homophonous

American  

[huh-mof-uh-nuhs, hoh-] / həˈmɒf ə nəs, hoʊ- /

adjective

1. identical in pronunciation.

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homophonous British  

/ hɒˈmɒfənəs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or denoting a homophone

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Usage

What does homophonous mean? Homophonous is used to describe words that are pronounced exactly the same.If two words are described as homophonous, it means they are homophones—words that sound the same but have different meanings, whether they’re spelled the same or not. There, their, and they’re are homophonous. So are bark (the sound a dog makes) and bark (the covering of a tree).As long as two (or more) words have the same pronunciation, they are homophonous.Example: Many English words are homophonous, which can make things confusing, even for native speakers.

Etymology

Origin of homophonous

1745–55; < Greek homóphōnos of the same sound; homo-, phon-, -ous

Example Sentences

But she was hoisted by her own homophonous petard.

From Seattle Times

Netizens have replaced "quan", which means "rights", with a homophonous character meaning "fist", making it a somewhat derogatory term for feminists.

From BBC

It delighted him that her name was homophonous with that of a singing bird: the loriot, or golden oriole, which duly has its place in “Catalogue d’Oiseaux.”

From New York Times

According to phonetic law the latter word should have become litch in modern English; but it very early underwent a punning alteration which made it homophonous with the ancient word for physician.

From Project Gutenberg

When two or more words different in origin and signification are pronounced alike, whether they are alike or not in their spelling, they are said to be homophonous, or homophones of each other.

From Project Gutenberg