Today's lesson, boys and girls: HOMOPHONES

Not this kind of homophone!

 © 2016 Christy K Robinson

Oooh, I said “homo.” Don’t call the American Family Association to make war on me. Homophones are a type of homonym: words that sound alike but have different meanings.

In the comments on an article in The Nation, one commenter implored the author, "Katrina [vanden Heuvel], I besiege you..." 

(Besiege/beseech, whatever.) 

be·seech

Beseeching money

bəˈsēCH/

verb

literary

verb: beseech; 3rd person present: beseeches; past tense: besought; past participle: besought; past tense: beseeched; past participle: beseeched; gerund or present participle: beseeching

1. ask (someone) urgently and fervently to do something; implore; entreat.

"they beseeched him to stay"

synonyms:

implore, beg, entreat, importune, plead with, appeal to, exhort, call on, supplicate, importune, pray to, ask, request, petition;

be·siege

bəˈsēj/

verb

verb: besiege; 3rd person present: besieges; past tense: besieged; past participle: besieged; gerund or present participle: besieging

Beseiging the castle

1. surround (a place) with armed forces in order to capture it or force its surrender; lay siege to.

"the guerrillas continued to besiege other major cities to the north"

synonyms:

lay siege to, beleaguer, blockade, surround; archaicinvest "the Romans besieged Carthage"

• crowd around oppressively; surround and harass.

"she spent the whole day besieged by newsmen"

synonyms:

surround, mob, crowd around, swarm around, throng around, encircle More "fans besieged his hotel" oppress, torment, torture, rack, plague, afflict, haunt, harrow, hound, beset, beleaguer, trouble, bedevil, prey on "guilt besieged him"

• be inundated by large numbers of requests or complaints.

"the television station was besieged with calls"

synonyms:

overwhelm, inundate, deluge, flood, swamp, snow under; bombard "he was besieged with requests"

*****

Christy K Robinson is author of these books:

We Shall Be Changed (2010)

Mary Dyer Illuminated Vol. 1 (2013)  

Mary Dyer: For Such a Time as This Vol. 2 (2014)

The Dyers of London, Boston, & Newport Vol. 3 (2014)  

Effigy Hunter (2015)  

Anne Marbury Hutchinson: American Founding Mother (2018)

And of these sites:  

Discovering Love  (inspiration and service)

Rooting for Ancestors  (history and genealogy)

William and Mary Barrett Dyer (17th century culture and history of England and New England)

Editornado [ed•i•tohr•NAY•doh] (Words. Communications. Book reviews. Cartoons.)