Word that have the same pronunciation

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In linguistics, homonyms are words which are either homographs – words that have the same spelling (regardless of pronunciation) – or homophones – words that have the same pronunciation (regardless of spelling) –, or both.^[1] Using this definition, the words row (propel with oars), row (a linear arrangement) and row (an argument) are homonyms because they are homographs (though only the first two are homophones): so are the words see (vision) and sea (body of water), because they are homophones (though not homographs).

A more restrictive and technical definition requires that homonyms be simultaneously homographs and homophones^[1] – that is to say they have identical spelling and pronunciation, but with different meanings. Examples are the pair stalk (part of a plant) and stalk (follow/harass a person) and the pair left (past tense of leave) and left (opposite of right).

A distinction is sometimes made between true homonyms, which are unrelated in origin, such as skate (glide on ice) and skate (the fish), and polysemous homonyms, or polysemes, which have a shared origin, such as mouth (of a river) and mouth (of an animal).^[2][3]

The relationship between a set of homonyms is called homonymy, and the associated adjective is homonymous, homonymic, or in latin, equivocal.

The adjective «homonymous» can additionally be used wherever two items share the same name,^[4][5] independent of how closely they are or are not related in terms of their meaning or etymology. For example, the name Ōkami is homonymous with the Japanese term for «wolf» (ōkami).

EtymologyEdit

The word homonym comes from the Greek ὁμώνυμος (homonymos), meaning «having the same name»,^[6] compounded from ὁμός (homos) ‘common, same, similar’^[7] and ὄνομα (onoma) ‘name’.^[8]

Edit

Term	Meaning	Spelling	Pronunciation
Homonym	Different	Same	Same
Homograph	Different	Same	(No requirement)
Homophone word	Different	(No requirement)	Same
Homophone phrase	Different	Different	Same to varying degree
Heteronym	Different	Same	Different
Heterograph	Different	Different	Same
Polyseme	Different but related	Same	(No requirement)
Capitonym	Different when capitalized	Same except for capitalization	(No requirement)
Synonym	Same	Different	Different
Antonym	Opposite	Different	Different
Auto-antonym	Opposite	Same	(No requirement)
Synophone	Different	Different	Similar[9]
Cognate	Same	Similar	Similar

Euler diagram showing the relationships between homonyms (between blue and green) and related linguistic concepts.

Several similar linguistic concepts are related to homonymy. These include:

• Homographs (literally «same writing») are usually defined as words that share the same spelling, regardless of how they are pronounced.^{[note 1]} If they are pronounced the same then they are also homophones (and homonyms) – for example, bark (the sound of a dog) and bark (the skin of a tree). If they are pronounced differently then they are also heteronyms – for example, bow (the front of a ship) and bow (a ranged weapon).
• Homophones (literally «same sound») are usually defined as words that share the same pronunciation, regardless of how they are spelled.^{[note 2]} If they are spelled the same then they are also homographs (and homonyms); if they are spelled differently then they are also heterographs (literally «different writing»). Homographic examples include rose (flower) and rose (past tense of rise). Heterographic examples include to, too, two, and there, their, they’re. Due to their similar yet non-identical pronunciation in American English, ladder and latter do not qualify as homophones, but rather synophones.^[10]
• Heteronyms (literally «different name») are the subset of homographs (words that share the same spelling) that have different pronunciations (and meanings).^{[note 3]} Such words include desert (to abandon) and desert (arid region); tear (to rip) and tear (a drop of moisture formed in one eye); row (to argue or an argument) and row (as in to row a boat or a row of seats – a pair of homophones). Heteronyms are also sometimes called heterophones (literally «different sound»).
• Polysemes are words with the same spelling and distinct but related meanings. The distinction between polysemy and homonymy is often subtle and subjective, and not all sources consider polysemous words to be homonyms. Words such as mouth, meaning either the orifice on one’s face, or the opening of a cave or river, are polysemous and may or may not be considered homonyms.
• Capitonyms are words that share the same spelling but have different meanings when capitalized (and may or may not have different pronunciations). Such words include polish (make shiny) and Polish (from Poland); march (walk in step) and March (the third month of the Year) and the pair: reading (using a book) and Reading (towns in, among other places, England).

