heteronym
UK /ˈhɛt.əɹ.ə(ʊ).nɪm/ · US /ˈhɛt.ə.ɹoʊ.nɪm/ noun
Forms heteronyms
- noun (linguistics, dated) Calque.
- noun (linguistics) A word having the same spelling as another, but with a different meaning and (often) pronunciation. “The word lead (/ˈlɛd/), for the metal, and lead (/ˈliːd/), for a leash, are heteronyms.”
- noun (literature) A fictitious character created by an author for the purpose of writing in a different style.
Synonyms
Etymology
By surface analysis, hetero (“different”) + -onym (“name”). Compare Ancient Greek ἑτερώνυμος (heterṓnumos). First attested in 1885 in sense 1. The coining of this term in sense 3 (as Portuguese heterónimo) is usually attributed to Fernando Pessoa.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “heteronym”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details