Choose the Correct Homophone

In this activity, we're going to to be looking at common homophones and how to spell them.

Homophones are words that sound the same but mean different things and are spelt differently.

For example: bear and bare.  

Read those two words out loud - did you notice that they sound exactly the same?  

They have completely different meanings though - let's look at each of them in a sentence:

The bear was prowling through the forest.

On hot days I like to take off my socks and have bare feet.

In this activity, we are going to practise spelling two pairs of homophones:

alter and altar

father and farther

Let's look at these in a sentence so we can understand their different meanings:

Can we alter the time of our meeting?

To alter is a verb meaning to change.

The religious leader stood behind the altar.

An altar is a small place, usually raised up, for religious worship.  Special items are sometimes placed on an altar.

I love to play with my father.

A father is a male parent.

Can we walk a little farther?

Farther means 'more far' or 'a greater distance' - it has the same meaning as further.

Are you ready to practise spelling these words?  Let's go!