Homonyms: Homophones and homographs

Homonyms are words which are pronounced alike but have different meanings.

Homonyms

From Composition for Elementary Schools, by James Hosic: 

1. There are two types of homonyms.

a. Homophones

In Greek, homo means “same” and phone means “sound.”  Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings.

 1. All shoemakers use an awl.

 2. One day I ate eight apples.

 3. The maid made corn bread for breakfast.

 4. Lucia read that red book all afternoon.

 5. We see a ship tossing on the sea.

 6. The capitol is in the capital.

 7. It is a great feat to jump ten feet.

 8. I hear the voices of children here.

 9. We heard a herd of cattle coming.

 10. We know no way of learning but by studying.

b. Homographs

In Greek, homo means “same” and graph means “to write.” Homographs are words that are spelled the same but have different meanings, and are sometimes pronounced differently.

 1. Do not bow when shooting the bow.

 2. The painter lost his brush in the brush by the side of the road.

 3. You can pour the left over paint into the tin can.

 4. The bear could not bear to leave the berries uneaten.

 5. Joshua loafed on the sofa with a loaf of bread in his hand.

 6. The knight asked his page to bring him a page from the imperial document.

 7. The Yankees pitcher was doused with a pitcher of water after the game.

 8. The swallow swooped and swallowed a mosquito in mid-flight.

 9. The cat watched the fly fly across the room.

 10. The old lady socked the intruder with a sock full of coins.

2. “To,” “Too,” and “Two”

Two goats met on a narrow path.
They began to butt each other.
They were too wise to continue the quarrel.
 

a. “Two” refers to the number indicated by the figure 2.

b. “Too” denotes degree or means “also”. 

c. “To” is used in all other cases.

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Grammar: Classes of pronouns

Pronouns are divided into four classes: personal, possessive, relative, and interrogative.

Classes of pronouns

From A New English Grammar for Schools, by Thomas Harvey: 

1. A personal pronoun shows the  person of the noun it represents.

I write; you read; he listens

a. The words “I,” “you,” and “he ” are pronouns, because they take the place of nouns.

b. “I” denotes first person, because it indicates the person speaking.

c. “You” denotes second person, because it indicates the person addressed.

d. “He” denoted third person, because it indicates the person spoken of.

 Those words which show by their form the person of the nouns they represent are called personal pronouns.

2. A possessive pronoun indicates possession.

That is my book.

a. “My” stands for the possessor. 

That book is mine.

b. Two words could be used instead of “mine”. “Mine,” then, stands for both the possessor and the thing possessed. We call it a possessive pronoun.

3. A relative pronoun does not change its form to denote person, but relates to some noun.

The man who was with me is a lawyer.

a. In this sentence, “who” stands for “man,” and therefore represents the third person.
b. But “who” can be used to represent the first, second, or third person; as,

I who speak to you
You who listen
He who whispers

It does not change its form to denote person, but relates to some noun.

c. A relative pronoun must be of the same person and number as the noun to which it relates.
d. It should be placed as closely as possible to its antecedent.

He who runs may stumble.

4. An interrogative pronoun is used to ask a question.

Who has lost a pencil?

The pronoun “who” is here used in asking a question. We will call it an interrogative pronoun.

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Grammar: Pronouns and their antecedents

A pronoun takes the place of a noun 

Who instead of “mankind”; he (x2) instead of “son”;  my instead of “Solomon”; I (x2) instead of “Solomon”; myself instead of “Solomon”.

Pronouns and their antecedents

From A New English Grammar for Schools, by Thomas Harvey: 

1. A pronoun is a word used instead of a noun.

his book; my house; “Whom did you see?”

2. The antecedent of a pronoun is the noun, or equivalent expression, which the pronoun replaces.

a. The antecedent usually precedes, but sometimes follows, the pronoun.

“The poor widow lost her only son.”

Here “widow” is the antecedent of “her.”

b. Sometimes the antecedent follows the pronoun.

“True to his flag, the soldier braved even death.”

“Soldier” is the antecedent of “his.”

3. The antecedent may be a noun, a different pronoun, a phrase, or a clause.

a. Noun antecedent

A pupil that is studious will learn.

“Pupil” is the noun antecedent of “that.”

b. Pronoun antecedent

He who runs may stumble.

“He” is the pronoun antecedent of “who.”

c. Phrase antecedent

He desired to pray, but it was denied him.

“To pray” is the phrase antecedent of “it.”

d. Clause antecedent

She has squandered her money, and she now regrets it.

“He has squandered his money” is the clause antecedent of “it.”

4. The antecedent may be omitted, in which case it is said to be understood.

Who steals my purse steals trash.

“The person,” or “he,” understood, is the antecedent of “who.”

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Grammar: Using adjectives correctly

There are forty-two elementary sounds in the English language. These are divided into vocals, sub-vocals, and aspirates.

Using adjectives correctly

From A New English Grammar for Schools, by Thomas Harvey:

Use the following reminders to help you use adjectives correctly. 

I. Use “a” before sub-vocals and aspirates (consonant sounds), and “an” before vocals (vowel sounds).

Choose the correct article in the parentheses: —
1. (A, An) hundred cents make one dollar.
2. Mr. Perry is (a, an) humorous person.
3. She is (a, an) heroine.
4. We traveled through (a, an) open country.
5. We are now (a, an) united people.

