Word Puzzle with Homophones (from National Public Radio)

This Sunday’s on-air challenge of Word Puzzle on NPR (created by Will Shortz) is to find “homophones”. Homophones are each of two or more words having the same pronunciation but different meanings, origins, or spelling.



Each of the following sentence ends in "_____ to _____." Put two homophones in the blanks to complete it.

Example: The bicycle salesman had an innovative new _____ to _____. --> PEDAL, PEDDLE

   

   1.   The thieves prowling around the Pittsburgh mill were looking for some _____ to _____.

   2.   To prepare the dough for the oven, the baker will first _____ to _____.

   3.   Since my foot surgery, my toes have gotten better, but I still have to wait for my _____ to _____.

   4.   To make some money, the illustrator for the old Disney film has a sample _____ to _____.

   5.   Seeing the physician's boat moving erratically, the Coast Guard ordered the _____ to _____.

   

   6.   Regulations may not allow you to speak, but you always have the _____ to _____.

Answer Keys

     1.   Still to steal

     2.   Need to knead

     3.   Heel to heal

     4.   Cell to sell

     5.   Doc to dock

     6.   Right to write

Word Puzzle with U

“Today's short puzzle is a little unusual. It's all about "U" ... that is, the letter U. See how many of these U-related questions can you answer.” (source from NPR Sunday Word Puzzle aired on April 20th, 2020)

  1.   The names of two state capitals end in the letter U. What are they?

   

  2.   The word "you" sounds like the letter U, and it contains the letter U. What two words sound like the letter U but don't contain the letter?

  3.   Think of a common four-letter word with a silent U in the third position.  (Hint: I said it in the first sentence of this puzzle's instructions.)

  

  4.   What common household item has a doubled U in its name — that is, two U's in a row?

  5.   Think of a 10-letter word starting with U that means "digging up." Drop the U, and the remaining nine letters will spell a two-word phrase that describes the moon in relation to the Earth.

Answer Keys

  1.  Honolulu (the capital of Hawaii) & Juneau (the capital of Alaska)

  2.  few & yew

  3.  four

  4.  vacuum

  5.  near thing

Homophones and Spelling Practice

Homophones are each of two or more words having the same pronunciation but different meanings, origins, or spelling. They cause confusions in spelling words. Even native English speakers often misspell the words they mean to express. Let’s practice the following homophones by choosing the correct word for each sentence to make sense.

   

   1.   The boy had to read a book (allowed,   aloud) so he could stay awake and forget about horrible thoughts.

   

   2.   The ring leaders of the (band,   banned) strike had a secret meeting to come up with a grand scheme.

   3.   All my (aunts,     ants) live in Louisiana.

   

   4.   The couple walked down the aisle and declared their consent and vows before God at the (alter,   altar).

   5.   Sandy felt somewhat melancholy looking out the window. There was a tree standing alone and already (bear,     bare) in her backyard.

   6.   Mrs. Martha thought about decorating the bulletin (board,   bored) in her classroom so that her students would not get (bored,   board).

   7.   Michelle’s Summer house is located near the beautiful (beech,    beach) named Zuma.

   8.   Jeremy is a photographer who loves to capture the delicate beauty of (barren,   baron) deserts.

   9.   Like our (oral,     aural) culture, our society is atomized, disparate, and largely obsessed with trivia.

   10.  Since all schools are closed and kids are being homeschooled these day, they are not given the list of school supplies and (stationary,     stationery) items from their teachers.

Answer Keys

   

   1.   aloud

   2.   banned

   3.   aunts

   4.   altar

   5.   bare

   6.   board, bored

   7.   beach

   8.   barren

   9.   oral

   10. stationery

Word Puzzle (from NPR Weekend Puzzle)

(Source from NPR Sunday Puzzle aired on April 12^th, 2020)



Here’s a fun word ladder with sort of an Easter egg theme. The object is to convert CHICK all the way to HATCH, changing one letter at a time, making a new word each step of the way. I'll give you clues for the steps. You tell me the words.



Starting with CHICK, change one letter in it to make ...

