Heteronym (linguistics)

A heteronym is a word that has a different pronunciation and meaning as another word but the same spelling. These are homographs that are not homophones. Thus, lead and lead are heteronyms, but mean and mean are not, since they are pronounced the same. Heteronym pronunciation may vary in vowel realisation, in stress pattern, or in other ways.

Description

A heteronym is a homograph that is not a homophone, a word that has a different pronunciation and meaning from another word with the same spelling. Heteronym pronunciation may vary in vowel realisation, in stress pattern, or in other ways.
"Heterophone" literally just means "different sound", and this term is sometimes applied to words that are just pronounced differently, irrespective of their spelling. Such a definition would include virtually every pair of words in the language, so "heterophone" in this sense is normally restricted to instances where there is some particular reason to highlight the different sound. For example, puns normally involve homophones, but in the case of heterophonic puns, the two words sound different, and yet similar enough for one to suggest the other.

Types

Most heteronyms are doubles. Triple heteronyms are extremely rare in English; one example, sin, is listed below.
Proper nouns can sometimes be heteronyms. For example, the final syllable in the US state of Oregon is pronounced, while in the name of the village of Oregon in Wisconsin, the final syllable is pronounced. Other examples include local pronunciations of Cairo, Georgia; Versailles, Kentucky; and Milan, Tennessee—compared to the more well-known Cairo, Versailles, and Milan—or the difference between the pronunciation of Louisville, Kentucky and the town of Louisville, New York.
There are also pairs which ignore case and include both initialisms and regular words, e.g., US and us.
Heteronyms also occur in non-alphabetic languages. For example, 20% of the 2400 most common Chinese characters have multiple readings; e.g., 行 can represent háng 'profession' or xíng 'OK'. In Arabic, vowels are normally not written, leading to ambiguous written words such as <كتب> /ktb/, which can be read /kataba/ 'he wrote', /kutubun/ 'books', or /kutiba/ 'it was written'; it is unclear whether these should be considered heteronyms, since they are unambiguous when fully vocalized.

Examples

Heteronyms with definitions

English

In some of these cases, American and British English pronunciations differ. One systematic case appears in the stress pattern of some deverbal nouns. Many of these words have the same origin, and similar meanings, and are essentially the same word. True heteronyms require the two words to be completely unrelated, which is a rare occurrence.
For a longer list, see wikt:Category:English heteronyms.

