Introduction

Homophones are words that are pronounced the same, but differ in meaning.

They can be spelt the same:

My favourite flower is the rose.
The sun rose up in the sky.

Or they can be spelt differently:

Would you like a cup of tea?
This desk is made of wood.

An oronym is a homophone made up of multiple words. Try saying these and see how similar they sound.

depend --- deep end
four candles --- fork handles
example --- egg sample

Listen to the 10 examples of oronyms in this audio clip. If you can’t hear much of a difference, don’t worry it’s just as difficult for native speakers as it is for you. There aren’t many oronyms in English, but if you do come across one, the context of the words will usually help you to work out the meaning.

Eg.
Usually when I see a spider I scream.
On hot days I like to eat ice-cream.

Audio script

I scream --- ice-cream

I spy --- ice pie

present it --- presented

a great day --- a grey day

a nice rink --- an ice rink

mayday --- maid day

blueprintes --- blue prince

to add it --- to edit

catch up --- ketchup

a notion --- an ocean

the stuff he knows --- the stuffy nose

some others I've seen --- some mothers I've seen

choose a name --- choose an aim

how mature people enjoy it --- how much your people enjoy it

can't you see that I love you --- can't you see that aisle of view