“Homophone, homophones, homophones…homophones!” (Veggie Tales)
Adults and children alike make homophone errors. They are probably some of the most common grammatical errors. We like to teach our students little tricks to help them remember which word to use in which situation. Below you will find some tricks–followed by a quiz! Smile…
Here are some serious and some funny tips to help you remember some homophones:
a. their—heir is in it; their shows ownership; heir shows ownership too
b. there—here is in it; here and there; use for there are and there is
c. they’re—contraction they are; say contracted words uncontracted to be sure that you are
using the correct word for the job
d. wandering—you wander in an area; you wander around
e. wonder—you ponder when you wonder
f. scent—cats have a certain scent when their litter box needs cleaned
g. sent—envelopes are sent
h. farther—farther refers to area (has root far)
i. further—further refers to understanding
j. bear—a bear is a creature
k. bare—ends in an e; when we bare something, we expose it
Part of being a good learner and a good student is knowing how you learn—and working in those areas. For example, the author of CQLA loves mnemonics and tricks. (Can you tell?) Other people are distracted by that type of learning.
What kind of learner are you? What helps you learn homophones the best? What helps you learn to spell difficult words? Work in those areas to help you learn better, faster, and more thoroughly.