Spelling	Pronunciation	Part of speech	Meaning
abstract		adjective	existing in thought or as an idea but not having a physical or concrete existence
abstract		verb	consider theoretically or separately from something else
abuse		noun	improper treatment
abuse		verb	to use improperly
address	AmE and BrE	verb	to direct speech, a letter or a consignment
address	AmE BrE and AmE	noun	a descriptor of location
advocate		verb	to argue for someone else
advocate		noun	a person who speaks in support of something
affect		verb	to have an effect on
affect		noun	mood, emotional state
affiliate		noun	a company, organization etc. that is connected with or controlled by a larger one
affiliate		verb	if a group or organization affiliates to or with another larger one, it forms a close connection with it
agape		adverb	open wide
agape	,	noun	altruistic, beneficial love
allied		verb	join for a common purpose
allied	;	adjective	joined for a common purpose, especially by treaty
alternate	or	adjective	alternating, alternative
alternate		verb	to take turns
alum		noun	a type of astringent salt
alum		noun	a past attendee or graduate of an educational institution
analyses		noun	plural of analysis
analyses		verb	third person singular present of analyse
appropriate		adjective	suitable
appropriate		verb	to set apart for
attribute		noun	a characteristic
attribute		verb	to associate ownership
articulate		verb	to speak clearly
articulate		adjective	well-spoken
august/August		adjective	awe-inspiring, majestic, noble, venerable
august/August		noun	the eighth month of the Roman, Julian, and Gregorian calendars
axes		noun	pl. of axis
axes		noun	pl. of axe
bases		noun	plural of base
bases		noun	plural of basis
bass		noun	low in pitch
bass		noun	a fish
blessed		adjective	having divine aid
blessed		verb	past tense of bless
bow		noun	a stringed weapon, or the initiator of sound in some stringed musical instruments.
bow		noun	an object that you clip or tie on to your hair to keep it from falling into your face
bow		verb	to bend in respect
bow		noun	the front of a boat or ship
buffet	or	noun	sideboard meal
buffet		verb	to strike
chassis		noun	singular form
chassis		noun	plural form
close		verb	to shut
close		adjective	nearby
combine		noun	A farm machine that harvests and threshes
combine		verb	To bring two or more things together, mix
compact		verb	to compress
compact		adjective	small
complex		noun	A collection of buildings with a common purpose, such as a university or military base
complex	,	adjective	Made up of multiple parts
compound		noun	A substance having definite proportions of elements
compound		verb	To make a situation worse
concert		noun	We saw the band in concert.
concert		verb	We had to concert all our energy to stay awake.
conduct		noun	action
conduct		verb	to lead
confines		noun pl.	Work within the confines of the contract.
confines		verb	But the contract confines my creativity!
conflict		noun	The mother said to her belligerent son, "Violence is no way to resolve conflict!"
conflict		verb	The two news reports seem to conflict with each other.
console		verb	provide comfort from grief
console		noun	control unit
content		noun	information
content		adjective, verb	satisfied, satisfy
contract		noun	The contract was supposed to expire seven years after it was signed.
contract		verb	Derek firmly stated that he would rather contract pneumonia and die than stand outside wearing that ridiculous pink and green poncho.
convict		verb	to find guilty
convict		noun	one convicted
coop		noun	enclosure for chickens
coop		noun	abbreviation of cooperative
coop		noun	a cart with closed sides or ends, also spelled cowp.
coordinate		noun	A set of numbers that shows the exact position of a point on a map or graph.
coordinate		adjective	Equal in rank or importance; matching in style or color. The jacket and shoes were coordinate pieces.
coordinate		verb	To organize people or things so that they work together effectively. The project managers job is to coordinate between teams.
crooked		verb	I crooked my arm to show the sleeve.
crooked		adjective	Unfortunately, that just made the sleeve look crooked.
decrease		verb	To lessen
decrease		noun	A diminution
defense		noun	The attorney gave a strong defense.
defense		noun	The coach put out his best defense.
desert		noun	an arid region
desert		verb	to abandon
discard		noun	Toss it in the discard pile.
discard		verb	But I don't want to discard it!
do	,	verb	What do you think you are doing?
do		noun	To warm-up, the singer sang the scale from do.
does		noun	pl. of doe
does		verb	form of do
dogged		verb	At night proctors patrolled the street and dogged your steps if you tried to go into any haunt where the presence of vice was suspected.
dogged		adjective	Still, the dogged obstinacy of his race held him to the pace he had set, and would hold him till he dropped in his tracks.
dove		noun	a bird
dove		verb	Mainly American past tense of dive
ellipses		noun	Plural of ellipse
ellipses		noun	Plural of ellipsis
entrance		noun	way in
entrance		verb	to delight
excuse		noun	explanation designed to avoid or alleviate guilt or negative judgment; a plea offered in extenuation of a fault
excuse		verb	to forgive; to pardon
exploit		noun	a heroic or extraordinary deed
exploit		verb	to make use of or take advantage of
