Sound and Sense, 2-41

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. links (verb): 3^rd person singular of link—to join; (noun): a golf course

2. lynx (noun): a large wild cat of North America

His final round, out on the links,

He felt he’d finally cracked the jinx

That haunted him.

But then he saw that fearsome cat—

A lynx that scared him—nothing flat.

It daunted him.

He ran as fast as he could run.

Not fast enough (a lynx’s fun):

It taunted him.

Then, bored, the lynx just grabbed his throat,

And that, I fear, was all she wrote.

It wanted him.

The links between our life and death

Are evanescent as each breath

That’s drawn by every Beth and Seth.

Sound and Sense, 2-40

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. lightening (verb): participial form of lighten—to make light or clear; to relieve of a burden

2. lightning (noun): the flashes of light that are produced in the sky during a storm

She felt like lightening the mood

With what is known as “comfort food.”

And so she filled a tray of snacks—

And hoped there’d be no heart attacks.

But then a storm came whirling in—

With thunder, lightning—what a din!

She stepped outside—and what a jolt

Came from a vicious lightning bolt.

For her a funeral—heavy load.

But there she lay, and—oh!—she glowed!

Sound and Sense 2-39

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.  lie (verb): to rest or recline; to tell a falsehood; (noun): in golf—the position of your ball on the ground

2. lye (noun): harsh chemical

I did not really wish to lie

About my very tricky lie

There on the course. Oh my.

So do not torture me with lye.

(I saw that in a movie. I

Was horrified—a sissy guy.)

And so I’ll just lie here in bed—

Be thankful that I’m not yet dead.

And view that lie lie in my head.

Or maybe Netflix Night instead?

Sound and Sense, 2-38

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. licker (noun): one who licks

2. liquor (noun): an alcoholic beverage—esp. a strong one.

The licker liked to lick a stamp—

He loved that feeling (sticky, damp).

And liquor made the time go fast—

He drank it slowly—made it last.

But one day too much liquor cost

Our licker much. For he got lost

Inside a very tangled wood

Where scary creatures, when they could,

Enjoyed devouring lickers lost—

While reading verse by Robert Frost.

“Whose woods these are I think I know”—

They said while drinking liquor, slow-

-ly—

And eating licker very fast—

Their favorite tangled-wood repast.

Sound and Sense, 2-37

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. liar (noun): a person who tells lies

2. lier (noun): one who lies down; one who stays in hiding

3. lyre (noun): a stringed instrument of the harp class having an approximately U-shaped frame and used by the ancient Greeks especially to accompany song and recitation

A liar? Oh, of course he was!

A lyre? He often played because,

A lier, what he often does

Is lie in bed and play that thing

And claim that he wrote everything

That anyone could ever sing.

So: Lier, liar, he played the lyre

Until his pants, which were on fire,

Consumed him. Then he was a dier.

(But not a Dyer.)

Sound and Sense, 2-36

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. let’s (verb phrase): let us

2. lets (verb): 3^rd person singular of let—to cause to; to free from; to make an adjustment (and many other meanings and shades of meanings)

Let’s get this straight. About poor let.

You add an –s … what do you get?

Mistakes by Dan, Duane, Jeanette.

That sneaky hooked apostrophe

Slips in, confusing you and me,

Spawns Internet antipathy.

And so it goes in Usage Land,

Where all mistakes are harshly banned—

There’s far too much to understand!

So let’s let up on this disdain

That lets us sneer at Dick and Jane—

I think it’s just a wee bit vain!

Sound and Sense, 2-35

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. lessen (verb): to become less or to cause something to become less

2. lesson (noun): an activity that you do in order to learn something; a single class or part of a course of instruction

He looked for ways to lessen work—

For work, you see, made him berserk.

His shrink advised: “Go back to school—

The lessons there I know that you’ll

Apply at work.” So he went back.

But nearly had a heart attack

When he discovered all that he

Was asked to do in chemistry.

And so he quit. “I’ll read no page,

No book again!” And so his wage

Slipped down into the netherworld

Where all his former hopes unfurled.

And then he rubbed his stubbled chin:

“I think I’ll go to school again!”

He’d learned his lesson—learned it well—

Discovered that he could excel.

Became a chemist—just enough

To manufacture meth and stuff.