Sound and Sense, 2-61

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. meeting (noun): a gathering of people for a particular purpose; a situation or occasion when two people see and talk to each other;  (verb): pres. part. form of meet = to gather, etc.

2. meting (verb): pres. part. form of mete = to give out by measure (dole); (noun): boundary

There at the meeting house we saw

A lot of people—what a range

Of age and gender … somewhat strange:

For they were meeting in the raw.

The cops arrived, were meting out

Some punishment for nudity.

We stuck around so we could see

What this commotion was about.

Okay, and seeing naked folks

Of such a wide variety.

In ways it seemed and felt to me

Like breaking eggs—and seeing yolks.

Sound and Sense, 2-60

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. metal (noun): a substance (such as gold, tin, or copper) that usually has a shiny appearance, is a good conductor of electricity and heat, can be melted, and is usually capable of being shaped

2. mettle (noun): a strength of spirit; ability to continue despite difficulties

Well, Iron Man had the metal—and

He had the mettle, too. The land

Was safer when that hero flew—

And people, feeling safer, knew

That Robert Downey, Jr. was

An acting superstar because

He made them love that metal man

Whose skin was iron (that was the plan),

Whose soul was soft as any saint’s—

We love that dude! We’ve no complaints!

Sound and Sense, 2-59

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. medal (noun): a piece of metal often in the form of a coin with designs and words in honor of a special event, a person, or an achievement;  (verb): to win a medal

2. meddle (verb): to become involved in the activities and concerns of other people when your involvement is not wanted; to change or handle something in a way that is unwanted or harmful

To meddle had not been his goal—

He had a far more gentle soul.

But he fell down the rabbit hole.

He found a cycle waiting there—

And had to pedal everywhere.
He liked it! Didn’t really care!

The place was awesome—so bizarre.

He’d rather bike (forget the car!).
...

Well, first he fell—and then a star.

His tales about the rabbit hole

Earned him a medal to console

Him for his accident. Nicole—

His wife—was glad that he was back.

His absence turned her mood dark black.

Would marriage well survive this crack?

And he spent his remaining years

Enjoying memories—and those cheers—

From family, friends, and many peers.

And best of all? (A tale to tell!)

One prize he cherished—very well:

Oh yes, with Dylan, a Nobel!

**

A question lingers in the air:
The rabbit hole? (The whole affair.)
How did he get back home from there?

Sound and Sense, 2-58

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. meatier (adj.): comparative form of meaty—of, relating to, or resembling meat; having or including a large amount of meat; large and heavy or thick with flesh or muscles

2. meteor (noun): a piece of rock or metal that burns and glows brightly in the sky as it falls from outer space into the earth’s atmosphere

The meatier the better he

Enjoyed his burgers at McD’s.

He wished that he could get them free—

Like sunshine, skies of blue, and breeze.

But then one day he got a gift—

But not some meat between some bread.

A meteorite—so huge, so swift—

Plunged from the heavens, knocked him dead.

A meteor had veered toward Earth,

And soon was caught in gravity.

And journeyed here, for what it’s worth,

To bonk our friend most fatally.

Sound and Sense, 2-57

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. meat (noun): the flesh of an animal used as food

2. meet (verb): to see or speak to someone for the first time; to come together in order to talk; to come together formally; (noun): a large gathering, event, occasion, sporting event; (adj.): fitting or appropriate

3. mete (adj.): to dole out; to give out by measure

To mete out punishment, he thought,

Was such an awesome job.

But he, of course, as we all knew,

Was such a cruel slob.

But still he told all those he’d meet

How punishment was fun.

Oh, his pale life was so replete

With tales of what he’d done.

He talked of victims in such ways

As if he thought them meat.

And much of what he said to us

I simply can’t repeat.

So when he found himself in jail,

Well, there he took the heat.

And we were glad for punishment,

Which we all thought was meet.

Sound and Sense, 2-56

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. mean (adj.): lacking distinction or merit; occupying a middle position; cruel; (noun): a middle point; average; (verb): to have a particular meaning

2. mesne (adj.): intermediate, intervening (legal term)

3. mien (noun): a person’s expression or physical appearance                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

He wondered what it all could mean—

Her clothing, attitude, and mien.

He really had not ever seen

Their like before. He was not mean—

And was, in fact, above the mean

In kindness—seemed to have no spleen.

The mesne proposal that he said—

Between his looks and her fair bed—

Remained, so silent in his head.

Instead, he watched her from afar,

There in the busy chocolate bar,

Then saw her leave, go to her car,

And drive into the western sun,

The sinking one (yes, that’s the one):

It signified the death of fun.

(His.)

