Non-transitive homophone challenge
Definition
A homophone is a word that sounds identical to another word. For example, "rye" and "wry" have identical pronunciation.
Let's define a non-transitive homophone to be a word that can be pronounced identically to two other words, even though those two other words cannot be pronounced the same as each other.
Challenge
For this challenge, post an answer describing the non-transitive homophone that you have found, perhaps in the following format:
The word "B" is a non-transitive homophone:
- The word "A" can be pronounced the same as the word "B".
- The word "B" can be pronounced the same as the word "C".
- The word "A" cannot be pronounced the same as the word "C".
Scoring
For each answer, your score is the number of letters in your non-transitive homophone. The two other words do not count towards your score. For example, if your non-transitive homophone has 3 letters, and its two differently pronounced homophones each have 4 letters, you score 3 points, not 4. In the example format above, the word "B" is the one used for scoring (the one that can be pronounced like either of the others).
Multiple answers
If you find more than one non-transitive homophone, please post each in a separate answer so they can be sorted by age or votes. Each of your answers will count towards your total score.
Subjective pronunciation
I understand that variation in pronunciation across regions can cause some words to be pronounced identically that are not pronounced identically everywhere. Assessing which answers are valid will therefore be unavoidably subjective.
For this reason I'm unlikely to object to an answer unless it seems deliberately incorrect, but I'll maintain a leaderboard here in the question that includes those answers I personally happen to agree with. I won't be taking this too seriously though - the main point is to have fun.
Leaderboard
| Username | Non-transitive homophones | Total score |
|---|---|---|
|
Root Rout Wrote (4) Are Our Hour (3) Beaux Bow Bough (3) |
10 |
3 answers
It's me again, I thought of a third combination:
Beaux
Bow
Bough
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Here's another that occurred to me while adding silly homophones to my last answer:
Are
Our
Hour
This might require an American accent, but it should work
Root
Rout
Wrote
Root→Route→Rout wouldn't work because rout can, inn sum cases, bee pronounced "root." However, according two Webster's Dictionary, their our ways (a whirred describing noises of cattle) that "rout" is pronounced "rote"
That counts, write?
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