1 homonymous | Definition of homonymous
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homonymous

adjective
hom·​on·​y·​mous | \ hō-ˈmä-nə-məs How to pronounce homonymous (audio) \

Definition of homonymous

1 : ambiguous
2 : having the same designation
3 : of, relating to, or being homonyms
Other Words from homonymous Did You Know? Example Sentences Learn More about homonymous

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Other Words from homonymous

homonymously adverb

Did You Know?

The "ambiguous" sense of homonymous refers mainly to words that have two or more meanings. In the 1600s, logicians and scientists who wanted to refer to (or complain about) such equivocal words chose a name for them based on Latin and Greek, from Greek hom- ("same") and onyma ("name"). In time, English speakers came up with another sense of homonymous, referring to two things having the same name (Hawaii, the state, and Hawaii, the island, for example). Next came the use of homonymous to refer to homonyms, such as see and sea. There's also a zoological sense. Sheep and goats whose right horn spirals to the right and left horn spirals to the left are said to be homonymous.

Examples of homonymous in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

 This means the news of Iggy collaborating with homonymous problematic cohort Azealia Banks puts a limp punctuation mark on this stage of Iggy’s second record. — Dale Eisinger, Billboard, "Iggy Azalea Says the 'Digital Distortion' Rollout is Coming to an Abrupt End," 9 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'homonymous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of homonymous

1621, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for homonymous

Latin homonymus having the same name, from Greek homōnymos, from hom- + onyma, onoma name — more at name

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More Definitions for homonymous

homonymous

adjective
hom·​on·​y·​mous | \ hō-ˈmän-ə-məs How to pronounce homonymous (audio) \

Medical Definition of homonymous

1 : affecting the same part of the visual field of each eye right homonymous hemianopia
2 : relating to or being diplopia in which the image that is seen by the right eye is to the right of the image that is seen by the left eye

More from Merriam-Webster on homonymous

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with homonymous

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