Sound and Sense, 2-55

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. massed (adj.)—past participle of verb mass: to form or collect into a mass (a large quantity; a large body of persons); to assemble in a mass

2. mast (noun): a long pole or spar rising from the keel or deck of a ship and supporting the yards, booms, and rigging; (verb): to furnish with a mast

The time had come—to mast the ship—

And do it quickly, with no slip.

The men were massed there on the deck

While Long John Silver sought to check

The damage that the storm had done.

(Yes, Treasure Island—he’s the one!)

And for a mast they used a tree

That they had cut down recently

When they had been back on the shore

To look for treasure, booze, and more.

And quickly men went to their tasks

(While others hid and drank from casks),

And soon the ship was sound again—

The Jolly Roger in the wind!

His parrot landed on his arm—

The place where it was safe from harm.

Then Silver got on Amazon—

A new leg for the one now gone.

His membership, of course, was Prime.

The shipping free! It came on time!

Sound and Sense, 2-54

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. mask (noun): a cover or partial cover for the face used for disguise; something that serves to conceal or disguise; (verb): to hide, to conceal; to put on a mask

2. masque (noun): a type of play that was performed in the 16^th and 17^th centuries by actors wearing masks; a masquerade

The Red Death donned his fiery mask,

Preparing to go to the masque

Where foolish people somehow thought

They could escape—no hope they’ve got!

The partygoers masked themselves—

As fairies, goblins, witches, elves.

The liquor soaked their brains and breath

As they prepared to meet Red Death.

And so it was—as it must be—

We can’t avoid our destiny.

The writer who was in the know?

Immortal Edgar Allan Poe.

            —with gratitude for Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death” (1842) (link to the story)

Sound and Sense, 2-53

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. marshal (noun): a federal official who is responsible for doing the things that are ordered by a court of law, finding and capturing criminals, etc.; a general officer of the highest military rank; (verb): to arrange a group of people, such as soldiers, in an orderly way; to move or lead a group of people in a careful way; to arrange or prepare

2. martial (adj.): of or relating to war or soldiers

He marshaled all the thoughts that he

Could manage in senility.

(Too few.)

His martial thoughts remained so strong—

But nothing stayed for very long.

(Like dew.)

The marshal served him with a writ—

He couldn’t make too much of it.

(No clue.)

He thought he’d been a marshal then—

A world war? Well, way back when.

(A coup?)

His life he simply couldn’t find—

As time and stress erased his mind.

(Thoughts … few.)

We marshal moments while we can.

And then it’s back where we began.

(We’re through.)

Sound and Sense, 2-52

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. manner (noun): the way that something is done or happens; the way that a person normally behaves; behavior while with other people; kinds, sorts; etc.

2. manor (noun): a large country house on a large piece of land

He didn’t have the manner, dude,

For living at a manor: Crude,

He was—with many grievous faults—

And guilty of some grim assaults.

But here’s the problem—major one:
He owned the freaking manor, Son!

So manor manners don’t apply—

Not when you are the owner … sigh.

Sound and Sense, 2-51

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. mall (noun): a large building or group of buildings containing sores of many different kinds and sizes; a public area where people walk

2. maul (verb): to attack or injure someone is a way that cuts or tears skin; to touch or handle someone in a rough sexual way; (noun): a heavy, often wooden-headed hammer used especially for driving wedges; a tool like a sledgehammer with one wedge-shaped end that is used to split wood

I strolled across the city mall—

I’d planned to shop (an indoor mall)—

A guy attacked me with a maul—

And mauled me horribly—the gall!

They chose for me a gorgeous pall—

And saw me buried—well not all.

Sound and Sense, 2-50

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. maize (noun): Indian corn

2. maze (noun): a complicated and confusing system of connected passages; a confusing collection or mixture of things (like rules)

Across his field of autumn maize

The farmer cut a puzzling maze.

It soon became the latest craze.

The sun of Indian summer blazed;

The maize maze was so often praised—

And all who tried it were amazed.

Sound and Sense, 2-49

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. mail (noun and verb): material sent in the postal system; to do so

2. male (noun): a man or boy; a male animal; (adj.): characteristic of boys or men; of or relating to the sex that cannot produce young or lay eggs

All hail! All hail! The U. S. Mail—

But not, of course, the U. S. Male.

The former brings us news and bills;

The latter often cheats and kills.

The one brings hope into the house—

The other often is a louse.

The one requires a postage stamp—

The other often is a scamp.

The one can have a rising price;

The other often isn’t nice.

And so concludes this sorry tale—

The story of the mail … and male.

(Clichés, of course, are awfully stale—

We shouldn’t censure every male!

A lot behave just perfectly—
Including, yes, both you and me.)

