Homonym, << HOM uh nihm, >> is a word having the same spelling and pronunciation as another word or words, but a different meaning. Examples are bark (of a dog) and bark (of a tree); and rest (relief from activity) and rest (remainder).
Some linguists include homophones in their definition of homonyms. Homophones are words with the same pronunciation but different spellings and meanings (site, cite, sight; ate, eight). In addition, some linguists include heteronyms in their definition of homonyms (see Heteronym ).
