Michelle Kaderly Welsh
The English language tends to be a tricky one with words that are pronounced or spelled the same way, but have different meanings. Then, of course, there are words that people misuse because the spelling is close. Here are some homonyms that can make you pause and think. Don’t you love the English language?
Advice/Advise
Advice (N): I sought advice before making my decision.
Advise (V): The mother advised the child not to spend his money on carnival games.
Alley/Ally
Alley (N): An alley can be a dangerous place.
Ally (N): England is our ally.
Bald/Bawled
Bald (Adj.): My brother is bald.
Bawled (V): From the hutch, the calf bawled for its mother.
Boar/Bore
Boar (N): The hunters shot a wild boar.
Bore (V): While constructing the desk, he bore a hole in the piece of wood.
Bore (Adj.): Some considered him a bore.
Currant/Current
Currant (N): Have you ever tried a currant?
Current (N): The kayak swirled in the current.
Current (Adj.) This news isn’t current.
Device/Devise
Device (N): Please turn off your device.
Devise (V): Let us devise a clever plan.
Dual/Duel
Dual (Adj.): She has a dual major.
Duel (N): A duel can be dangerous.
Envelope/Envelop
Envelope (N): He tore open the envelope to find an invitation to the party.
Envelop (V): Soon the mud enveloped the footprint.
Flee/Flea
I tend to flee fleas.
Forbear/Forebear
Forbear (V): Please forbear striking him.
Forebear (N): My forebear arrived from Switzerland in 1883.
Gamble/Gambol
Gamble (V): He visited Las Vegas to gamble.
Gambol (V): The children gamboled about the field chasing butterflies.
Hoarse/Horse
Hoarse (Adj.): After a sore throat, you may still be hoarse.
Horse (N): The beautiful horse galloped across the pasture to greet his mistress.
Instance/Instants
Instance (V): For instance, the homonym that trips me up the most is effect and affect.
Instants (N): The instants most important in our lives involve loved ones.
Lose/Loose
Lose (V): Did you lose your wallet?
Loose (Adj.): Loose change littered the carpet.
Miner/Minor
The miner was a minor, so he couldn’t stake the claim.
Need/Knead
I need to knead my bread longer.
Patience/Patients
The doctor needed more patience with his patients.
Peace/Piece
There would be more peace if you would agree to split the last piece of pie.
Plain/Plane
It is plain that the plane landed on the plain.
Prophesy/Prophecy
“Prophesy the future,” he challenged.
The prophecy came true.
Tow/Toe
He could tow the toy with a string tied to his toe.
There are many more homonyms that can be confusing, but if you know their definitions and parts of speech, you can learn their differences and keep them straight. Having a good dictionary will help!
I hope you enjoyed reading through the different sentences and marveling at these sometimes troublesome words in our language: homonyms.
What homonym trips you up the most?
Photo by Pisit Heng on Unsplash.
Tracy Popolizio
Laurie Germaine
Carol Eaton
It drives me crazy when I see writers mix up there, their, or they’re. I must have had a good teacher straighten out the different meanings for me.
My husband gave me a t-shirt for Christmas about there, their, and they’re because I wanted writerly t-shirts. I might get a lot of comments on it when I wear it because it does seem to be something people struggle with. I told my kids that there is a place and had them remember that here is in there. Are you here or there? Their is possessive. Their car is red. And they’re is a contraction of they are, so if people slow down, they might remember those tips. It seems clear to us, but hopefully our little discussion will help someone to distinguish these troublesome homonyms. 🙂 Typing this I noticed another homonym: wear and where. I know people who get mixed up with spelling where like were, the linking and helping verb. I told my kids that here is in where in hopes that would stop the mix up with were. Where are you? Here. LOL Anyway, it’s nice chatting with you. Have a great day, Gretchen.
Great list!
I know rein/reign tripped me up in my current WIP (my mom caught it!) And flier/flyer (our crit group caught that one!)
Thanks, Elise. I was shocked to see how long the homonym list is! LOL I’m glad those that tripped you up were caught. 🙂
Thanks Michelle for this helpful lesson. I had Lily read over it to make sure she’s got it. She loves to write!
Thanks, Kendra! I found an old dictionary with a section listing pages of homonyms. I think it will be a good resource for me. I will be happy to show it to Lily if she ever wants to see it. She might have lots of fun with them. 🙂