2007-08-31 04:59:31 · 5 answers · asked by jd 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
They are called capitonyms.
Ford is one. Wit ha capital, it can be a last name, a president, or a car company. In all lower case, it can be a noun meaning "crossing place through shallow water" or a verb meaning "cross in shallow water".
If they are spelled the same way but have differnet meanings, they are homographs. Homophones sound alike, but are often spelled differently.
In this specific case, these are a specific type of homograph knows as capitonyms.
"A capitonym is a word that changes its meaning (and sometimes pronunciation) when it is capitalized, and usually applies to capitalization due to proper nouns or eponyms. It is a compound word of the word capital with the suffix -onym. A capitonym is a form of homograph and – when the two forms are pronounced differently – also of heteronym. "
2007-08-31 05:09:09 · answer #1 · answered by Matthew Stewart 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Job's Job
In August, an august patriarch
Was reading an ad in Reading, Mass.
Long-suffering Job secured a job
To polish piles of polish brass.
Herb's Herbs
An herb store owner, name of Herb,
Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier.
It would have been so nice in Nice,
And even tangier in Tangier.
others include
China and china
Celt and celt
Lima and lima
March and march
Nice and nice
Pole and pole
Polish and polish
Turkey and turkey
2007-08-31 12:55:28 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Do you mean proper nouns (capitalized) versus regular nouns?
2007-08-31 12:10:16 · answer #3 · answered by J Mer 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Does anybody need the (J)ohn?
2007-08-31 13:13:38 · answer #4 · answered by picador 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
do you mean homophones?
2007-08-31 12:07:45 · answer #5 · answered by racer 51 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