What should we call “fair” and “fare”?

Add comment December 27th, 2008

I have been using “homonym” for such words. Some authorities insist they should be called “homophones.” This may further muddy the waters, but here are the definitions in Webtser’s New World College Dictionary, fourth edition, which is what I use:

homonym: “a word with the same pronunication as another but with a different meaning, origin, and, usually, spelling.” As examples it gives “bore” and “boar.” As a second definition, it has “loosely, a homograph.”

homograph: “a word with the same spelling as another or others but with a different meaning and origin, and, sometimes, a different pronunciation.” As examples it has “bow,” the front of a ship; “bow,” to bend; and “bow,” a decorative knot.

homophone: “any of two or more letters or groups of letters representing the same speech sound.” As examples it gives the “c” in “civil” and the “s” in “song.” As a second definition, it has “homonym, sense 1.”

The other reason I prefer “homonym” is it matches up well with “synonym” and “antonym.” Why make this stuff even more difficult?

One other note here: The word “homo” is a slang and “often contemptuous” term for “homosexual.” In Latin, “homo” means “a man, human being,” and is used in scientific classification — for example, “Homo sapiens.”

The “homo-” in most words, however, including the three above, comes from the Greek for “same.”