heteronym
noun
a word spelled the same as another but having a different sound and meaning, as lead (to conduct) and lead (a metal).
heteronyms
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pluralof heteronym.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
These works were penned by Pessoa’s heteronyms, a term he came up with to describe the scores of distinct authorial entities he invented.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2026
This was particularly true of a writer like Pessoa, who actively played with various identities, sometimes allowing his heteronyms to correspond and criticize each other.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 23, 2021
He was a whole galaxy of writers — heteronyms, as he called them, with entirely different personalities and different, often radically conflicting, views on poetry, style, nature, politics and the antique.
From New York Times ● Jul. 13, 2021
Can I assume it was intended to demonstrate the difference between heteronyms and homonyms by placing it adjacent to John Ficarra’s hilarious essay?
From Washington Post ● May 28, 2021
And new heteronyms are still being exposed, like the recent discovery of Maria José, the only female voice – that of a 19-year-old, miserably ill hunchback – written into the chorus.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 4, 2010