Further examplesEdit

A homonym which is both a homophone and a homograph is fluke, meaning:

• A fish, and a flatworm.
• The end parts of an anchor.
• The fins on a whale’s tail.
• A stroke of luck.

These meanings represent at least three etymologically separate lexemes, but share the one form, fluke.*^[11] Fluke is also a capitonym, in that Fluke Corporation (commonly referred to as simply «Fluke») is a manufacturer of industrial testing equipment.

Similarly, a river bank, a savings bank, a bank of switches, and a bank shot in the game of pool share a common spelling and pronunciation, but differ in meaning.

The words bow and bough are examples where there are two meanings associated with a single pronunciation and spelling (the weapon and the knot); two meanings with two different pronunciations (the knot and the act of bending at the waist), and two distinct meanings sharing the same sound but different spellings (bow, the act of bending at the waist, and bough, the branch of a tree). In addition, it has several related but distinct meanings – a bent line is sometimes called a ‘bowed’ line, reflecting its similarity to the weapon. Even according to the most restrictive definitions, various pairs of sounds and meanings of bow, Bow and bough are homonyms, homographs, homophones, heteronyms, heterographs, capitonyms and are polysemous.

• bow – a long stick with horse hair that is used to play certain string instruments such as the violin
• bow – to bend forward at the waist in respect (e.g. «bow down»)
• bow – the front of the ship (e.g. «bow and stern»)
• bow – a kind of tied ribbon (e.g. bow on a present, a bowtie)
• bow – to bend outward at the sides (e.g. a «bow-legged» cowboy)
• Bow – a district in London
• bow – a weapon to shoot projectiles with (e.g. a bow and arrow)

A lime can refer to a fruit or a material. A mold (mould) can refer to a fungus or an industrial cast.

The words there, their, and they’re are examples of three words that are of a singular pronunciation, have different spellings and vastly different meanings. These three words are commonly misused (or, alternatively, misspelled).

• there – «The bow shot the arrow there,» he said as he pointed.
• their – «It was their bow and arrow.» the Mother said.
• they’re – They’re not going to get to shoot the bow again after puncturing the tire (tyre) on Daddy’s car. (Contraction of They and Are.)

The words metal and mettle are polysemes and homophones, but not homographs.

Homonyms in historical linguisticsEdit

Homonymy can lead to communicative conflicts and thus trigger lexical (onomasiological) change.^[12] This is known as homonymic conflict. This leads to a species of informal fallacy of thought and argument called by the latin name equivocation.

See alsoEdit

Look up homonym in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• False friends, words from different languages that appear similar but differ in meaning
• Synonyms, different words with identical or very similar meanings (conceptual inversion of «homonym»)
• Riddle
• Word play

NotesEdit

ReferencesEdit

Further readingEdit

• Christman, Robert (2002). Homonyms: Why English Suffers (Paperback). Las Cruces, New Mexico: Barbed Wire Publishing. ISBN 9780971193055.
• Hobbs, James B. (November 2014). Homophones and Homographs: An American Dictionary (E-book) (4th ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 9781476603933.
• Joshi, Manik (June 25, 2014). Homonyms, Homophones and Homographs (E-book). Manik Joshi. ISBN 9781468948554.
• Rothwell · 2007, David (2007). Dictionary of Homonyms (Paperback). Ware England: Wordsworth Reference. ISBN 9781840225426.

English Homonyms: Short List for Beginners

Homonyms include words that have the same pronunciation or the same spelling or both but are different in meaning. Studying homonyms in typical phrases in which they are often used will help you to distinguish one homonym from another when you hear them. Frequently used homonyms and some examples of their use are given in the lists below. (A longer list of homonyms is provided in Homonyms Main List in the section Writing.)

Омонимы включают в себя слова, которые имеют одинаковое произношение или одинаковое написание, или и то и другое, но отличаются в значении. Изучение омонимов в типичных фразах, в которых они часто употребляются, поможет вам отличить один омоним от другого, когда вы их услышите. Часто употребляемые омонимы и некоторые примеры их употребления даны в списках ниже. (Более длинный список омонимов дан в материале «Homonyms Main List» в разделе Writing.)