house		noun	a residential building
house		verb	to place in residence
incense		noun	Dad, I bought this incense at the temple.
incense		verb	Big mistake. If you burn it here, you'll incense your mother.
increase		verb	To get greater
increase		noun	An augmentation
intimate		verb	to suggest
intimate		adjective	very close
invalid		adjective	incorrect
invalid		noun	a disabled person
laminate		verb	to assemble from thin sheets glued together
laminate		noun	material formed of thin sheets glued together
lead		verb	to guide
lead		noun	a metal
learned		adjective	having much learning
learned		verb	past tense of learn
lima/Lima		noun or attributive	A vegetable
lima/Lima		proper noun	A city in Ohio, United States
lima/Lima		proper noun	The capital city of Peru
live		verb	to be alive
live		adjective	having life
merchandise		noun	goods available for sale
merchandise		verb	to make available for sale
minute		adjective	small
minute		noun	unit of time
moped		noun	a small motorcycle
moped		verb	past tense of mope
mow		noun	a stack of hay, or the part of a barn where hay is stored
mow		verb	To cut something down or knock down
multiply		verb	to increase
multiply		adverb	in multiple ways
number		noun	a numeral
number		adjective	more numb
object		noun	a thing
object		verb	to protest
overall		adjective	Overall, we didn't do too badly.
overall		noun	I need new overalls.
patronize	AmE /ˈpeɪtɹənaɪz/, BrE /ˈpætɹənaɪz/	verb	to treat with condescension
patronize	/ˈpeɪtɹənaɪz/	verb	to be a patron or customer of
periodic		adjective	Temperature shows periodic variation.
periodic		adjective	Periodic acid is an oxoacid of iodine.
present		verb	to reveal
present		noun	a gift; the current moment
present		adjective	existing in the immediate vicinity
primer	AmE, BrE	noun	book that covers the basic elements of a subject
primer		noun	an undercoat of paint
proceeds		noun	revenue
proceeds		verb	Third person singular of the verb "proceed"
produce		verb	to make
produce		noun	fruit and vegetables
progress		verb	I hope things will progress faster.
progress	AmE, BrE	noun	I haven't made any progress.
project		noun	an undertaking
project		verb	to cast an image
protest		noun	an organized event opposing something
protest		verb	to vociferously object
putting		verb	pr. part. of to put
putting		verb	pr. part. of to putt
ragged		verb	She ragged on me about my ragged jeans.
ragged		adjective	But my ragged jeans are my trademark, I responded.
read		verb	present tense
read		verb	past tense
rebel		verb	to resist
rebel		noun	one who rebels
record	AmE, BrE	noun	stored information
record		verb	to make a record
recreate		verb	to relax by leisure activity
recreate		verb	to give new life or create again
refund		noun	an amount of money that is given back to you if you are not satisfied with the goods or services that you have paid for
refund		verb	to give someone their money back
refuse		noun	garbage
refuse		verb	to decline
reject		noun	a product that has been rejected because there is something wrong with it
reject		verb	to refuse to accept, believe in, or agree with something
resign		verb	1. to quit 2. to accept that something undesirable cannot be avoided
resign		verb	to sign again; re-sign
resume		verb	to start again
resume		noun	curriculum vitae
retreat		verb	to fall back from a battle front
retreat		verb	to treat again
root	or	noun	The tree's root was rotted.
root		verb	A pig can be trained to root for mushrooms.
row		noun, verb	a line; to paddle a boat
row		noun	an argument
sake		noun	benefit
sake	,	noun	rice wine
second		adjective, noun, verb	ordinal of "two", 1/60 of a minute, to endorse a motion
second		verb	to transfer temporarily to an alternative employment
separate		adjective	This should be divided into packets of ten cartridges each, which should be rolled up in flannel and hermetically sealed in separate tin canisters.
separate		verb	To stalk these wary antelopes I was obliged to separate from my party, who continued on their direct route.
sewer		noun	drainage pipes
sewer		noun	one who sews
shower		noun	precipitation
shower		noun	one who shows
sin/Sin		noun	a moral error
sin/Sin		noun	abbrev. for sine
sin/Sin		noun	Sumerian god of the moon; Arabic letter
slough		verb	to shed
slough		noun	a small waterway
slough		proper noun	a town in Berkshire
sow		verb	to plant seeds
sow		noun	a mature female in the swine species
subject		noun	a topic
subject		verb	to cause to undergo
supposed		adjective	being assumed to be
supposed		verb	obliged to do
supposed		verb	past sense of suppose
tarry		verb	to linger
tarry		adjective	similar to tar
tear		noun	liquid produced by crying
tear		verb, noun	to separate
tier		noun	level or rank
tier		noun	one who ties
transfer		noun	a movement of something from one place to another
transfer		verb	to move something from one place to another
use		noun	function, benefit
use		verb	employ, utilize
unionized		adjective	formed into a union
unionized		adjective	not ionized
whoop		verb	Pa says he's gonna whoop you good if you don't learn some manners!
whoop		verb	When they scored a goal, he began to whoop and holler.
wicked		adjective	bad, evil
wicked		verb	past tense of wick
wind		noun	air movement
wind		verb	to tighten a mechanical spring
wound		verb	past tense of wind
wound		noun, verb	an injury

