In Square in the Face, Claire is introduced to heteronyms—words that are spelled the same, pronounced differently and have different meanings. Here are some of her favorites.
Know a heteronym that's not on the list? E-mail it to april@aprilhenrymysteries.com.
address, affect, agape, aged, agent, alum, appropriate, august
bases, bass, bow, buffet
close, collect, combine, commune, compact, compress, console, construct, content, contract, cure
defect, denier, desert, does, dove, drawer
empire, envelope, entrance, exploit, expose
gyro
he'll, herb
incense, initiate, intimate, invalid
job, justice
lame, lead, live, local
man's laughter, mate, minute, mole, mores, mow
notice, novice, nowhere, number
object, opera
polish, prayer, present, primer, preserved, process, progress, produce, project, putter, putting
rainier, ranger, rape, read, real, rebel, record, recreate, refuse, relay, resent, resigns, resort, resume, retire, retreat, rose, row
sake, sewer, secretey, she'll, shin, shower, singer, slaver, slough, sol, sow, subject, supply
tarry, tear, tower
uh huh
weeknight, we'll, who're, wind, won't, wound