gambol & heteronym

gambol (GAM-buhl),
intransitive verb: To dance and skip about in play; to frolic.
noun: A skipping or leaping about in frolic.

I’ve been told dolphins like to gambol in the waves in these waters, and that sighting them brings good luck. –Barbara Kingsolver, “Where the Map Stopped,”

Gambol, earlier gambolde or gambalde, comes from Medieval French gambade, “a leaping or skipping,” from Late Latin gamba, “hock (of a horse), leg,” from Greek kampe, “a joint or bend.”

heteronym (HET-uhr-uh-nim) noun

A word that has the same spelling as another word but with a different
pronunciation and meaning.

In the following poem, each end-word is heteronymic:

Listen, readers, toward me bow.
Be friendly; do not draw the bow.
Please don’t try to start a row.
Sit peacefully, all in a row.
Don’t act like a big, fat sow.
Do not the seeds of discord sow.

In a pure heteronymic pair, the two words must be etymologically unrelated, as in bass, buffet, deserts, dove, entrance, lead, moped, unionized, wind, and wound.

Related Posts

  • September 13, 2008 0912082200.jpg: atw man and his cigar smoking monkey friend on a tandem bike tonight […]
  • October 10, 2016 at 10:03AMOctober 10, 2016 October 10, 2016 at 10:03AM Red lane, six years ago. Salem, va #pyewacket #newton #spider #catsofinstagram via […]
  • September 30, 2007 S6300346 (via Photos from scottobear)
  • 9314 – WednesdayJune 12, 2008 9314 – Wednesday 9314 - Wednesday Getting quite a bit better - still have a rattle in my chest and more […]
  • Blue Berry Cheese Cake (Homemade Yogurt)September 16, 2018 Blue Berry Cheese Cake (Homemade Yogurt) Watch on YouTube here: Blue Berry Cheese Cake (Homemade Yogurt) via Channel Name or Channel URL

Leave a Reply