VOCABULARY BUILDING
WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED
HOMONYMS, HOMOPHONES AND HOMOGRAPHS
Homonyms: It refers to the words having the same spelling or pronunciation but d9fferent meanings.
Homographs: It refers to the words which are spelled the same, but not necessarily pronounced the
same and have different meaning. (Desert, address, read, spring)
Homophones: It refers to the words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings. (Hill/
heel/ heal, compliment/ complement).
Spelling of the word may or may not be the same. It’s essential not to mishandle homonyms, because
the meaning one wants to convey can change significantly if confused with the word’s meaning.
For instance, if your cousin tells you that he found a band, you’ll probably want to clarify whether he
means that he found a ring or whether he found band of people who play music together. This is
because it will be not easy to tell what he means over the phone or in a text message, as the words are
both spelled and pronounced the same.
Here are some examples of homonyms and homographs.
SR. NO WORD MEANING 1 MEANING 2
1 Address to deliver a speech Location
The Principal addressed the Kindly enter your contact details and
students after the flag hoisting. address in the log book.
2 Bark hard outer covering of a tree the sound of dog
The bark of this tree is said to be His dog starts barking as soon as he
medicinal. sees any strangers enter the
compound.
3 Band a group of people playing music A ring
BTS is one of the most famous The couple exchanged wedding vows
bands in the world. and bands before the priest.
4 Bat wooden instrument used to hit a a night- time flying mammal
ball
Bats are considered to be a bad omen
This bat is my lucky charm. in some cultures.
5 Blue Color Sad/ depressed/ gloomy mood.
My favorite color is blue. Hari’s disappointment at not getting the
job made him blue throughout the
weekend.
6 Circular having the form of a circle An advertisement/ notice
The vase has a circular pattern A circular was issued by the
designed on it. government declaring tomorrow as a
holiday.
7 Compound to mix or combine an enclosed area
Salt in its essential form is a Make sure that your dog does not enter
compound of sodium and chlorine. our compound again.
8 Content happy or satisfied All that is contained inside something.
He drank the soup prepared by his Go through the contents on the book
mother to his heart’s content. first to get an overview.
9 Current Ongoing Flow of water stream
Current semester is more stressful The river was flowing with very strong
than the previous one. currents.
10 Desert a hot, arid region A sweet
Sahara is the largest desert in the Would you like to have any desert after
world. lunch?
11 Express something done fast to explicit feelings, opinions or
thoughts
The express train will not stop
anywhere. He finds it easier to express his ideas
through paintings.
12 Fair lawful, reasonable, proper manner light in color, pleasing appearance
The decision passed by the judges Everybody dropped their jaws as the
was fair and unbiased. fair lady entered the room.
13 Kind Amiable type, category
God never forsakes kind people. What kind of a metal is this?
14 Well Good or satisfactory manner. Hole drilled into the earth to obtain
water.
You did extremely well in the exam.
The well water near the factory is
contaminated.
15 Tender Delicate to make or submit a bid.
The tender roses bloomed Builders will then be sent the
gracefully as the spring came by. specifications and asked to submit a
tender for the work.
16 Ream a quantity of paper. to extract the juice from.
There is a ream of papers on my Please ream the lemons for lemonade,
table; you can pick up a few for you. while I chop the onions.
17 Row a fight to propel a boat forward using
The students got into a row in the He kept rowing the boat hoping that
absence of a teacher. he’ll find a shore.
18 Lean thin and frail rest against something
Veronica is a timid and a lean girl. Stand still! Don’t lean against the wall.
Here are some examples of homophones:
NO HOMOPHONES MEANINGS
1 Aloud – a) Aloud: (adverb) uttering the voice loudly.
Allowed.
1. The whole class read the poem aloud.
b) Allowed: (verb) it is the past tense of ‘allow’
1. The teacher allowed the boy to enter the classroom.
2 Bored – Board a) Bored: (adjective) used when a person is not interested to do something.
1. They were bored by his long speech.
b) Board; (noun) it is a kind of hard surface.
1. He has used a card board to fix the ceiling.
3 Council – a) Council: A collection of experts/ members of the same committee.
Counsel
1. A council of members has gathered together in the hall.
b) Counsel: (noun) advice given especially as a result of consultation
1. He was unwise to reject my counsel.
4 Daze – Days a) Daze: (nun) it is a state of confusion and shock.
1. He came home in a daze.
b) Days: (noun)
1. He goes to college five days a week.
5 Deer – Dear a) Deer: (noun) a carnivorous animal which is used for both singular and plural.
1. He saw seven deer in the forest.
b) Dear: (adjective) used as a greeting in letters / used to refer to a loved one.
1. My dear mother, I will always remember you throughout my life.
6 Die – Dye a) Die: (verb) death.
1. Man is mortal. He is sure to die one day.
b) Dye: (verb) the process of adding color to something.
1. She dyes her hair every season.
7 Heal – Heel a) Heal: (verb) it is used to cure some disease.
1. God can heal anybody if he/she believes in him.
b) Heel: (noun) it refers to a shoe or the back of the foot.