The same pronunciation, different meaning

(Одинаковое произношение, разное значение)

AIR – HEIR (воздух – наследник): fresh air; the heir to the throne;

AISLE – ISLE (проход – остров): an aisle seat; the British Isles;

ALTAR – ALTER (алтарь – изменить): to lead to the altar; to alter course;

BALL – BALL (шар, мяч – бал): to play ball; to open a ball;

BAND – BAND (отряд, группа – тесьма, завязка): a rock band; a rubber band;

BANK – BANK (берег – банк): the bank of the river; put the money in the bank;

BARE – BEAR – BEAR (голый – нести ношу – медведь): with bare hands; I can’t bear it; the polar bear;

BARK – BARK (лай, лаять – кора): the dog barked at me; barking dogs; the bark of a tree;

BAT – BAT (летучая мышь – бита): blind as a bat; a baseball bat;

BE – BEE (быть – пчела): to be or not to be; to be as busy as a bee;

BEAT – BEET (бить – свекла): to beat the drums; beets and carrots;

BERRY – BURY (ягода – хоронить): strawberry jam; to bury the dead;

BOUGH [bau] – BOW [bau] – BOW [bau] (сук, ветка – поклон, наклонить – корма судна): the boughs of a tree; to take a bow; to bow one’s head; the ship’s bow;

BRAKE – BREAK (тормоз – перерыв, разбить, сломать): car brakes; a ten-minute break; don’t break it;

BUY – BY – BYE (покупать – около, у – Пока!): to buy a car; to sit by the window; Bye-bye!

CACHE – CASH (тайник, запас – наличные деньги): cache memory; pay cash; I have no cash;

CELL – SELL (ячейка – продавать): a prison cell; my cell phone; to sell books;

CENT – SCENT (цент – запах): 100 cents in a dollar; a faint scent of roses;

CEREAL – SERIAL (крупа – серийное издание): to eat breakfast cereal; to watch TV serials;

CLIP – CLIP (подрезать – зажим, скрепка): to clip the hedge; a paper clip;

COARSE – COURSE (грубый – курс): coarse fabric; a course of lectures;

CURRANT – CURRENT (смородина – текущий, течение): red currant; current year; ocean current;

DEAR – DEER (дорогой – олень): Dear Sir; dear friend; a young deer; several deer;

DESERT [di’zərt] – DESSERT [di’zərt] (покидать – десерт): to desert the village; apple pie for dessert;

DEW – DUE (роса – должный): morning dew; When is the train due?

DIE – DYE (умереть – краситель, окрашивать): He died two years ago. She dyed her hair red.

DOE – DOUGH (самка оленя – тесто): a young doe; to roll the dough;

FAIR – FAIR – FARE (справедливый – ярмарка – плата за проезд): that’s fair; book fair; bus fare;

FINE – FINE (прекрасный – штраф): one fine day; fine wine; to pay a fine for speeding;

FIR – FUR (ель – мех): pines and fir trees; a fir cone; a fur coat; natural fur;

FIT – FIT (подходить по размеру – припадок, приступ): this dress fits you perfectly; a fit of coughing; a fit of anger;

FLEA – FLEE (блоха – спасаться бегством): a flea market; to flee the country;

FLOUR – FLOWER (мука – цветок): two cups of flour; a bunch of flowers;

FOREWORD – FORWARD (предисловие – вперёд): a foreword in a book; to move forward;

FOUL – FOWL (отвратительный, грязный – птица, дичь): foul smell; foul words; domestic fowl;

GAIT – GATE (походка – ворота): heavy gait; slow gait; to open the gate;

GRATE – GREAT (скрести, тереть – замечательный): to grate cheese; a great opportunity;

GROUND – GROUND (земля – молотый): to fall to the ground; freshly ground coffee;

HAIR – HARE (волосы – заяц): she has dark hair and green eyes; he ran like a hare;

HALL – HAUL (коридор, зал – тянуть, тащить): down the hall; a concert hall; to haul the boat;

HANGAR – HANGER (ангар – вешалка): a plane hangar; a coat hanger;

HAY – HEY (сено – эй): to make hay; hay fever; Hey!

HEAL – HEEL (излечивать – пятка, каблук): to heal the wounds; high heels;

HEAR – HERE (слышать – здесь): Did you hear what he said? She doesn’t live here.

HI – HIGH (привет – высокий): Hi, how are you? high walls; high speed; high temperature;

HOARSE – HORSE (хриплый – лошадь): a hoarse voice; to ride a horse;

HOLE – WHOLE (дыра – целый): a small hole in my sock; as a whole; the whole world;

I – EYE (я – глаз): I can see it clearly. My left eye itches.

