And so to homophones. Last night, BBC's Have I Got News For You used the most common homophone of all - lead for led. The problem is that it looks right, it sounds right and the spell check won't spot it. Newspapers, particularly those without vigilant subs, are littered with homophones. I sometimes wonder if anybody even notices. In my collection are:
The MP climbed the greasy poll
Topless dancers stripped to the waste
John Prescott peddled his bicycle
The Pope rung his hands.
The foreign secretary received a wrap across the knuckles
There are hundreds of them but those most commonly found in copy are:
allowed/aloud
bail/bale
berth/birth
complement/compliment
discreet/discrete
elicit/illicit
faint/feint
fair/fare
flair/flare
lightening/lightning
palate/palette/pallet
passed/past
principle/principal
sight/site
stationary/stationery
waiver/waver
And don't get me started on it's/its…
Journalists need to take care. It's a maze (not a maize) out there...
