Homophones and Homonyms…
Homophones and homonyms are words that sound the same but have different meanings.
Homonyms are words that are pronounced and spelt the same way but have different meanings. Like the word, ‘wear’. You can wear a shirt and a shirt can wear out.
Another example is ‘change’. You can change your shirt and you can pay for a shirt with change.
Homophones, on the other hand, are pronounced the same way but spelt differently and they have different meanings.
An example is the word, ‘time’. Thyme with an ‘hy’ can grow in your garden while ‘time’ with an ‘i’ could be passing by. Too much time could be passing be.
‘Write’ this rule down to make sure your get it ‘right’.
Homonyms are pronounced and spelt the same way, but have different meanings.
Homophones are pronounced the same way but spelt differently, and have different meanings.
Character:
Aargh!
Narrator:
Oh dear, looks like they overcooked this one.
Video summary
Part of a series of animated films following a cast of characters’ adventures and mishaps as they get to grips with grammatical terms.
In this film, Mr and Mrs Selfie's tanning trip goes awry as they learn the important differences between homophones and homonyms.
This clip is from the series Grammar for 11-14 year olds.
Teacher Notes
Starter activity could include the identification of incorrectly used homophones in a passage of text.
Students could identify the incorrect homophone and suggest the appropriate word.
Gap fill activity where students are required to fill in the correct homophone focused on their/there/they’re.
This clip is suitable for teaching English at Key Stage 3 or Third Level.
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