Homograph

 ( Wordplay ) 

A homograph (from the , and γράφω, ) is a word that shares the same written form as another word but has a different meaning.

However, some dictionaries insist that the words must also be pronounced differently,

while the Oxford English Dictionary says that the words should also be of "different origin".Oxford English Dictionary: homograph. In this vein, The Oxford Guide to Practical Lexicography lists various types of homographs, including those in which the words are discriminated by being in a different word class, such as hit, the verb to strike, and hit, the noun a strike.Atkins, BTS.; Rundell, M., The Oxford Guide to Practical Lexicography, OUP Oxford, 2008, pp. 192 - 193.

If, when spoken, the meanings may be distinguished by different pronunciations, the words are also heteronyms. Words with the same writing and pronunciation (i.e. are both homographs and ) are considered . However, in a broader sense the term "homonym" may be applied to words with the same writing or pronunciation. Homograph disambiguation is critically important in speech synthesis, natural language processing and other fields. Identically written different senses of what is judged to be fundamentally the same word are called ; for example, wood (substance) and wood (area covered with trees).

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In English Examples:

• sow (verb) – to plant seed

sow (noun) – female pig

where the words are heteronyms, spelt identically but pronounced differently. Here confusion is not possible in spoken language but could occur in written language.

• bear (verb) – to support or carry

bear (noun) – the animal

where the words are homonyms, identical in spelling and pronunciation (), but different in meaning and grammatical function.

The above examples are of etymologically unrelated words. Some homographs are also etymological doublets, meaning they come from the same source and are spelt the same way in Modern English, but their distinct meanings are tied to their distinct pronunciations:

• – of the Dominican Order or the Dominican Republic (fully anglicized, based on the Latin pronunciation of , named for Saint Dominic)

Dominican – of Dominica (slightly modified from the Spanish pronunciation of Dominica , named for Latin meaning "the Lord's Day" or "Sunday")

Both words ultimately come from Latin meaning "of the Lord."

• – viol player

– viola player

Both viol and viola come from Latin .

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More examples

lead	Gold is denser than lead .	The mother duck will lead her ducklings around.
close	"Will you please close that door!"	The tiger was now so close that I could smell it...
wind	The wind howled through the woodlands.	Wind your watch.
minute	I will be there in a minute .	That is a very minute / amount.

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In Chinese Many Chinese varieties have homographs, called (p=duōyīnzì) or (p=chóngxíngzì), (p=pòyīnzì).

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Old Chinese Modern study of Old Chinese has found patterns that suggest a system of .

Jerry Norman (1988). 9780521228091, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521228091

One pattern is the addition of the prefix , which turns transitive verbs into intransitive or passive voice in some cases:

William H. Baxter (1992). 9783110123241, de Gruyter Mouton. ISBN 9783110123241

appear

be defeated

All data from Baxter, 1992.

Another pattern is the use of a suffix, which seems to create nouns from verbs or verbs from :

(n.) record

grindstone

border, frontier

wear, clothe

be king

All data from Baxter, 1992.

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Middle Chinese Many homographs in Old Chinese also exist in Middle Chinese. Examples of homographs in Middle Chinese are:

(v.) change

differentiate, other

above, top, emperor

lengthen, elder

Reconstructed phonology from Wang Li on the tables in the article Middle Chinese. in terms of level (꜀平), rising (꜂上), departing (去꜄), and entering (入꜆) are given. All meanings and their respective pronunciations from Wang et al., 2000. Wang Li (2026). 9787101012194, 中華書局. ISBN 9787101012194

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Modern Chinese Many homographs in Old Chinese and Middle Chinese also exist in modern Chinese language varieties. Homographs which did not exist in Old Chinese or Middle Chinese often come into existence due to differences between literary and colloquial readings of Chinese characters. Other homographs may have been created due to merging two different characters into the same glyph during script reform (See Simplified Chinese characters and Shinjitai).

Some examples of homographs in Cantonese from Middle Chinese are:

(v.) change

above, top, emperor

lengthen, elder

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See also

• Synonym
• Interlingual homograph
• IDN homograph attack
• Syncretism (linguistics)
• False friend

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Bibliography

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External links

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