homograph
See also: Homograph
Contents
EnglishEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈhɒməɡɹɑːf/, /ˈhəʊməɡɹæf/
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈhɑːməɡɹæf/, /ˈhoʊməɡɹæf/
,Audio (US) (file) Audio (US) (file) Audio (AU) (file)
NounEdit
homograph (plural homographs)
- A word that is spelled the same as another word, usually having a different etymology, such as "bear", the animal, and "bear", to support, to tolerate, etc.
Usage notesEdit
Homographs are a kind of homonym in the loose sense of that term, i.e. a word that is either a homophone (same sound) or a homograph (same spelling). (The strict sense of homonym is a word that both sounds and is spelled the same as another word.) Specifically, homographs must have the same spelling, though they usually have different meanings and may be pronounced differently.
- The verb bear (“to carry”) and the noun bear (“large omnivorous mammal”) are homographs with the same pronunciation and different etymological origins.
- The verb alternate (“to go back and forth”) and the adjective alternate (“following by turns”) are homographs with different pronunciations but close etymological origins. Such homographs are also heteronyms.
- The verb meet (“to encounter”) and the noun meat (“food”) are not homographs since they have different spellings.
Related termsEdit
TranslationsEdit
word with the same spelling but different meaning
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See alsoEdit
An Euler diagram showing the relationship between these -nyms.
| nym | Sound | Spelling | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| homonym | same | same | |
| heteronym | different | same | (cat) |
| homograph | not specified | same | |
| homophone | same | different | (cat) |
| heterophone | different | different | |
| synonym | different | different |