Two – this is the number for example, “two days ago”. Too – this means “as well” or “also” for example, “me too”. To – used in the infinitive form of a verb, such as “to walk”, and also to mean “towards”. Luckily, though, these three words have very different uses, and the examples below should help you remember them. Lots of native English-speakers get confused about this one. There are too many to include all of them, but these examples should at least help you with some of them and stand as a warning that the English language has plenty of pitfalls for you to be aware of! To, two, too Common examples of homophonesīelow, we introduce you to some of the most common homophones – those that you’re likely to meet with in either day-to-day conversation or in your academic work. Some of the variants are archaic words that aren’t used anymore, so you needn’t concern yourself with them. There’s also one instance of six variants, two of five, 24 of four and 88 of three. On the subject of multinyms, it may surprise you to learn that in English, there is one instance of a multinym with no fewer than seven variations, all sounding the same but meaning different things. Multinym – words that sound the same but have more than two different meanings and spellings Heterograph – words that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have different meanings Homonym – words that have the same spelling but a different meaning Homograph – words that sound and are spelled the same but have different meanings Homophone – all words and phrases that sound the same but have different meanings Just to confuse you a little more (last time, promise), there are several words that we use to refer to different types of homophone. The potential for confusion for native and non-native speakers alike is, unfortunately, great. The two (or more) words may be spelled differently, but just to make life difficult, they can also be spelled the same. It comes from the Greek words “homo”, meaning “same”, and “phone”, meaning “voice”. The word “homophone” is used to describe a word that sounds the same as another word, but that has a different meaning. Don’t worry though we’ll introduce you to some of the most common ones so that you know to watch out for them! What is a homophone? When you look at the number of homophones, it’s not difficult to see why so many students get caught out.īut what exactly is a homophone, I hear you ask? You’re about to find out as we take you through the meaning of homophony and the word-based conundrums they cause.
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