rec.puzzles Archive

What words have four or more spellings that sound alike?

language/english/pronunciation/homophone/homophones.most

Problem

What words have four or more spellings that sound alike?
Show solution
Starting with each phoneme:

<sw>: I, a, aah, o, of, ugh (6)
a: air/ayre, are, Ayr, e'er, ere, err, eyre, heir (8)
<a_>: a, ae, ay, aye, eh (5)
<a">: ar/r, are, or, our (4)
<a.>: apercu, apercus (2)
a<u.>: hour, our (2)
b: braes, braise, brays, braze, breys (5)
ch: Chile, chili, chilly (3)
d: daos, dauws, dhows/dows, dows, dowse, taos (6)
e: air/ayre, are, Ayr, e'er, ere, err, eyre, heir (8)
<e_>: ease, es, he's (3)
f: fain, fane, feign, foehn; faize, faze, feaze, phase (4)
g: gild, gilled, guild (3)
h: hays, hayes, haze, hes/hehs, heighs, heys (6)
hw: wheel, wheal (2)
i: improvisatore, improvisatori, improvisatory (3)
<i_>: ai, ay, aye/ay, eye, I, i (6)
j: gest, geste, jessed, jest, just (5)
k: caught, cot, cote, cotte, kat/khat/qat/quat/cat, Kot; crews, cruise, crus, cruse, krewes, Krus (6)
<k_>: challa, hallah (2)
l: lais, lase, lays, laze, leas/leys, leis (6)
m: mhorr/mohr, moire, moor, mor, more (5)
n: nae, nay, ne, nee, neigh (5)
<ng>:
<o_>: eau, eaux, haut, O, o, oh, owe (7)
<o.>:
<o.>i: Euler, oiler (2)
p: peak, peek, peke, pic, pique (5)
r: raise, rase, rays, raze, reis, rees, rehs, res (8)
s: cees/ces/cs, psis, seas, sees, seize, sis, szis; scissel, scissile, Sicel, sisal, sisel, sissle, syssal (7)
sh: chou, shoe, shoo, shu (4)
t: tai, taille, Thai, tie, tye, Tyigh (6)
th: threw, thro, through (3)
<th>: their, they're, there, thir (4)
<u">: ooh, ow, phew, whew, who (5)
<u.>: oops, whoops, woops (3)
v: vane, vain, vein (3)
w: weal, weel, we'll, wheal, wheel (5)
y: ewe, phew, u, yew, you (5)
z: czar, tsar, tzar (3)
zh: giro, gyro (2)
****
Unless noted otherwise, all words occur in Webster's Third New International
Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Springfield, MA, 1961.