Homonyms, homophones and homographs: differences and examples

The homonymous words are words that are spelled or pronounced the same, although their meanings are different.

For example: bolsa, can refer to a type of bag or to the economic institution.

The homophone words are a type of homonymous words, since they are pronounced the same, although their spelling and meanings differ.

For example: to leaf through means to turn the pages of a book and to browse means to look at.

The homograph words are words that are spelled in the same way, but their meaning is different.

An example would be: salsa as a musical style or salsa as a gastronomic accompaniment.

What are homonymous words

Homonymous words are words that, although they have a similar form (spelling) or pronunciation, do not mean the same thing.

Homonym comes from Greek and is a word composed of the terms. ὁμós (homos), meaning the same, similar or alike, and. ὂνομα (onoma), meaning noun. Thus, homonym refers to names or words that are the same.

In that sense, homonymous words are classified into two types:

Homonymous homographs: they are spelled the same, but have different meanings.

Homophonous homonyms: they are pronounced the same, but have different meanings.

What are homograph words

Homograph words are words that, when spelled the same way, have a different meaning.

Homograph is a word of Greek origin that is formed by two terms: ὁμós (homos), meaning common or equal, and γραφή (graphḗ), script. So its meaning would be “same writing”.

Examples of homograph words.

Bank: seating furniture
Bench: public or private institution for the administration of monetary resources.
Candle: object of combustible nature used to generate artificial light.
Candle: part of a vessel
Capital: principal city of a country or province.
CapitalThe tangible assets of a person or company.
Lima: proper name of the capital of Peru.
Lima: type of citrus fruit.
Lime: object for reducing or abrading surfaces.

What are homophones

Homophones are words that are pronounced the same, although their spelling and meanings are different.

Homophone is a word of Greek origin that is formed by two terms: ὁμós (homos), meaning common or equal, and. φωνή (phōnḗ), sound. So its meaning would be “equal sounds”.