[Lexicog] English homonyms

[Kim Blewett]

A question: If we move a discussion off-group, how do people remain
connected to it?

Referring to John Roberts' list of homophones. Great list. I agree that all
languages have some degree of homophony, but English is likely the most
extreme example of different spellings for homophones. In many languages the
list of homophones would look much more like John's second list, in which
word breaks in the orthography, or at least morpheme breaks, distinguish the
pairs.

It seems to me that a good language-learner's dictionary (of any language)
should cross-reference these somehow, even the second group.

John lists several examples which are homophones in British English but not
in American English:

> 'caught' and 'court'
> 'heard' and 'hared'
> 'adhere' and 'a dare'

A few further examples, homophones in many but not all varieties of American
English:

'don/Don' and 'dawn/Dawn'
'cot' and 'caught'
'sot' and 'sought'

Kim Blewett



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