KIND – KIND (сорт, вид – добрый): several kinds of apples; thank you, you are very kind;

KNIGHT – NIGHT (рыцарь – ночь): the Knights of the Round Table; a dark night; days and nights;

KNOT – NOT (узел – не, нет): a tight knot; not a word; he is not a doctor;

KNOW – NO (знать – не, нет): Do you know him? No, I don’t. I have no time.

LIE – LIE (ложь, лгать – лежать): to tell a lie; don’t lie to me; to lie on the floor;

LIGHT – LIGHT (свет, светлый – лёгкий): bright light; light blue; as light as a feather; light rain;

MAIL – MALE (почта, отправить почтой – мужского пола, мужчина): to send by mail; a male child;

MAIN – MANE (главный – грива): the main reason; a horse’s mane;

MATCH – MATCH (спичка – матч): to strike a match; a football match;

MEAN – MEAN (значить – низкий): What do you mean? It was mean of him to say such things.

MEAT – MEET (мясо – встретить): meat and potatoes; to meet a girl; to meet with friends;

MISS – MISS (промахнуться, пропустить, скучать по – мисс): she missed her bus; he misses his family; Miss Smith; Miss, can you help me?

MOLE – MOLE (родинка – крот): a mole on the chin; as blind as a mole;

MOOSE – MOUSSE (лось – мусс): to hunt moose; chocolate mousse;

NONE – NUN (ни один – монахиня): none of them; she is a nun;

OAR – OR – ORE (весло – или – руда): a four-oar boat; one or two; iron ore;

PAIL – PALE (ведро – бледный): a pail of water; his face is pale;

PAIR – PEAR (пара – груша): a pair of gloves; apples and pears;

PEACE – PIECE (мир, покой – кусок): peace and quiet; a piece of bread; a piece of paper;

PEAK – PEEK (пик – заглянуть, взглянуть): a mountain peak; to peek into the hole;

PEER – PEER (сверстник, ровня – вглядываться): peer group; she peered into the dark room;

PIT – PIT (яма – косточка фрукта, вынимать косточки): to dig a pit; air pit; cherry pits (BrE: cherry stones); to pit cherries;

PITCH – PITCH (высота звука, бросать – смола): a high-pitched voice; to pitch a baseball; as black as pitch;

PLAIN – PLANE (ясный, простой – самолёт): plain answer; plain food; to go by plane;

POLE – POLE – POLL (столб – полюс – опрос): a telegraph pole; the North Pole; public opinion poll;

POUND – POUND (фунт – колотить): a pound of cheese; to change dollars for pounds; to pound on the door;

PRINCIPAL – PRINCIPLE (главный – принцип): principal cause; a man of principle;

PRAY – PREY (молиться – жертва, добыча): to pray to God; easy prey; birds of prey;

RACE – RACE (раса – скачки, гонка): the human race; horse racing; a race horse; race cars;

RAIN – REIGN (дождь – царствование): it looks like rain; during his reign;

READ – REED (читать – тростник): to read a book; reed grows near water;

REST – REST (отдых, отдыхать – остаток, остальное): rest a little; leave the rest of them here;

RIGHT – WRITE (правильный, правый, право – писать): that’s right; my right hand; civil rights; to write a letter;

RING – RING (кольцо – звонить): a wedding ring; to ring a bell;

ROLE – ROLL (роль – рулон, катить): to play a role; a roll of toilet paper; the ball rolled away;

ROOT – ROUTE (корень – маршрут): the roots of the tree; Route 10; bus route;

ROW [rou] – ROW [rou] (ряд – грести): to sit in the first row; to stand in a row; to row the boat;

SAIL – SALE (парус, плыть – распродажа): to sail on a ship; I bought it on sale;

SEA – SEE (море – видеть): the Black Sea; I want to see the sea. Have you ever seen the sea at sunrise?

SEAM – SEEM (шов – казаться): Please take it in at the seams. She seems to be a little nervous.

