End-of-the-Week Rumination: "Homonym" Revisited

       I decided it was pretty confusing what I wrote on Saturday, December 13th; so I hopped on to another dictionary or two, and I like what American Heritage Dictionary (AHD) had to say for "homonym."

       "One of two or more words that have the same sound and often the same spelling but differ in meaning."

       That definition allows for the "raised"/"razed" and "naval"/"navel" pairings I brought up because it says "often the same spelling" but doesn't exclude different spellings.

        But yes,  dog "bark" and "bark" from a tree are also homonyms with the same spelling and sound, and they differ in meaning.

        There is a use for the word "homograph":  one of two or more words spelled alike, with different meanings, that sound different like "lead" (conduct) and "lead" (metal).

         Done ruminating.