In linguistics, a homonym is one of a group of words that share the

same spelling and the same pronunciation but have different meanings.
This usually happens as a result of the two words having different
origins. The state of being a homonym is called homonymy.
A homophone is a word that is pronounced the same as another word
but differs in meaning. The words may be spelled the same, such as
rose (flower) and rose (past tense of "rise"), or differently, such as carat,
caret, and carrot, or to, two and too.
All homonyms are homophones because they sound the same.
However, not all homophones are homonyms. Homophones with
different spellings are not homonyms.

Homophones
First lets tackle homophones. The root phone means sound, as it
does in telephone and phonics. So homophones are words that sound the
same, such as doe a deer, a female deer, and dough that you bake into
bread.

Homographs
Next, lets do homographs. The root -graph means write, just as it does
in autograph and telegraph. So homographs are words that are written
the samethat is, words that have the same spelling. For example,
theres the verb tears, as in Squiggly tears the speeding ticket in two,
and the noun tears, meaning the salty drops of water that ran down your
cheek when you watched the movie Inside Out. Theyre homographs
because theyre both spelled T-E-A-R-S.

Homonyms
Now we can bring in homonyms. The onym root means name. You
also hear it in anonymous, which literally means without a name, and
of course, in the words synonym and antonym. Homonyms are words
that have the same name; in other words, they sound the same and
theyre spelled the same.
For example, pen meaning the writing instrument, and pen meaning an
enclosure for an animal, are homonyms. They have the same
pronunciation, pen, and theyre both spelled P-E-N. To put it another
way, homonyms are both homophones and homographs! You can even
illustrate this with a cute little Venn diagram of two overlapping circles.
One circle contains homophones; the other circle contains homographs;
and the football in the middle contains homonyms.
So homophones sound the same; homographs are spelled the
same; and homonyms do both. Thats all you need to know.
At this point, if you already knew the difference between the three words,
you might be saying, Now hold on just one minute! Homographs are
words that are spelled the same, and dont sound the same!
Homophones are words that sound the same, but arent spelled the
same!
This is where my fingers and thumbs analogy comes in. Sure, when
somebody says, Ow! I cut my finger! you probably figure they cut their
pointer, tall man, ring finger, or pinky. Thats because if theyd cut their
thumb, theyd probably have been more specific and said, Ow! I cut my
thumb!

Even so, you agree that a thumb is a fingera special finger, but still a
finger. In the same way, it makes more sense to say that pen and pen are
special homophones than to say theyre not homophones. And by the
same reasoning, its simpler to think of pen and pen as special
homographs than say theyre not homographs.
Of course, if you really want to, you can write the definitions of
homophone, homonym, and homograph so that theres no overlap, but I
suspect that definitions like that are part of the reason for peoples
confusion.
Have you ever had trouble remembering the difference
between homoPHONES and homoNYMS? I have. And as if
thats not confusing enough, someone will bring up
homoGRAPHS.
Homonym comes from the Greek homo which means same and onym which means name.
When we talk about words, however, what should we use to define their names? The spelling or the
pronunciation? Probably both. Homonyms, therefore, can be defined as two or more words that
share the same spelling, or the same pronunciation, or both, but have different meanings.
Since there are several types of homonyms (e.g., same spelling but different pronunciation, same
pronunciation but different spelling, same spelling and same pronunciation), further categorization is
needed. We can say that homonyms represent the big category, from which 3 sub-categories
emerge:
Homophones: two or more words that share the same pronunciation but have different meanings.
They may or may not be spelled on the same way.
Examples: write and right, desert (to abandon) and desert (a thing deserved)
Homographs: homonyms that share the same spelling. They may or may not have the same
pronunciation.
Examples: present (a gift) and present (to introduce), row (argument) and row (propel with oars)
Heteronyms: those are homonyms that share the same spelling but have different pronunciations.
That is, they are homographs which are not homophones.

Example: desert (to abandon) and desert (arid region)

EXAMPLES OF HOMOPHONE:
Best Answer: aloud and allowed - The juveniles cried aloud for mercy. My best friend allowed me to sing
at her wedding.
bear and bare - The bear was scary looking. I felt bare without my makeup.
cent, scent, and sent - I bought a chocolate bar for a cent. The boy's scent smelt musky and strong. I sent
my parents a letter today.
days and daze - The days are getting lighter. The woman was in her daze after she fainted.
ewe, yew and you - ewe: The farmer went to the market to buy an ewe. The tree was a yew so the
woodcutter chopped it down. The teacher asked you to stop chewing gum.
flour and flower - The cake needed flour, which had dropped out on the way. The flower had no water so it
started to wilt.
groan and grown - You could hear the prisoners grumble and groan in the dungeons. My child has grown
to be a loving and caring person.
hoarse and horse - My throat is hoarse because I talk too much. Im competing with my horse, Midnight.
in and inn - in: The car was not in garage so the man panicked. There was no place for us at the inn.
jean and gene - I accidentally tore my brand new jeans. I think I have mother's gene because my hair is
ginger like hers.
knot and not - knot: I suddenly got a knot in my stomach I had forgotten Lizzy's present . It's not my fault
you that you can't dance!

Homophones: Words that have the same pronunciation, but different spelling and
different meanings. Directions: Choose the correct word. Example: Please try not to
(waste, waist) paper
1. Can I go to the party (to, too, two)?
2. This is my favorite (pare, pair, pear) of jeans.
3. I (sent, scent, cent) a letter to my aunt in Vietnam.