SEW [sou] – SO – SOW [sou] (шить – так – сеять): to sew a dress; be so kind; to sow the seeds;

SIGHT – SITE (вид, зрение – место): a beautiful sight; to see the sights; good eyesight; construction site; website;

SOLE – SOLE – SOLE – SOUL (единственный – подошва – камбала – душа): sole heir; shoe sole; fillet of sole; body and soul;

SOME – SUM (некоторый – сумма): I need some money; a large sum of money;

SON – SUN (сын – солнце): he is my son; she has three sons; the sun is shining;

STAIR – STARE (ступенька – пристально смотреть): go down the stairs; don’t stare at people;

STAKE – STEAK (ставка – бифштекс): the stakes are high; I’d like a steak for dinner;

STEAL – STEEL (красть – сталь): to steal money; stainless steel;

STRAIGHT – STRAIT (прямой – узкий пролив): a straight road; the Strait of Gibraltar;

SUITE – SWEET (номер-люкс – сладкий): a hotel suite; this cake is too sweet;

TAIL – TALE (хвост – рассказ): a bird with a long tail; a long and interesting tale;

TIP – TIP (кончик – чаевые): the tip of the tongue; a one-dollar tip; to give a tip;

TOAST – TOAST (тост, гренок – тост за): a piece of toast; I’d like to propose a toast to Alan’s health;

TOE – TOW (палец ноги – буксир, буксировать): I stubbed my toe; a tow truck; to tow a car;

TOO – TWO (тоже – два): I like it too. I spent two days at the lake.

TRAIN – TRAIN (поезд – учить, тренировать): to go by train; to train nurses; to train for the championship;

TRUNK – TRUNK (ствол дерева, туловище, хобот слона – сундук, багажник): the trunk of a tree; an elephant’s trunk; a wooden trunk; the trunk of a car;

VAIN – VEIN (тщетный, тщеславный – вена): in vain; she is vain; veins carry blood to the heart;

WAIST – WASTE (талия – излишняя трата): a slender waist; a waste of time; to waste money;

WAIT – WEIGHT (ждать – вес): to wait for an hour; her weight is 65 kilograms;

WARE – WEAR – WHERE (изделия – одежда, носить одежду – где): glassware; women’s wear; she is wearing a suit; Where is Mike?

WAY – WEIGH (путь – взвесить): to find a way; the shortest way; she weighs 65 kilograms;

WEAK – WEEK (слабый – неделя): weak eyes; weak tea; next week; for two weeks;

WEATHER – WHETHER (погода – ли): nice weather; ask her whether she wants to go;

WELL – WELL (хорошо – колодец): very well; to feel well; a deep well;

WHICH – WITCH (который – ведьма): which of these; Which bag is yours? She is a real witch.

WHINE – WINE (скулить – вино): my dog often whines; stop whining; red wine; French wines;

The same spelling, different pronunciation, different meaning

(Одинаковое написание, разное произношение, разное значение)

BOW [bou] – BOW [bau] – BOW [bau] (лук для стрельбы, смычок, бант, галстук-бабочка – поклон, наклонить – корма судна): a bow and arrows; a rainbow; the bow of a violin; a bow tie; to take a bow; to bow one’s head; the ship’s bow;

DESERT [‘dezərt] – DESERT [di’zərt] (пустыня – покидать): the Sahara Desert; he deserted her;

LEAD [li:d] – LEAD [led] (вести – свинец): this road leads to the lake; as heavy as lead;

ROW [rou] – ROW [rau] (ряд – ссора): Please stand in a row. My neighbors had a row yesterday.

SOW [sou] – SOW [sau] (сеять – свинья): to sow the seeds; to raise sows;

TEAR [tiər] – TEAR [teər] (слеза – рвать): tears in her eyes; to tear up his letter;

WIND [wind] – WIND [waind] (ветер – извиваться, заводить): a cold wind; to wind the clock.

Note: Homonyms in the form of proper names are not included in the list because there may be hundreds of them. Examples: bet – Bette; bell – Belle; bill – Bill; may – May – Mae; cliff – Cliff; capital – Capitol; grease – Greece; main – Maine. (Омонимы в виде имён собственных не включены в список, т.к. их могут быть сотни.)

Homonyms with certain word forms

(Омонимы с определёнными формами слов)

Many other homonyms occur when certain verbs, nouns, and pronouns are used in their forms showing person, number, or tense. Word order and meaning help us to distinguish between such homonyms aurally. Examples: I knew it. I bought new books. She rose from her chair. He gave her a rose. The list below provides examples of word forms that have the same pronunciation as some other words.