1. The football player hurt his heel while hitting the ball.
8 Alter - Altar a) Alter: (verb) to change.
1. With firm determination, you can alter your circumstances.
b) Altar: (noun) an elevated place or structure for performing religious activities.
1. The priest lit candles on the altar.
9 Weather - a) Weather: the state of atmosphere in an area.
Whether
1. The weather is expected to be pleasant during this week.
b) Whether: conditional word.
1. He wanted to know whether or not the school was closed.
10. Very - Vary a) Very: in an extreme degree.
1. Prices of essential commodities are very high these days.
b) Vary: differ / different/ many.
1. The lab instructor told the experimenters to vary the temperatures to get the
results.
11 Stair - Stare a) Stairs: a series of steps.
1. He fell down from the stairs, but by God’s grace, was unhurt.
b) Stare: to look directly and fixedly.
1. “Do not stare so hard”, the man said to him.
12 Rack - Wrack a) Rack: Framework or stand.
1. The show rack fell and broke into two.
b) Destruction.
1. The wrack of the ship lies on the ocean bed.
13 Peace - Piece a) Peace: a state of silence and tranquility.
1. I shall not be at peace till you promise me to come back.
b) Piece: a portion separated from a bigger part.
1. The cat grabbed a piece of bread from the table and ran away.
14 Great - Grate a) Great: very large/ huge in size.
1. There was a great earthquake in China in 2011.
b) Grate: to reduce food to small fragments by rubbing it on a grater.
1. Mother asked him to peel and roughly grate the carrots.
15 Knight - Night a) Knight: a heavily armed soldier.
1. The knight killed the enemies and came home victorious.
b) Night: Period between sunset and sunrise.
1. Night time is the right time to learn driving.
16 Manner - Manor a) Manner: A way on doing something.
1. Durga presented herself in a very poorly manner.
b) Manor: a large country house with property.
1. The manor is for sale at a negotiable price.
17 Main - Mane a) Main: that which is important or significant
1. Late working hours is the main issue that is faced by the employees.
b) Mane: long hair growing from the crest of an animal’s neck.
1. She spent ages braiding her horse’s mane.
18 Lesson - Lessen a) Lesson: a period of learning and teaching.
1. Today’s lesson is going to be about sustainable development.
b) Lessen: decreased/ reduced in quantity.
1. Putting someone else in charge will lessen her responsibility.
19 Oral - Aural a) Oral: spoken rather than written/ related to the mouth.
1. She did well in the oral exam, but poorly in the written tasks.
b) Aural: relating to the ear or the sense of hearing.
● 1. The day begins violently with the aural attack of The Alarm Clock.
20 Elicit – Illicit a) Elicit: evoke or draw out a reaction, answer, or fact.
1. Police enquiries failed to elicit any information.
b) Illicit: forbidden by law, rules, or custom.
1. The illicit sale of drugs is a problem in our cities.
21 Compliment - a) Compliment: a polite expression of praise or admiration.
complement
1. I was paid a very sincere compliment this weekend by a stranger.
b) Complement: a thing that contributes extra features to something else in such a
way as to improve or emphasize its quality.
1. That hat is the perfect complement to your outfit.
Choose the correct word to complete each sentence.
Example: The bread (bred/bread) was on sale.
1. Keep walking ___________ (strait/straight) until you reach Lincoln Blvd.
2. All the leaders claimed that they wanted ____________ (peace/piece).
3. Don't iron your clothes on the table; use an ironing ___________ (board/bored)!
4. Lord Williams hardly ever left his _________ (manor/manner).
5. That lion has a beautiful __________ (main/mane).
6. You're not allowed to _________ (alter/altar) anything on the worksheet.
7. That is the __________ (main/mane) reason that I can't go tonight.
8. Most of the audience members were _________ (board/bored) with the performance.
9. By hiring two new employees, Jim hoped to __________ (lesson/lessen) our workload.
10. I love this ___________ (summary/summery) weather.
11. He lived on the top floor of a six _________ (storey/story) building.
12. All the __________ (current/currant) ministers are from the same party.
13. The ___________ (ascent/assent) was very steep.
14. I don't believe his _________ (story/storey).
15. Does your computer have a __________ (cereal/serial) number?
16. He didn't expect that this would ___________ (affect/effect) his performance.
17. I didn't read the whole report; I just read the _________ (summary/summery).
18. That was not the desired _________ (effect/affect).
19. My brother eats __________ (cereal/serial) in the morning.
20. John was praying at the _________ (alter/altar).
21. My dentist taught me how to improve my ___________ (oral/aural) hygiene.
22. The lawyer tried to __________ (elicit/illicit) information from one of his sources.
23. I've got ___________ (dual/duel) citizenship.
24. This is the ___________ (principal/principle) on which the company was founded.
25. He was sent to jail for publishing _________ (illicit/elicit) books.
26. You should ________ (pour/pore) some more water into the container.
27. The __________ (principal/principle) of our school is retiring this year.
28. He was asked to __________ (counsel/council) the detainees regarding their rights.
29. She wanted to ____________ (compliment/complement) him on his suit.
30. The __________ (council/counsel) voted down the measure.
