Homographs, Homophones, & Homonyms can be confusing to understand. Learn the difference between words that sound similar but may have different meanings.
Homophone
Homo means same. Phone means sound.
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So these words sound the same but have different spellings and meanings.
Examples:
- bye, buy, by
- board, bored
- week, weak
Homographs
One word, Two Meanings.
These words may or may not sound the same, have same spelling but two different meanings.
Example:
- bow (it can be a noun as in bow and arrow, or it can be a verb as in ‘to bow in front of the king’ ).
- pitcher (it could mean an athlete or some container).
- ruler (scale or a king)
- minute (pronounced differently)
Homonyms
These can be both – homophone and a homograph, or either one or the other.
Some people view homonyms as an umbrella term that includes both homographs and homophones.
Some however view homonyms as those words that are both homographs as well homophones.
Related: More English Grammar quick reference guide
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