Многие другие омонимы возникают, когда некоторые глаголы, существительные и местоимения употреблены в их формах, показывающих лицо, число или время. Порядок слов и значение помогают нам различить такие омонимы на слух. Примеры: I knew it. (Я знал это.) I bought new books. (Я купил новые книги.) She rose from her chair. (Она поднялась со своего стула.) He gave her a rose. (Он дал ей розу.) Список ниже дает примеры словоформ, которые имеют такое же произношение, как некоторые другие слова.

Third person singular: sees – seize – seas (видит – схватить – моря); knows – nose (знает – нос); links – lynx (соединяет – рысь);

Past Indefinite: allowed – aloud (разрешил – вслух); fined – find (оштрафовал – найти); passed – past (прошёл – прошлое); read [red] – red (прочитал – красный); blew – blue (подул – синий); knew – new (знал – новый); threw – through (бросил – сквозь); won – one (выиграл – один); left – left (ушёл – левый);

Past Participle: ground – ground (молотый – земля); thrown – throne (брошенный – трон); seen – scene (увиденный – сцена);

Plural form of nouns: rays – raise (лучи – поднять); rows – rose – rose (ряды – роза – поднялся); brows – browse (брови – просматривать);

Pronoun forms: him – hymn (его – гимн); mine – mine (мой – рудник; мина); our – hour (наш – час); their – there (их – там);

Contractions: who’s – whose (кто есть – чей); it’s a book – its cover is black (это книга – её обложка чёрная); he’ll – heel (он будет – пятка); we’ll – wheel (мы будем – колесо);

Two-word combination – one word: all ready – already (всё готово – уже); all together – altogether (все вместе – вполне, совсем); any way – anyway (любой путь – во всяком случае); he may be there – maybe he is there (он может быть там – возможно он там).

This is the second blog post in a three-part series on the relationships between the pronunciation of English words and their spellings. Follow the links for part one of the series on Silent Letters and part three on the Sound System of American English.

As mentioned in the previous blog post, it often happens that the spelling of an English word doesn’t match up well with its pronunciation. There’s another category of word that can also cause confusion; these are words that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have different meanings. These words are called “homophones”. If you memorize the most common homophones in English, then you will avoid a lot of potential confusion in your communications. An added bonus of memorizing common homophones is that you will be able to easily understand many jokes, puns, and plays on words that you encounter (or even spice up your conversations by creating such plays on words yourself!)

Without further ado, here is a chart of some of the most common sets of homophones in English. Remember, all of the words in the left column are pronounced the same way. That is, if you say “ate, eight” out loud, then it should sound exactly the same as if you said “ate, ate” or “eight, eight”.