French

In French, most heteronyms result from certain endings being pronounced differently in verbs and nouns. In particular, -ent as a third person plural verb ending is silent while as an adjective ending, it is pronounced.

Spelling	Pronunciation	Part of speech	Meaning
affluent		verb	they pour in
affluent		noun	a tributary of a river
as		verb	you have
as		noun	an ace
bout		noun	end
bout		noun	rope
content		verb	they recount
content		adjective	happy
convient		verb	they invite
convient		verb	it is suitable
couvent		verb	they brood
couvent		noun	a convent
éditions		verb	we edited
éditions		noun	publications
est		verb	he/she is
est		noun	the East
excellent		verb	they excel
excellent		adjective	excellent
expédient		verb	they send
expédient		noun	an expedient
fier		verb	to trust
fier		adjective	proud
fils		noun	son, sons
fils		noun	wires
négligent		verb	they neglect
négligent		adjective	negligent
objections		verb	we objected
objections		noun	objections
oignons		verb	we anoint
oignons		noun	onions
parent		verb	they adorn
parent		noun	parent
plus		adverb	more
plus		adverb	no more
portions		verb	we carried
portions		noun	portions
relations		verb	we recounted
relations		noun	relations
résident		verb	they reside
résident		noun	resident
violent		verb	they violate
violent		adjective	violent
vis		verb	I live, I saw
vis		noun	screw, screws

Modern Greek

Modern Greek spelling is largely unambiguous, but there are a few cases where a word has distinct learned and vernacular meaning and pronunciation, despite having the same root, and where is pronounced vs. ; Some of these distinctions are being neutralized in modern speech.

Spelling	Pronunciation	Part of speech	Meaning
άδεια		adjective	empty
άδεια		noun	leave, day off
βεντέτα		noun	vendetta
βεντέτα		noun	star
βιάζω		verb	I hasten
βιάζω		verb	I rape
καμπάνα		noun	bell
καμπάνα		noun	cabana
λόγια		noun	words
λόγια		adjective	learnèd

Italian

Italian spelling is largely unambiguous, althouɡh there are some exceptions:

open and closed and are not distinguished;
the voiced and unvoiced pronunciations of and are not distinguished;
stress, which is usually but not always on the penult, is not marked except when it is on the final syllable;
in some cases, digraphs and trigraphs like,,, are pronounced using the values of their component letters;
and may have a vocalic or a consonantal value.

When stress is on the final, the vowel is written with an accent: mori 'mulberries' and morì 'he/she died'. Some monosyllabic words are also differentiated with an accent: e 'and' and è 'he/she is'. These cases are not heteronyms.
Some common cases:

Spelling	Pronunciation	Part of speech	Meaning
affetto	affètto	noun	affection
affetto	affétto	verb	I slice
arena	arèna	noun	arena
arena	aréna	noun	sand
botte	bòtte	noun	blows, pounding
botte	bótte	noun	barrel
collega	collèga	noun	colleague
collega	colléga	verb	he/she connects
colto	còlto	ppl.	gathered
colto	cólto	adjective	cultivated
corresse	corrèsse	verb	he/she corrected
corresse	corrésse	verb	he/she ran
corso	còrso	noun	a Corsican
corso	córso	noun	a course
corso	córso	ppl.	run
credo	crèdo	noun	creed
credo	crédo	verb	I believe
esca	èsca	verb	he/she exits
esca	ésca	noun	bait
esse	èsse	noun	the letter S
esse	ésse	pron.	they
foro	fòro	noun	forum, court
foro	fóro	noun	a hole
fosse	fòsse	noun	pits
fosse	fósse	verb	were
indotto	indòtto	adjective	ignorant
indotto	indótto	ppl.	induced
legge	lègge	verb	he/she reads
legge	légge	noun	law
mento	mènto	verb	I lie
mento	ménto	noun	chin
meta	mèta	noun	destination, aim, score
meta	méta	noun	haystack, dung
messe	mèsse	noun	harvest
messe	mésse	noun	religious mass
pesca	pèsca	noun	peach
pesca	pésca	noun	fishing
pesca	pésca	verb	he/she fishes
peste	pèste	noun	plague
peste	péste	adjective	crushed
peste	péste	noun	footprints
re	rè	noun	re
re	ré	noun	king
scopo	scòpo	noun	goal
scopo	scópo	verb	I sweep
sorta	sòrta	noun	kind
sorta	sórta	verb	I rose
tema	tèma	noun	theme, subject
tema	téma	noun	fear
torta	tòrta	adjective, ppl.	twisted
torta	tórta	noun	a torte
venti	vènti	noun	winds
venti	vénti	noun	twenty
volgo	vòlgo	verb	I turn
volgo	vólgo	noun	the people
volto	vòlto	ppl.	turned
volto	vólto	noun	face

Spelling	Pronunciation	Part of speech	Meaning
ancora	àncora	noun	anchor
ancora	ancòra	adverb	again
ambito	àmbito	noun	ambit, scope
ambito	ambìto	ppl.	longed-for
compito	cómpito	noun	task
compito	compìto	ppl.	polite, completed
cupido	cùpido	adjective	covetous
cupido	cupìdo	noun	Cupid
nocciolo	nòcciolo	noun	kernel
nocciolo	nocciòlo	noun	hazelnut tree
principi	prìncipi	noun	princes
principi	princìpi	noun	principles
retina	rètina	noun	retina
retina	retìna	noun	small net
seguito	sèguito	noun	sequel
seguito	seguìto	ppl.	followed
Sofia	Sòfia	noun	Sofia
Sofia	Sofìa	noun	Sofia
subito	sùbito	adverb	immediately
subito	subìto	ppl.	undergone

Spelling	Pronunciation	Part of speech	Meaning
razza		noun	race, breed
razza		noun	ray, skate

Dutch

Dutch has heteronyms which vary in stress position, known as 'stress homograms', such as appel: 'apple' vs. 'appeal'. Other examples include beamen, bedelen, hockeyster, kantelen, misdadiger, overweg, verspringen, verwerpen.
The word plant is generally pronounced, but may be pronounced in the sense 'he/she plans'.

German

German has few heteronyms, for example:

Some vary in stress position: umfahren 'to knock down' vs. umfahren 'to bypass'; übersetzen 'to translate' vs. übersetzen 'to traverse'; Spiegelei 'fried egg' vs. Spiegelei 'mirroring'.
Some are compounded differently: Staubecken as Stau-becken vs. Staub-Ecken or Wachstube as 'Wach-stube' vs. 'Wachs-tube'; etc.
Several are borrowings: modern 'to molder' vs. modern 'modern' or Montage 'Mondays' vs. Montaĝe 'mounting, installing, assembling'.