train.
Used as an adjective, male means related to a man or boy; eg: I heard a male voice on the telephone.
9. main/mane
- main (adj.) means most important; eg:The speaker’s main point was that we can all fight poverty.
- mane (n.) is the long hair on the neck of an animal; eg: Shona hung on to the horse’s mane when it started galloping.
10. meat/meet
- meat is edible flesh from an animal; eg: We eat meat nearly every night for dinner.
- meet is to get together; eg: Let’s meet for coffee tomorrow morning.
Used as a noun, meet is a sports competition; eg: Athletes from ten schools will compete at the track meet.
11. pail/pale
- A pail is a bucket; eg: That pail holds five gallons of paint.
- Being pale means lacking color; eg: The sick child’s face was very pale.
12. pain/pane
- pain is physical distress; eg: Her back pain prevented her from bending over.
- pane is section of a window; eg: The window pane was covered with frost.
13. passed/past
- passed is the past tense of pass; eg: The teenager finally passed his driving test.
- past means later, or in a time gone by; eg: Her financial worries are now all in the past.
14. patience/patients
- patience is the ability to wait; eg: The kindergarten teacher’s patience is remarkable.
- patients are people under the care of a doctor; eg: Five patients were waiting to see the doctor.
15. raise/raze
- To raise is to build up; eg: Let’s raise the sign a bit higher so it can be read more easily.
- To raze is to tear down; eg: The city plans to raze the vacant building.
ALWAYS make it a habit to edit your work to avoid committing the HOMOPHONES mistakes.
Good luck in all your endeavours.
