homograph
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also Homograph
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[edit] English
[edit] Etymology
From homo-, from Ancient Greek ὁμός (“same”) + -graph, from Ancient Greek γράφος (“that which is written”)
[edit] Pronunciation
- (RP) IPA: /ˈhɒməɡrɑːf/, /ˈhəʊməɡræf/
- (US) IPA: /ˈhɑːməɡræf/, /ˈhoʊməɡræf/
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,Audio (US) (file) Audio (US) (file)
[edit] Noun
homograph (plural homographs)
- A word that is spelled the same as another but has a different meaning and usually a different etymology.
[edit] Usage notes
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.
[edit] Related terms
[edit] Translations
word with the same spelling but different meaning
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[edit] See also
| Nym | Sound | Spelling | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| homonym | same | same | |
| heteronym | different | same | (cat) |
| homograph | not specified | same | |
| homophone | same | different | (cat) |
| heterophone | different | different |
