homonym
Spelled alike, different
Homonyms are words that share the same spelling or pronunciation but have different meanings.
Bank (financial institution) and bank (river edge) are homonyms—same spelling, same sound, unrelated meanings.
The term loosely covers both homographs (same spelling) and homophones (same sound), though linguists sometimes distinguish these more precisely.
Identically pronounced, differently spelled word
- homographShared spelling, separate meanings
- polysemyWord having related meanings
- heteronymSame spelling, different sound
- lexemeFundamental dictionary unit
ambiguity · synonymy · antonym · paronym · cognate · etymology · semantics · morpheme
Wordplay using double meanings
- double-entendreWords with suggestive second meaning
- play-on-wordsJoke exploiting double meanings
- paronomasiaRhetorical use of puns
- jokeHumorous statement seeking laughter
wit · quip · innuendo · banter · jest · humor · ambiguity · riddle
Failure to grasp meaning
- ambiguityOpenness to multiple interpretations
- uncertaintyState of being unsure
- mix-upConfusion from error
- miscommunicationFailed exchange of meaning
equivocation · vagueness · obscurity · muddle · perplexity · bewilderment · doubt · misinterpretation
Exactly the same
- indistinguishableImpossible to tell apart
- matchingIdentical in appearance
- equivalentSame in value or function
- coincidingOccurring at same time
overlapping · convergent · lookalike · soundalike · doppelganger · twin · duplicate
homophone
Identically pronounced, differently spelled word
- homographShared spelling, separate meanings
- polysemyWord having related meanings
- heteronymSame spelling, different sound
lexeme · ambiguity · synonymy · antonym · paronym · cognate · etymology · semantics · morpheme · phoneme
pun
Wordplay using double meanings
- double-entendreWords with suggestive second meaning
- play-on-wordsJoke exploiting double meanings
- paronomasiaRhetorical use of puns
joke · wit · quip · innuendo · banter · jest · humor · ambiguity · riddle · puzzle
misunderstanding
Failure to grasp meaning
- ambiguityOpenness to multiple interpretations
- uncertaintyState of being unsure
- mix-upConfusion from error
miscommunication · equivocation · vagueness · obscurity · muddle · perplexity · bewilderment · doubt · misinterpretation · unclear
identical
Exactly the same
- indistinguishableImpossible to tell apart
- matchingIdentical in appearance
- equivalentSame in value or function
coinciding · overlapping · convergent · lookalike · soundalike · doppelganger · twin · duplicate
- linguistic termsacronym, anagram, antonym, synonym, homophone
- languagelanguage, word, words, grammar, spelling
- vocabularyword, words, new words, term, terms
- language termsgrammar, word, vocabulary, syntax, synonym
- speech or wordsnoun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun
- Greek wordsalpha, beta, gamma, delta, epsilon