The trouble with homonyms is NOT that you don't know the difference between these pairs or triplets. Of course you do. The problem is that your fingertips don't understand, particularly if you are a touch typist. When your thoughts are rapid-firing and your fingers are flying to keep up, typos creep in without warning. What's worse -- your spell-checker will not catch these errors because all of the words are spelled correctly. They are just not the words you meant to use. It does help me to go over these kinds of lists periodically, so that when I'm proof-reading, I'm more likely to spot the mistakes. So here's another list to keep you on your toes -- or more accurately, your fingertips. • Desert (waterless region, to abandon), Dessert (last course of a meal) • Dew (moisture), Do (perform), Due (owed) • Gait (manner of walking, Gate (door) • Grate (iron frame), Great (large, magnificent) • Haul (pull, carry, transport), Hall (passageway, large room) • Here (in this place), Hear (to perceive sound, to sit in judgment) • Idol (image, object of adoration), Idle (not busy), Idyl (poem) • Leak (hole, to drain out of), Leek (vegetable) • Made (created), Maid (domestic servant, unmarried woman) • Meat (animal flesh food), Meet (a gathering, to encounter, to convene) • Morning (before noon), Mourning (grieving, to grieve) • Pair (a couple), Pare (to peel), Pear (fruit) |
