Sometimes the only way to choose your words with homophones is to memorize their spellings and meanings. Pedal/peddle/petal is one such set of homophones.

A pedal is a lever controlled with the foot, such as found on a piano or a bicycle. To pedal is to use such a lever to control something. It descends from the Late Latin pedale, for a thing of the foot, which descends ultimately from the Latin pēs, for foot.

The city is expected to finalize this week a five-year contract to bring pedal boats back to Wesley Lake this summer.

Bicycle riders will be pedaling over hills and through pastures Saturday near Stonewall.

To peddle can mean to travel around selling items (think door-to-door salesmen). It can also mean to sell illicit drugs or, informally, to give out or spread, as with information or lies.

A former Alaska lawmaker has pleaded guilty to a state count of letting unregistered lobbyists peddle their ideas to him.

The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has warned the public against taking black pills peddled in unlabelled bottles.

Finally, a petal is a flower's brightly colored leaf that joins with other petals to form the flower's corolla.

You will start with a great big rose complete with curly petals and shiny leaves painted from reference.

Spread generously or pipe over the cooled cupcakes and top each with a rose petal.

Remember that pedal is related to foot through the Latin pēs and that someone who peddles goods goes from door to door. If you don't want either of those, then you can choose the flower's petal.