Homograph Worksheets - Free Printable

Let's solve this homograph worksheet step by step.

🔍 Understanding Homographs

Homographs are words that look the same but have different meanings, origins, and sometimes pronunciations.
Example: *close* (as in "close the door" — verb) vs. *close* (as in "a close friend" — adjective).

We are given a list of possible homographs to use:
> bark, tears, park, saw, bear

Let’s go through each sentence and pick the correct homograph based on context.

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✔ Solutions with Explanations

1) Daniel's injury was too painful for him to _______.
→ bear
- *Bear* means to endure or tolerate pain.
- "He couldn't bear the pain."
✔️ Correct choice: bear

2) The _______ of an oak tree has medicinal properties.
→ bark
- Tree *bark* is the outer layer; it can be used medicinally.
- Not "bear" or "saw" — those don’t make sense here.
✔️ Correct choice: bark

3) Charles _______ his letters after reading them.
→ saw
- "Saw" as in *read* or *perused* — archaic or poetic usage.
- But wait — could it be "saw" as in "he saw his letters"? That doesn’t fit well.
Let’s reconsider:
- "Saw" = past tense of *see*.
- But “Charles saw his letters” would mean he *looked at* them — but he already read them.
Wait — maybe "saw" isn’t right.

Actually, let’s look again:
Is there another possibility?

The word "saw" can also mean "cut with a saw", but that doesn’t fit here.

Hmm — perhaps "park"? No, that doesn’t fit.

Wait — what about "tears"? No.

Another idea: Could it be "saw" meaning *to see*?
But "Charles saw his letters after reading them" is redundant — you see letters before reading them.

Maybe it's "tore"? But that's not in our list.

Wait — perhaps we’re missing something.

Let’s reevaluate:
The only word that makes sense is "saw" if we interpret it as “he saw his letters” — meaning he *noticed* or *viewed* them. But that’s awkward.

Alternatively, is there a typo? Or perhaps it's "saw" as in “he saw the letters” meaning he *recognized* them?

But let’s consider: "saw" is a homograph — it can mean *cut* or *see*.
But in this context, "saw" meaning *see* is plausible.

However, better option: "bark"? No.
"tears"? No.
"park"? No.
"bear"? No.

Wait — perhaps "saw" is intended to be “saw” as in “he saw his letters” — meaning he *observed* them.

But still feels off.

Let’s check other sentences first.

4) I usually _______ my car in an assigned slot.
→ park
- To put a car in a parking spot.
✔️ Correct: park

5) Ms. Sue _______ Mr. Harrison at the beach last evening.
→ saw
- She *saw* him (meaning she observed him).
✔️ Correct: saw (homograph: *see*)

6) My neighbor's dogs _______ at all passers-by.
→ bark
- Dogs *bark* at people.
✔️ Correct: bark

7) Lumberjacks use a _______ to chop trees.
→ saw
- A *saw* is a tool for cutting wood.
✔️ Correct: saw (homograph: tool)

8) The mere sight of a grizzly _______ was terrifying.
→ bear
- A grizzly *bear* is a large animal.
✔️ Correct: bear

9) We like going to the _______ for relaxation.
→ park
- A *park* is a place for relaxation.
✔️ Correct: park

10) _______ rolled down Eric's cheeks, when he hurt his foot.
→ tears
- Tears roll down cheeks when someone cries.
✔️ Correct: tears

Now back to #3:

3) Charles _______ his letters after reading them.

We’ve used:
- bark – used in #2
- park – used in #4 and #9
- saw – used in #5 and #7
- bear – used in #1 and #8
- tears – used in #10

So all five are used once.

But #3: Charles _______ his letters...

What homograph fits?

Wait — "saw"? As in *saw* = *cut*? No — he wouldn’t cut letters after reading them.

Unless it’s "saw" as in "he saw his letters" — meaning he *viewed* them.

But that’s redundant — he read them, so he must have seen them before.

Alternatively, could it be "tears"? No.

Wait — maybe "bark"? No.

Wait — perhaps the intended word is "saw" as in "he saw the letters" — meaning he *observed* them.

But that’s odd.

Wait — another possibility: "saw" as in "he saw the letters" — but that’s not a homograph in the usual sense.

Hold on — maybe the answer is "saw" meaning "he saw them", i.e., "saw" = see.

Yes — "saw" is a homograph:
- saw (past tense of *see*)
- saw (tool)

So even though it's used twice, it's allowed — the worksheet says "fill in each blank with a homograph from the list", and saw appears twice in the list of options.

But wait — the list is: bark, tears, park, saw, bear

Only one saw listed — but it can be used more than once?

Possibly.

But let’s double-check:

Is there a better fit?

Wait — could it be "bark"? No.

Another idea: Could it be "tears"? No.

Wait — maybe "bear"? No.

Perhaps the sentence is misphrased.

But let’s think:
"Charles _______ his letters after reading them."

What could he do?
- He might burn them? Not in list.
- Tear them? But "tears" is plural — "tears" is not a verb.

But "tears" is a noun — "tears rolled down..."

So "tears" can't be a verb.

But "saw" — if it means "cut", then "Charles saw his letters" — meaning he cut them? Possible?

But "after reading them" — he might destroy them.

So "saw" as a tool — but "saw" is a noun.

So "Charles saw his letters" — if "saw" is a verb, it means "he saw them" — but that's before reading.

Wait — unless "saw" is verb meaning "to see".

But the sentence says "after reading them", so he must have seen them earlier.

So why say "after reading them" — he saw them before.

So it doesn’t make sense.

Wait — perhaps the intended word is "tears"? But no — "tears" is not a verb.

Unless it's "teared"? But not in list.

Wait — maybe the sentence is meant to be:

"Charles tore his letters after reading them." — but "tore" is not in the list.

But "tears" is in the list — and "tears" can be plural noun.

But "Charles tears his letters" — that’s present tense, and doesn’t fit.

Wait — maybe the answer is "saw" as in "he saw them" — even though it's redundant.

But that seems weak.

Wait — let’s look at the image again.

Actually, in many versions of this worksheet, the sentence is:

> "Charles saw his letters after reading them."

And the intention is that "saw" means "read" — but that’s not accurate.

No — "saw" ≠ "read".

Wait — perhaps it’s a typo and should be "tore"?

But we don’t have "tore".

Wait — maybe it’s "barked"? No.

Wait — another idea: Could it be "park"? Like "he parked his letters"? No.

Hmm.

Wait — perhaps the correct word is "saw" meaning "cut", but as a verb.

But "saw" as a verb is "saw" — past tense of "saw" (to cut).

So: "Charles saw his letters" — meaning he cut them.

That could work.

But "letters" — paper — yes, he could cut them.

So: "After reading them, he cut them."

So "saw" as verb meaning "cut".

Yes — "saw" is a homograph:
- saw (past tense of *see*)
- saw (past tense of *saw*, to cut)

So both are valid.

So in sentence 3:
"Charles saw his letters after reading them."
→ Meaning: He cut them.

That makes sense.

So "saw" is used as a verb meaning "cut".

And in sentence 5:
"Ms. Sue saw Mr. Harrison..." → meaning she saw (observed) him.

So "saw" is used in two different senses — both valid homographs.

So now we can assign:

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✔ Final Answers:

1) Daniel's injury was too painful for him to bear.
2) The bark of an oak tree has medicinal properties.
3) Charles saw his letters after reading them. *(cut)*
4) I usually park my car in an assigned slot.
5) Ms. Sue saw Mr. Harrison at the beach last evening. *(observed)*
6) My neighbor's dogs bark at all passers-by.
7) Lumberjacks use a saw to chop trees. *(tool)*
8) The mere sight of a grizzly bear was terrifying.
9) We like going to the park for relaxation.
10) Tears rolled down Eric's cheeks, when he hurt his foot.

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🧠 Summary of Homographs Used:

| Word | Meaning in Sentence | Homograph Type |
|---------|---------------------|----------------|
| bear | endure | verb |
| bark | tree outer layer | noun |
| saw | cut (verb) | verb (cutting) |
| saw | see (verb) | verb (seeing) |
| saw | tool | noun |
| park | place | noun |
| park | to stop vehicle | verb |
| tears | liquid from eyes | noun |

Note: "saw" appears three times — as a verb (cut), verb (see), and noun (tool) — all valid homographs.

✔ All answers use words from the list: bark, tears, park, saw, bear

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✔ Final Answer Key:

1. bear
2. bark
3. saw
4. park
5. saw
6. bark
7. saw
8. bear
9. park
10. tears

Each blank filled with a homograph from the list, best fitting the context.