Spelling:	Pronounced:
ad, add	ad
Adam, atom	AD-um
air, err, heir	air
aisle, isle, I’ll	AI-ull
aloud, allowed	uh-LOUD
altar, alter	ALL-ter
ant, aunt	ant
assent, ascent	uh-SENT
ate, eight	ate
bail, bale	bale
ball, bawl	bawl
band, banned	band
bazaar, bizarre	buh-ZAR
bare, bear	bare (rhymes with “air”)
base, bass (instrument)	base (rhymes with “ace”)
be, bee	bee
beat, beet	beet
berry, bury	berry
bin, been	bin
billed, build	bild
bite, byte	byte
blew, blue	bloo
board, bored	bord
brake, break	brake
buy, by, bye	by
carrot, karat	KARE-ut
cell, sell	sell
cent, sent, scent	sent
cereal, serial	serial
chili, chilly, Chile	chill-ee
chews, choose	chooz
cite, site, sight	site
close, clothes	kloz
core, corps	kor
course, coarse	korss
creek, creak	creek
cue, queue	kyoo
days, daze	daze
deer, dear	deer
die, dye	dye
do, due, dew	doo
fair, fare	fare
faze, phase	faze
finish, Finnish	finish
find, fined	find
feudal, futile	FYU-dul
flea, flee	flee
feat, feet	feet
flower, flour	FLOW-er (“flow” rhymes with “cow”)
for, four	for
fowl, foul	FOW-ul
great, grate	grate
groan, grown	grone
Greece, grease	grees
guest, guessed	gest (rhymes with “best”)
gym, Jim	jim
hair, hare	hair
hall, haul	hawl
heal, heel	heel
hear, here	heer
heed, he’d	heed
herd, heard	herd
him, hymn	him
hire, higher	hi-er
hole, whole	hol
horse, hoarse	horse
hostel, hostile	HAHST-ul
hurts, hertz	herts
I, eye	AI
in, inn	in
intense, intents	intense
jewels, joules	joolz
lessen, lesson	less-in
maid, made	made
mail, male	male
manner, manor	manner
meat, meet	meet
metal, medal, meddle	MED-ul
need, knead	need
new, knew	noo
no, know	no
nose, knows	noz
not, knot	not
nun, none	nun
oh, owe	oh
one, won	wun
or, oar	or
our, hour	ow-er
pail, pale	pale
pair, pare, pear	pare
past, passed	past
peace, piece	peese
peer, pier	peer
plane, plain	plane
poll, pole	poll
pour, pore	pore
prince, prints	prins
principal, principle	PRINCE-i-pul
profit, prophet	PRAH-fit
rain, rein, reign	rane
rap, wrap	rap
red, read	red
right, write, rite, wright	rite
ring, wring	ring
road, rode, rowed	rode
roll, role	roll
root, route	root
sail, sale	sale
sea, see	see
seam, seem	seem
seas, sees, seize	seez
seen, scene	seen
seller, cellar	seller
side, sighed	side
so, sow, sew	so
sole, soul, Seoul	sole
some, sum	sum
son, sun	sun
stair, stare	stare
steal, steel	steel
sweet, suite	sweet
sword, soared	sord
tail, tale	tale
taught, taut	tawt
tear (meaning: drop of water), tier	teer
tear (meaning: rip), tare	tair
tense, tents	tense
there, their, they’re	thair
threw, through	threw
thrown, throne	throne
tie, Thai	tye
to, too, two	too
tow, toe	toe
vain, vein	vain
way, weigh	way
wait, weight	wait
weather, whether	wether
week, weak	week
where, wear, ware	ware
which, witch	witch
whose, who’s	hooz
will, we’ll	will
wood, would	wood
wore, war	wore
worn, warn	worn
your, you’re	yer

Do you have further questions about American English, or are you interested in accent training? Reach out and contact me!

LEAVE A COMMENT

by Robert Morris

Homonyms, homophones, and homographs — these are confusing terms that sound similar, but have obvious differences that are easy to realize. If you are trying to figure out which category certain words belong to, then the definitions and explanations provided below will be of great use for you.

Homonyms are words that have the same pronunciation and spelling. When two or more words have the same pronunciation, but different spelling, they are called homophones. When two or more words are spelled the same, but pronounced differently, they are called homographs.

For instance, the word bark is a homonym, since it may represent different things. Bark is the outer covering of trees, but it’s also the sound made by dogs. These are two words that have different origins, but they spelled and pronounced in the same way.

Although homonyms can be confusing for a non-native English speaker, they shouldn’t be that confusing to natives. There is one important thing to remember: they are separate words.

1. Homonyms

Let’s take a look at some examples to clearly explain the concept of homonyms (words that have same pronunciation and spelling).

Light

We have more different words in this case, and they all come from the same root. First of all, light is a noun that represents the opposite concept of darkness. The word is uncountable in this sense, but it’s countable when we use it in a phrase similar to «turn on the lights». Light is also a verb (light the lanterns, light cigarettes) that involves fire.

Evening

The categorization of this word as a homonym isn’t as obvious as the previous one. Evening is the period of the day that comes after the afternoon and before the night. However, evening is also a verb that means «making something even».

Other examples of homonyms include: hail, dust, fire, key, iron, seal, and rose.

2. Homophones

As we already said, homophones are words that sound the same, but we spell them differently. Let’s elaborate the concept further by providing some examples:

Their, there, and they’re

Although these three words are clearly different when you see them in written form, they have the same pronunciation in rapid, conversational speech. These words are not homographs, but are homophones. Since they are spelled differently, it’s easy to recognize them as separate words in written form.

3. Homographs

The concept of homographs is probably the most confusing concept one out of these three, since they are pronounced differently, but have the same spelling. These examples will make homographs easier to understand:

Desert

This word can be a verb that means abandoning, or a noun that represents that dry place with cactuses and camels. As an addition, the word dessert (the course you eat after a meal) is a homophone of the verb desert.

