Add these to your homonym hoard

Add comment December 3rd, 2008

This one is an example of a more common homonym mix-up: “weeds occupied by hoards of mosquitoes.”

The correct word is “hordes.” A horde is “a large, moving crowd or throng; swarm.”

As a noun, “hoard” is “a supply stored up and hidden or kept in reserve.” I can’t imagine why anyone would want to hoard mosquitoes.

A pirate hoard would be buried treasure; a pirate horde would be a bunch of pirates. Aargh!

Here’s a memory aid: To “hoard,” the one with an “a” in it, is to acquire and accumulate, both of which begin with “a.”

In the interests of thoroughness, there is a third homonym, “whored,” but that’s all I’m going to say about it.