Friday, August 31, 2012

Quick Lesson: Homophones

Homophones are words in English that are pronounced in the same way but are spelt differently and have different meanings. Although you do not need to think about this when speaking, you have to make sure you spell the word correctly when writing! Here are some examples and their definitions for you:
WORD ONE
DEFINITION ONE
WORD TWO
DEFINITION TWO
Pear
A sweet, yellow fruit
Pair
A set of two things
Through
In one side and out the other
Threw
Past Tense- Pushing something through the air
Weight
The heaviness of a person or object
Wait
Delay action until a certain time
Ate
Past Tense- Have a meal or chew something
Eight
A number one more than seven
There
In/At/To that place
Their
Belonging to someone
Scent
A smell
Sent
Past Tense- To be taken somewhere
Hear
To acknowledge a sound with the ear
Here
In/At/To that place
Know
Be aware of information concerning
No
Negative response
Meat
Food of the flesh of an animal
Meet
Come into the presence of someone else
Peace
Quiet
Piece
A portion of an object

You can practise using homophones in your writing by forming sentences that show the meaning of each of the two words. We’d love to hear from you in the comments section. So if you are having trouble, have any questions, or would like to share your work on homophones with us, please leave us a comment and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Quick Lesson: When should I use They're, Their or There?

Image courtesy of Christopher Rice

One group of words in the English language that lots of students find difficult is their, there and they're. These words are known as Homophones, because they sound the same but have different meanings.

The meanings of the words are:

They're is a contraction of the words they are. An example sentence for this word would be: "They're going to the shop to buy a ball."They're is a contraction of the words they are. An example sentence for this word would be: "They're going to the shop to buy a ball."


Their refers to a group of people who own something. An example sentence for this word would be: "It is their ball."

There refers to a place or is used alongside verbs like "are" or "is". An example sentence for this word would be: "The ball is over there." or "There is one ball on the football pitch.".

So how well do you think you know the difference between Their, There and They're? Try the quiz below and tell us how you get on in the comments section!

1. My grandparents have  evening meal at 6pm.
2. It is  ball, not yours
3. going to see the play at 7pm tonight.
4. I can't see the ball. Is it over 
5. are more people living in the house than there used to be.
6. Do you know if  going to buy a car?