4. The children got (bored, board) during the lecture.

5. Mr. and Mrs. Rodriguez like to work in (there, theyre, their) garden.
6. Alec is going to (wear, ware) his work boots today.
7. Do you think it is going to (rein, rain, reign) this afternoon?
8. I saw a restaurant just off the (rode, road) about a mile back.
9. Davids brother is in a (band, banned) which plays Russian music.
10. Juana wants her socks because her (tows, toes) are cold.
11. The teacher walked down the (aisle, isle) between the rows of desks.
12. Hadil has a (pane, pain) in her shoulder.
13. The school (principal, principle) spoke to a group of parents.
14. The clerk wants to (sell, cell) as many TVs as possible.
15. I dont want to talk about the (passed, past) anymore.
16. Nobody (knows, nose) what you are thinking.
17. I have (for, four, fore) dollars in my pocket.
18. I need to take a (break, brake) from this exercise!
19. Humans have hands. Dogs have (paws, pause).
20. (Hell, Heel, Heal) be here in a few minutes.

EXAMPLES OF HOMONYM: with same spelling

Homonyms: Words that have the same spelling and same pronunciation, but
different meanings. Directions: Choose (a) or (b)
Example: I hope you are not lying _(a)_ to me. (a) telling a lie
My books are lying _(b)_ on the table. (b) being in a horizontal position
1. The kids are going to watch ___ TV tonight. (a) small clock worn on the wrist
What time is it? I have to set my watch____. (b) look at
2. Which page _____ is the homework on? (a) one sheet of paper
Please page _____the doctor if you need help. (b) to call someone on an electronic
pager
3. Lets play ___ soccer after school. (a) participate in a sport
The author wrote a new play ___. (b) theater piece
4. Ouch! The mosquito bit ___ me! (a) a tiny amount

Ill have a little bit ___ of sugar in my tea. (b) past tense of bite
5. My rabbits are in a pen ___ outside. (a) a writing instrument which uses ink
Please sign this form with a black pen ___. (b) an enclosed area
Homographs: Words that have the same spelling, but different

Explanation of

HOMONYMS, HOMOPHONES,
HOMOGRAPHS, and HETERONYMS
Buzzy Bee riddles are a play on the sound and spelling of words. This is easily done
because many words in the English language sound alike or are spelled alike but
have different meanings. Bee is spelled with two "e's" and therefore any words with
the letters "b" and "e" are likely to have an extra "e" when misspelled by Buzzy. While
the following words are spelled correctly, look for their misspellings in the Buzzy Bee
riddles and Buzzy's "answers."
be
beautiful
because

become
behave
behind

beware
maybe

What other words might Buzzy misspell? (Hint: look up "be" in the dictionary.)
Buzzy Bee riddles use misspelling to manipulate the meaning of words. Although not
correctly spelled, these words might qualify as homophones (words that sound alike,
but have a different spelling).
HOMONYMS are words that sound alike but have different
meanings.Homophones are a type of homonym that also sound alike and have
different meanings, but have different spellings.
HOMOGRAPHS are words that are spelled the same but have different
meanings.Heteronyms are a type of homograph that are also spelled the same and
have different meanings, but sound different.
WORDS THAT BOTH SOUND THE SAME AND ARE SPELLED THE
SAMEare both homonyms (same sound) and homographs (same spelling).
Example: lie (untruth) and lie (prone); fair (county fair), fair (reasonable).

SUMMARY CHART
HOMONYM WORDS
SOUND
same sound

HOMOPHONE WORDS
type of homonym
same sound

same OR different spelling

different spelling

fair (county fair)

fair (reasonable)
pear (fruit)
pair (couple)
Buzzy Bee Riddle #6; boo bee, booby
Buzzy Bee Riddle #14; hum bug, humbug
Buzzy Bee Riddle #13: cell, sell

pear (fruit)
pair (couple)
Buzzy Bee Riddle #6; boo bee, booby
Buzzy Bee Riddle #14; hum bug, humbug
Buzzy Bee Riddle #13: cell, sell

HOMOGRAPH WORDS
SPELLING

HETERONYM WORDS
type of homograph

same OR different sound

different sound

same spelling

same spelling

lie (untruth)
lie (lie down)
tear (in the eye)
tear (rip)
Buzzy Bee Riddle #4; spelling bee, spelling bee

tear (in the eye)

tear (rip)

DETAIL CHART
Same Sound / different meanings

Homonyms

Same Spelling / different meanings

Homophones Homographs Heteronyms

Different Spelling

see
sea

Different Sound

(the ocean)

see
sea

see
sea

n/a

n/a

to (preposition)
too (as well)
two (2)

to
too
two

to
too
two

n/a

n/a

there
there
their (possessive)
their
they're (contraction) they're

there
their
they're

n/a

n/a

bough (tree limb)

bough
bow (front of a boat) bow
bow (at the waist)
bow
bow (tied with ribbon

bough
bow

(with your eye)

bow

(shoots arrows)

lead (to guide)

lead (the metal)
led (guided)

lead
led

lie

lie

(untruth)

bough
bow

bow
bow

lead
led
n/a

bow
bow
bow
bow

bow

lead
lead

lead
lead

lie

bow

bow
bow

n/a

lie

(lie down)

fair
fair
fair

(appearance)
(county fair)
(reasonable)

bass
bass

(fish)

tear
tear

(in the eye)

(low note)

(rip)

lie

lie

fair
fair
fair

n/a

fair
fair
fair

n/a

n/a

bass
bass

bass
bass

n/a

n/a

tear
tear

tear
tear

n/a