Sound and Sense, 2-48

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. made (verb): past tense of make—to cause to exist, to bring into being, etc.; (adj.): built, formed or shaped in a specified way

2. maid (noun): an unmarried girl or woman; a woman or girl employed to do domestic work

He had not made wise choices—no.

In legal ways (and moral ones)

He was, we said, a bit too slow—

In life he walks but rarely runs.

But then he met a merry maid—

At once, his life completely changed.

A ring he found  (for which he paid!)—

And things were swiftly rearranged.

And soon they’d made a little child—

A bouncing, happy little boy,

Who, sure, became a little wild—

But still—the source of all their joy.

Sound and Sense, 2-47

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. magnate (noun): a person who has great wealth and power in a particular business or industry

2. magnet (noun): a piece of material (such as iron or steel) that is able to attract certain metals; something or someone that attracts people or things.

That magnet magnate magnetized

His workers. (We are not surprised.)

He figured out a way to make

Them focus on their work (mistake?)

Instead of on their smart-phone apps—

Which caused at times a certain lapse

In quality: The magnets failed

To magnetize; sometimes they trailed

The competition’s offerings.

The magnate’s move now quickly brings

The competition to an end.

(Of course, he also has no friend—

No, none.) It’s work the magnate cares

About. And funding lazy heirs!

His app-less workers just work on—
And, soon enough, their lives are gone.

(Dark, eh?)

Sound and Sense, 2-46

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. loaner (noun): something that is loaned to someone as a replacement for something that is being repaired (like a car)

2. loner (noun): a person who is often alone or who likes to be alone

They said I was a loner—well,

I guess I like to be alone.

But who can ever really tell?

So much in life is still unknown.

One day, I drove a loaner, for

My car was in the auto shop.

And, feeling just a little bored,

I made an unexpected stop.

I went into the library—

And working there? The best of life!

I asked her out—oh, just to see.

And we are now, well, man and wife.

Which shows how this can lead to that—

How we can’t know the game we’re in—

No, not until we come to bat—

And then we cry, “I wanna win!”

Sound and Sense, 2-45

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. lo-cal (adj.): lower in calories than is usual or standard

2. locale (noun): the place where something happens

It seems at first the best locale

For him and Phil, his good old pal

To just kick back—and eat lo-cal.

And in those mountains they excelled:

They lost much weight (some trees they felled)—

Oh, all their standards they’d upheld.

Of course, there was a grizzly bear

Who ate them both (it wasn’t fair)

But felt unsated—mountain air?

But then  the bear soon realized

The men were thin. He felt chastised.

“Much too lo-cal,” he soon surmised.

And then no longer felt surprised.

Sound and Sense, 2-44

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. loan (noun): an amount of money that is given to someone for a specified time; an amount of money that is borrowed

2. lone (adj.): standing, acting, or being alone; not having a partner

The Ranger (Lone) and Tonto had

A kind of bloody spat.

For Tonto said, “Uh, Ranger, well,

I think you’re getting fat.”

The Ranger (Lone) barked, “Just because

My mask no longer fits?!?

Well, Tonto, pal, it think it’s time

That you and I were quits.”

The Ranger (really Lone) and his

Most splendid (Silver!) horse,

Did not last long sans Tonto, who,

Was unsurprised, of course.

He took a loan and bought a spread

In Utah—lovely views—

And then retired—just simply chilled—

And watched election news.

Sound and Sense, 2-43

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. literal (adj.): involving the ordinary or usual meaning of a word; completely true and accurate—not exaggerated

2. littoral (adj.): of, relating to, or having a coast

I shouldn’t get too literal—

But accidents so littoral

Deserve a very true account.

And so I’ll tell about the Count,

Upon his trusty, stallion mount,

Went to the seaside one bright day.

And there a wave swept him away

While children who had come to play

Cooperated—saved the horse,

Which neighed in gratitude (of course)—

And showed just slivers of remorse

About the Count. Who’d been an ass,

A guy with very little class,

Whose speech and acts were very crass—

So that day no one cried, “Alas!”

Sound and Sense, 2-42

Time for more instances of the homophone: a word pronounced the same as another but differing in meaning, whether spelled the same way or not, as heir and air.

1. limb (noun): appendage of an animal; the branch of a tree

2. limn (verb): to draw or paint on a surface; to outline in clear sharp detail; to describe

Oh, how she wished that she could limn

The human frame, the human limb.

She tried for many years—but failed—

And so she bought a boat and sailed

Into the setting western sun

And sought a different kind of fun.

And on that lovely little boat

She tried again (no hope’s remote!),

Discovering she had the skill.

Too bad a shark thought he would kill

That woman with who had tried to swim

But lost to Shark, well, every limb.