Is there a name for words which are pronounced differently depending on which definition is being used?

Question

I was thinking about the word "fillet" recently.

When I teach high school freshmen about the word (in a machining/engineering context), they refuse to believe that it is pronounced "FILL-it," rather than "fill-A." Who can argue with McDonald's commercials for their Fillet-O-Fish sandwich?

I've finally learned to just have the Merriam-Webster pronunciation cued up on my computer to start the lesson, and explain that the only time it's pronounced like the sandwich is when you are using it to discuss the "food-related" definition. Otherwise it's pronounced "the other way."

Are there other examples of words where the pronunciation depends on the specific definition being used? And is there a special name for words with this property?

The closest I can come up with is "read," but I think the two versions are considered two different words which happen to have the same spelling in that case.

E.g., "I can read the book," vs. "I have read the book."

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, there is only one word, but one of the usages has an alternate pronunciation"

"noun fil·let \ˈfi-lət, in sense 2b also fi-ˈlā, ˈfi-(ˌ)lā"

To further clarify, if I have a "fillet of leather," it is pronounced using the standard pronunciation, yet if I have a "fillet of salmon," it is pronounced using the "food" pronunciation.

---

Thanks for the answer Ian and Greg. I'm still confused about the specifics of the word fillet as per the "thin strip of material" meaning, but I think I get what you're saying about how words being used with different definitions are, linguistically speaking, different words.

Answer 1

As Greg said in his comment, it is important to remember that they are different words even if they happen to share an English spelling. This should help you to come to the definition of what to call them.

These are called homographs that are heterophones. Derived from homo (same) -graph (write) and hetero (different) -phone (sound).

A homograph (from the Greek: ὁμός, homós, "same" and γράφω, gráphō, "write") is a word that shares the same written form as another word but has a different meaning. When spoken, the meanings may be distinguished by different pronunciations, in which case the words are also heteronyms.

Answer 2

I think Ian Macdonald has identified the essential point: if words can be distinguished reliably (whether by spelling or pronunciation) they are not the same word. But that's a big if; for example, in Britain a fillet is pronounced the same way whether you refer to a fillet steak or a strip of metal. If the last two letters are to be pronounced "A" you need to use one L, and italicise to indicate that you are using a French term (or conceivably a McDonald's trademark, which neatly sidesteps misleading advertising laws).

Answer 3

In response to the first question, "Are there other examples of words where the pronunciation depends on the specific definition being used," the noun "affect" and the verb "affect" are spelled the same and have different pronunciations. The noun is accented on the first syllable, which is pronounced /æ/, and the verb is accented on the second syllable, with the fist syllable being pronounced /ə/. This can be verified in most standard dictionaries.

Answer 4

Are we sure there are no 'semi-different' or 'sort of the same' words? In other words, aren't there more or less of a spectrum of words in the early or late stages of differentiating?

Answer 5

The problem is that there are at least three definitions of word, not even counting spelling. – John Lawler

Answer 6

The Online Etymological Dictionary brackets the senses of buffet discussed later as polysemes rather than homographs (though there is also a homograph from Old French bufet: "a slap, a punch"):

buffet (n.1)

1718, "cupboard, sideboard, etc., to hold china plates, etc," from French bufet "bench, stool, sideboard" (12c.), which is of uncertain origin. The sense in English was extended to "refreshment bar, place set aside for refreshments in public places" (1792), then, via buffet-table, buffet-car (1887), buffet-lunch, etc, by 1951 to "meal served from a buffet." The French word [had already been] borrowed in Middle English in the sense "low stool" (early 15c.) but became obsolete. [†Not in the NW of the UK; EA]

................

Collins indeed classes the following as polysemes:

buffet in British English [noun]

1. (ˈbʊfeɪ, ˈbʌfeɪ IPA Pronunciation Guide): a counter where light refreshments are served
2. (ˈbʊfeɪ IPA Pronunciation Guide)

           a. a meal at which guests help themselves from a number of dishes and often eat standing up

           b. (as modifier) a buffet lunch

3. (ˈbʌfɪt, ˈbʊfeɪ IPA Pronunciation Guide) a piece of furniture used from medieval times to the 18th century for displaying plates, etc, and typically comprising one or more cupboards and some open shelves

†Collins adds the 'tuffet' sense

4. (ˈbʌfɪ IPA Pronunciation Guide) [Scottish and Northern England dialect]: a kind of low stool, pouffe, or hassock [Wiktionary drops the regional caveat]

†The usual pronunciation of the pouffe sense in the NW sixty years ago was ˈbʊfɪt.

but this may have come across from the related French word at an earlier date, and some might say it should be considered a homograph.

................

Another example is with the differing pronunciations of the adjective learned in

• a learned scholar

• learned behaviour.

................

But such examples are extremely rare, and so it is very unlikely a single word or even a collocation naming them exists. The title is probably as succinct as possible.