II. Use “an” before h when the following syllable is accented.

Choose the correct article in the parentheses: —
1. That is (a, an) historical fact.
2. LSD is (a, an) hallucinatory drug.
3. I would like (a, an) hamburger for lunch.
4. (A, An) hansom is a low-hung, two-wheeled, covered vehicle drawn by one horse.
5. I took my watch to (a, an) horologist for cleaning.

III. Omit the article before a word used as a title or as a name.

Write, inserting “a” correctly: —
1. — rascal formerly meant — servant.
2. He is — better mechanic than — sailor.
3. They gave him the title of — duke.
4. We shall vote for Mr. Webster for — senator.
5. What kind of — man is he?

IV. Observe that “the” denotes a particular one, or is used to distinguish one class or species from another, and that “a” denotes one, but not a particular one.

Write, inserting “a/an” or “the” correctly: —
1. — dime is — tenth part of — dollar.
2. — eagle is — bird of prey.
3. — telephone is — modern invention.
4. — subject of his lecture was — steam engine.
5. — lion is — king of beasts.
6. — horse which you saw belongs to me.

V. Do not use “them” for “those,” “this here” for “this,” or “that ‘ere” for “that.”

Write, inserting a definite adjective correctly: —
1. He bought ten of — horses.
2. I do not like — weather.
3. What have you done with — umbrella?
4. Did you put — books on — table?
5. I wish you would write — rules on the whiteboard.

VI. Usually place ordinal adjectives before cardinals.

Choose the correct adjectives in the parentheses: —
1. Sing the (two first, first two) and the (three last, last three) verses.
2. I built the (first five, five first) houses on that street.
4. You may have cherries from the (first two, two first) trees in the (three first, first three) rows.

VII. Do not use adverbs as adjectives.

Choose the correct adjective in the parentheses: —
1. We have arrived (safely, safe).
2. I feel (bad, badly) this morning.
3. The country looks (beautifully, beautiful) in June.
4. Things now look more (favorably, favorable).
5. This rose smells (sweet, sweetly).
6. The relative pronoun should be placed as (nearly, near) as possible to its antecedent.
7. How are you? (Nicely, well), thank you.
8. The wind blew (cold, coldly) over our home.
9. My father looked (gravely, grave) when he heard the news.
10. My eyelids felt (heavy, heavily) for sleep.

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Grammar: Order of parsing adjectives

Parse: [from L. pars, part.] In grammar, to resolve a sentence into its elements. Parsing often becomes an exercise in logic.

Order of Parsing Adjectives

From A New English Grammar for Schools, by Thomas Harvey:

Parsing consists in

1. Naming the part of speech

An adjective, and why?

2. Telling its properties

Descriptive or definitive, and why?

3. Stating if it compares, and if so, determining its degree of comparison

Positive, comparative, or superlative?

4. Pointing out its relation to other words

What noun or pronoun does it describe or define? 

5. Giving the rule for its construction

Rule XII. An adjective belongs to some noun or pronoun.

 

Models for Parsing Adjectives

1. Every diligent boy received merited praise.

1. “Every” is an adjective; it is a word used to describe or define the meaning of a noun.  2. Definitive; it defines without expressing any quality; distributive pronominal; it represents objects taken separately.  3. It cannot be compared.  4. It belongs to “boy.”  5. Rule XII. —“An adjective belongs to some noun or pronoun.”

1. “Diligent” is an adjective. 2. Descriptive; it describes a noun by denoting some quality. 3. It can be compared: positive form, diligent; comparative form, more diligent; superlative form, most diligent. “Diligent” is the  positive degree, and 4. belongs to “boy.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “Merited” is an adjective. 2. Descriptive; it describes a noun by denoting some quality. 3. It can be compared: positive form, merited; comparative form, more merited; superlative form, most merited. “Merited” is the  positive degree, and 4. belongs to “praise.” (5. Rule XII.)

2. Many a fine intellect is buried in poverty.

1. “Many a” is an adjective.  2. Definitive; it defines without expressing any quality; indefinite pronominal; it refers to objects in a general way. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “intellect.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “Fine” is an adjective. 2. Descriptive; it describes a noun by denoting some quality. 3. It can be compared: positive form, fine; comparative form, finer; superlative form, finest;  “Fine” is the positive degree, 4. and belongs to “intellect.” (5. Rule XII.)

3. The first two engravings are American harvest scenes.

1. “The” is an adjective. 2. Definitive; it defines without expressing any quality; definite article. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “engravings.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “First” is an adjective. 2. Definitive; it defines without expressing any quality; numeral, it denotes number; ordinal, it marks the position of an object in a series. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “engravings.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “Two” is an adjective. 2. Definitive; it defines without expressing any quality; numeral, it denotes number; cardinal, it denotes the number of objects. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “engravings.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “American” an adjective. 2. Descriptive; it describes a noun by denoting some quality. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “scenes.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “Harvest” is an adjective. 2. Descriptive; it describes a noun by denoting some quality. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “scenes.” (5. Rule XII.)

4. The weather is pleasant.

1. “The” is an adjective. 2. Definitive; it defines without expressing any quality; definite article. 3. It cannot be compared, and 4. belongs to “weather.” (5. Rule XII.)

1. “Pleasant” is an adjective. 2. Descriptive; it describes a noun by denoting some quality. 3. It can be compared: positive form, pleasant; comparative form, more pleasant; superlative form, most pleasant; “Pleasant” is the positive degree, 4. and belongs to “weather.” (5. Rule XII.)

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