Definition:
Words that sound alike but have different meanings and/or spellings. Adjective: homonymous. See also:
Etymology:
From the Greek, "same name"Examples and Observations:
- "His death, which happen'd in his berth,
At forty-odd befell:
They went and told the sexton, and
The sexton toll'd the bell."
(Thomas Hood, "Faithless Sally Brown") - "'Attend your Church,' the parson cries:
To church each fair one goes;
The old go there to close their eyes,
The young to eye their clothes." - "'Mine is a long and sad tale!' said the Mouse, turning to Alice, and sighing.
"'It is a long tail, certainly,' said Alice, looking down with wonder at the Mouse's tail; 'but why do you call it sad?'"
(Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland) - "Your children need your presence more than your presents."
(Jesse Jackson) - "There are three kinds [of homonyms]: those that sound and look alike (bank a slope, bank a place for money, and bank a bench or row of switches); homophones, that sound alike but do not look alike (coarse, course); and homographs, that look alike but do not sound alike (the verb lead, the metal lead). . . . There are over 3,000 homographs in the Concise Oxford Dictionary (8th edition, 1990)."
(Tom McArthur, Oxford Companion to the English Language, 1992) - "Three years ago Senator Dan Inouye and I traveled to Ground Zero shortly after the 9/11 attacks. Governor Pataki and Mayor Giuliani met us and brought us up the river to the site. It was a sad and terrible sight, but it was also a proving ground of American strength, courage, and resolve."
(Ted Stevens) - "Sealing the popcorn ceiling will not eliminate that old-fashioned cottage cheese look."
- "Do the Dew"
(advertising slogan for Mountain Dew) - "There is greater competition to hire people, so pay is higher."
Pronunciation: HOM-i-nims
