Which pair demonstrates a homophone?

• A. two and to
• B. bat and baseball bat
• C. read and reed
• D. peace and piece

Answer: (A)

Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. The pair two and to fits perfectly: they are pronounced identically when spoken, yet their spellings and meanings are different—the number vs. a preposition/infinitive marker. That clear sound-alike, with different spellings and meanings, is exactly what defines a homophone.

The other options aren’t as clean. Bat and baseball bat use the same spelling, just different senses of the same word, which isn’t a pair of different words that merely sound alike. Read and reed can be tricky because read changes pronunciation with tense, so the sound isn’t consistently the same. Peace and piece also sound the same and have different meanings and spellings, so they’re homophones too, but two and to is the most straightforward, unambiguous example for learners.