   

   

   1.   The sound of a camera. Then change one letter in that to make ...

   2.   A timepiece [etc.]

   3.   Unit of a city street

   4.   Opposite of white

   5.   Devoid of writing or marks

   6.   Long, flat piece of lumber

   7.   Carpenter's tool

   8.   Locale

   9.   Informal word of parting

   10.               A juicy fruit

   11.               Locale for a summer getaway

   12.               Seat for a pianist

   13.               Group, as of flowers

   14.               Drink served in a big bowl

   15.               Tiny amount, as of salt

   16.               Throw

   17.               What a pirate might have over one eye

   18.               What chicks do

Answer Keys

1. Click

2. clock

3. block

4. black

5. blank

6. plank

7. plane

8. place

9. peace

10.peach

11. beach

12. bench

13. bunch

14. punch

15. pinch

16. pitch

17. patch

18. hatch

Time to chillax!

As we are all going through this unprecedentedly difficult time, we need daily dose of humor that could make a great ‘pick-me-up’ or an emotional boost. When was the last time you laughed or even smiled? I find myself too quiet and withdrawn, having this sardonic smile or just a blank look in my own nook at home. Social distancing of six feet away from others makes me feel like six feet under now and then. Face masks with particulate filter would also increase our affective filter among people. How about you guys out there? Let us just hang in there and stop a moment to laugh in this situation full of gravitas, at least once a day. “Like a welcome Summer rain, humor may suddenly cleanse and cool the earth, the air, and you.” ……Langston Hughes    😉






“I don’t do drugs. I am drugs.” ……….. Salvador Dali







Reporter: “What do you think of Western Civilization?”

Mahatma Gandhi: “It think it would be a great idea!”







“The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.”…… Albert Eisntein







“When people agree with me, I always feel that I must be wrong.”….Oscar Wilde







“Why do they call it rush hour if no one moves?”…….. Robin Williams







“Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”…….Abraham Lincoln







“The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.”….. Andy Rooney







“At every party there two kinds of people;  Those who want to go home and those who don’t. The trouble is, they are usually married to each other.”……. Ann Landers







“In every circle of friends there’s always that one person everyone secretly hates. Don’t have one? Then it’s probably you.” …….Will Ferrell







“I used to work at McDonald’s making minimum wage. You know what that means when someone pays you minimum wage? You know what your boss was trying to say? It’s like “Hey, if I could pay you less, I would, but it’s against the law.” …………….Chris Rock

Easy Breezy Grammar Check!

Quite a lot of ESL/EFL learners make a mistake when choosing the right form of verbs or get confused with homophones in a sentence. We don’t need to be a grammar Nazi all the time, but you can’t make yourselves understood in English correctly without grammar.

 Here’s a brief quiz to check your grammar ability. Choose the right word/ phrase to make each sentence grammatically correct.

    1.  Dennis (was,   has been) in California last winter.

    2.  The parents freaked out about (there,    they’re,    their) kids’ safety when there was the first confirmed case of CoVid-19 on campus.

    

    3.  Janet’s dog likes to eat all vegetables (accept,   except) lettuce.

    4.  Bob will write you a (cheque,    check) for the items you are buying.

    

    5.  My friends and (me,    I) are signing up for the gym membership.

    6.  I feel so sorry for those (affected,    effected) by this deadly virus.

    

    7.  She (could have done,    could do) better in his exams if he had worked harder.

    

    8.  Darryl had (adviced,     advised) the young ones to stay at home in this time of pandemic.

    9.  The (principal,     principle) aim of the game isn’t to win.

    10.  Pete has (hanged,      hung) his favorite family picture on the wall.

    

    11.  The Green Mile is Stephen King’s novel about the prisoners who are on the death row. When I read the story, I thought it was so inhumane to electrocute inmates or get them (hanged,         hung).

Answer Keys

     1.  was

     2.  their

     3.  except

     4.  cheque

     5.  I

     6.  affected

     7.  could have done

     8.  advised

     9.  principle

     10.  hung

     11.  hanged