Homophones and Homographs — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. In the Grade 3 sentence 'The bat flew out of the cave,' what does 'bat' mean?
A) a flying animal
B) a wooden club
C) a kind of ball
D) a baseball player
A 'bat' can be a flying mammal or a club; here it flies, so it is the animal.
2. In 'The dog's bark woke me up,' what does 'bark' mean (Grade 3)?
A) tree covering
B) a boat
C) the sound a dog makes
D) a kind of bread
'Bark' can mean tree skin or the noise a dog makes; here it is the sound.
3. In 'Please lead the way to class,' what does 'lead' mean (Grade 3)?
A) a heavy metal
B) to guide
C) a pencil tip
D) a rope
'Lead' can be a metal or a verb meaning to guide; here it means to guide.
4. In 'A tear rolled down her cheek,' what does 'tear' mean (Grade 3)?
A) to rip paper
B) a drop from the eye
C) to pull apart
D) a hole in fabric
'Tear' can mean to rip or a drop from the eye; here it is the eye drop.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. The woodpecker pecked at the tree bark.
'Bark' can mean a tree's outer layer or a dog's sound; here it is the tree.
2. He swung the bat and hit the baseball hard.
'Bat' can mean a flying animal or a club; here it is the baseball club.
3. Pencils used to have lead inside them.
'Lead' can mean a heavy metal or to guide; here it is the metal.
4. Be careful not to tear the paper in half.
'Tear' can mean to rip or a drop from the eye; here it means to rip.
5. Homophones sound alike but homographs are spelled the same.
Homographs have the same spelling but different meanings and sometimes different sounds.