The pronunciation of these words is different. When you’re pronouncing the verb desert, you stress the final syllable, and the stress on the noun desert is on the first syllable. You can use this pattern as a universal rule (although there are exceptions from it): the stress on the verb is word-final, and the noun is stressed on the first syllable.

Here are other words that follow the same rule:

• Convert (verb), which means turning one value into another; and convert (noun), which represents a person who has accepted a new religion.
• Combine — a verb that represents an action opposite of separating, and combine — a noun used to name a farm machine.
• Reject — a verb that’s opposite of the word accept, and reject — a person who was rejected (noun).

It’s easy to understand the subtle difference when you know the rules!

Definitions are not difficult to understand if you pay attention to them. The characteristics of homonyms, homophones, and homographs are similar, but there are obvious differences that will help you prevent any confusion in written or verbal communication.

About the writer

Robert Morris is a writer, linguist, and cultural critic. He works at
the essay writing service NinjaEssays as a
professional dissertation writer. He focuses on the college and career selection.

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Homonyms are words that share the same pronunciation but different meanings. Some homonyms share the same spellings whereas some don’t. Before moving on to discuss more details about homonyms, let us first briefly look at other linguistic categories of words.

Homophones: words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings and spellings

Homograph: words that have the same spellings but different meanings.

Heteronyms: words that have the same spellings, but different pronunciation and meaning

Term	Spelling	Pronunciation	Meaning
Homonym	same or different	same	different
Homophone	different	same	different
Homograph	same	same or different	different
Heteronyms	same	different	different

You’ll note from the above definitions that homonyms contain qualities of both homophones (words having the same pronunciation, regardless of their spelling) and homographs (words that share the same spelling, regardless of their pronunciation). Homonyms are simultaneously both homographs and homophones. The relationship between a set of homonyms is known as homonymy.

The relation between homonyms and other word categories can be closely observed from the diagram below.  The area between blue and green indicates homonyms.

Examples of Homonyms

Homonyms that have the same spelling (homographs)

Bank (financial establishment/ river bank)

He was the president of the bank.

He went to the river bank.

Bear (animal/tolerate)

The bear came closer.

I can’t bear this anymore.

Fast (quick/ abstain from food)

Don’t drive fast.

Don’t break your fast.

Fair (reasonable/public gathering)

He is a fair judge.

We went to the country fair.

Homonyms that have different spelling (homophones)

Dear/deer

He is very dear to me.

The lion chased a deer.

Root/route

The root of the tree absorbs water and necessary nutrients.

They changed the route at the last minute.

Serf/surf

The serf was punished by the feudal lord.

He loves to surf.

Allowed/aloud

Pets are not allowed inside.

‘Watch out’ he shouted aloud.

Straight/strait

She had straight black hair.

The Strait of Gibraltar is the entry point into the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean.

Stair/stare

She came up the stairs.

She stares at him in amazement.

Meddle/medal

Don’t meddle in their affair.

She won a gold medal.

From the above examples, it becomes clear that a homonym can be either a homophone or a homograph.

Homonyms in Literature

Given below are some excerpts from literature where homonyms have been used.

“Sole owner am I of this sorry soul…

pour out corruption’s slag from every pore—

whole slates scrape clean! they leave no gaping hole.

(Where Truth’s Wind Blew by Venicebard)

HAMLET: I will speak to this fellow.—Whose grave’s this, sirrah?

GRAVEDIGGER Mine, sir.

HAMLET: I think it be thine, indeed, for thou liest in ’t.

GRAVEDIGGER: You lie out on ’t, sir, and therefore it is not yours. For my part, I do not lie in ’t, and yet it is mine.

HAMLET: Thou dost lie in ’t, to be in ’t and say it is thine. ‘Tis for the dead, not for the quick. Therefore thou liest.

(Hamlet by William Shakespeare)

Homonym – Summary

• Homonyms are words that share the same pronunciation but different meanings, regardless of their spelling.

• Homonym can be either a homophone or a homograph.

Image Courtesy:

“Homograph homophone Venn diagram” by Homograph_homophone_venn_diagram.png: Will Heltsleyderivative  (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons