Pati Ba Naman Consistency Pinagtatalunan?

Well, what do we know? We couldn't get enough of It's Showtime. For four days now, our CONSISTENCY of featuring the show is without letup. Wala na bang ibang topic na mapag-usapan?

Well, ibang-iba ito ... promise. This time, it is not about the show or the contestants of TNT Duet 2. Incidental lang at peripheral na nadawit ulit ang It's Showtime sa usapan.

It all started when a friend said, "Believe talaga ako sa CONSISTENCY ng show.  For one year, they were able to put together and assemble a top-notch and A-1 gathering of divas and minstrels of unquestionable caliber.

Sinagot naman ng isa ng pabalang: "CONSISTENCY? Ano yan texture or composition ... malasaw ba o malapot ... makapal ba or manipis? Wrong word used. Dapat ang ginamit mo CONSISTENT ang show.

At doon na nagumpisa ang walang katapusang balitaktakan. At dahil pareho lang naman silang grammar police wannabe ... walang nagpapatalo.

The fact of the matter is pareho lang naman silang tama.

1. Consistency as a person, a show (like It's Showtime), or their behavioral trait - This refers to the quality of always behaving, performing, or thinking in a similar way over time.

It means being reliable, steadfast, and predictable.

Example: It's Showtime, and TNT has CONSISTENCY in the selection of their candidates. They know talent when they see or hear one.

2. Consistency of a mixture -This refers to the texture, density, firmness, or viscosity of a substance. It describes how thick or thin a mixture is.

It can also be the resultant product after the ingredients were combined, blended, combined and fused.

Example: 1. When making a fruit salad, mix the ingredients well to come up with a cheesy and creamy CONSISTENCY.

2. The voice of Arvery of OST Dreamers blended and combined with Christian's resulted in a sweet and syrupy CONSISTENCY.

And just don't forget English language can be tricky or sneaky depending on how much they have fooled you one time or another.

Yes, English is tricky due to its inconsistent grammar, confusing vocabulary, and irregular spelling. Key challenges include pronunciation, articles (a/an/the), verb tenses, prepositions, and idioms, making it complex despite its widespread use.

And mind you,  we wondered why my friends argued and debated.

Because in the English language we have words that look and sound the same ... words with the same spelling, and with the same pronunciation, but with different meanings.

We call and term that as HOMONYMS. And the word consistency that we discussed above is one of them.

Below are homonyms and their examples

Homonym |  Meaning

1. Match     | -Noun -A contest or tournament

                    |  -Noun -A lighter or ignitor

2. Content |  -Noun -Items inside the box

                        -Adj. -Satisfied, feeling pleased or at ease

3. Spring   |  -Noun - Season of Growth

                   |  -Noun - Source of water

                   |  -Noun - A metal coil

                  |   -Verb - To grow or spring forward

4. Watch  |   -Noun - A timepiece, A clock

                  |   -Verb -  To look at, to guard

5. Tender |  -Adj. - Soft and tender

                  |   -Adj. - Sensitive and Painful ex.Tender bruise

                  |   -Verb- To present - as in Tender Resignation

6. Quarry|   -Noun - A deep pit where stones & rocks are dug

                 |   -Noun - A person or animal being hunted

7.Advocate  -Noun - A person who supports & recommends

                      -Verb - To speak, plead, and argue

Multiple Homophones

Homophones are one of two or more words that are pronounced alike but different in meaning, derivation, or spelling. 

To know more about homophones please refer to the last post. We only have a few examples and I am gladly sharing them with you.

-check - cheque - Czech -cheek - chic -chick

-Burrough - burro - burrow, borrow

-cent - scent - sent

-cord - chord - cored

-feet -fit - feat

-grade - greyed - grayed

-heel - heal - hill - he'll

-scene - seen - sin

-ai - aye - eye - I

-bi - bye -buy - by

-two - too - to

-they're - their - there

-peace - piece - peas -p's

Introducing Homograph !

The English language is confusing. Even grammar police and word geeks are throwing their hands in the air in exasperation that learning it can be tough and demanding. Even wide-eyed proofreaders who have a knack for spotting errors like a grammar police have experienced the same thing.

Well, there's another group of words we have to know aside from knowing homonyms and homophones. We almost puke contrasting and differentiating the two ... and there is still the third one? Yesiree ... so don't complain now  ... just fasten your seatbelt and gnash your teeth.

A homograph is a word that has the same spelling as another word but has a different sound and a different meaning,

With homographs, our concentration is on the way it sounds and how we pronounce and enunciate it. 

Homographs are words with two meanings ... One meaning may be a noun and the other meaning is an adjective. Although they are written in the same way ... they are pronounced differently.

Some people call them heteronyms.

Example: 

1. present(in attendance) / present (to show or tell) /present (gift)

 Present as an adjective meaning in attendance is pronounced PREH-zint making the vowel a little longer. The stress is on the first syllable. Whereas present as a verb meaning to show or tell is pronounced as pree-ZEHNT with the accent or stress on the second syllable. Present as a noun meaning gift is pronounced in the same way as PREH-zint having the stress on the first syllable.

2. minute (a period of sixty seconds) /minute (extremely small 

Minute as a noun meaning sixty seconds is pronounced as minit. Minute as an adjective meaning incredibly small is pronounced as mai-NYUT the stress is on the second syllable.

3. wind (turn, spin, twist) wind (a gust of air)

Wind as verb meaning turn, twist, or turn pronounced with a long "i" sound like "wynd". And wind as noun meaning a gust of air is pronounced with a short "i" like "win-d".

4. project (show something) / project (a planned task)

Project as a verb meaning to show something (as in project a tougher image is pronounced PRUH-ject where the stress is in the second syllable. Project as a noun meaning a planned task or goal as in (a housing project) is pronounced pro-ject and the stress in the first syllable.

5. desert (sandy land) / desert (abandonment) /dessert (sweet dish

Desert as a noun meaning a sandy piece of land is pronounced as. Desert as a verb meaning abandonment is pronounced.

Getting To Know Homonyns I

While we are still in the ambience VS ambiance fighting mood ... both words sound the same, mean the same, and are pronounced differently because of the vowel they use.
There is another group of words with the same spelling and almost identical pronunciation (they sound the same) but their meaning differs.

To cut it short, it sounds and spells alike but has different meanings. They are sometimes called multiple-meaning words ... and we term it as HOMONYMS.

The best way to use homonyms correctly is to have cognizance and awareness of their meanings & their pronunciation. We need to know how to spell them right and say each word properly to ensure our readers understand. You can also use context clues to help you figure out the meaning of a word in a particular sentence.

The rule of thumb for remembering these words is based on three factors: spelling, pronunciation, and meaning.

Examples:

Bat (animal) / Bat (sports equipment)
Bank (financial institution) / Bank (river bank)
Rose (flower) / Rose (past tense of rise)
Bark (dog sound) / Bark (tree covering)
Can - (ability to do something) / Can (metal container)
Quail (the bird) /Quail (to cringe)
Bright (intelligent) / bright (brilliant)
Fly (the insect) / Fly (to glide or soar)
Right (opposite of left) / Right (correct)
Address (location) / Address (to speak about some concerns)

There are a lot more examples out there ... if you want to share a homonym ... you can share it in the comment section.

Say Hello to Homophones 1

You may be familiar with homophones—words that are pronounced the same way but differ in meaning or spelling (e.g.CREEK vs CREAK).

A homophone has the same sound as the other word but has a different denotation. In some instances, homophones may or may not have the same spelling.

FLOWER and FLOUR are homophones because they are pronounced the same but you certainly can't bake a chiffon or a sponge cake using lotus or sampaguita.

Other examples of homophones are:

-morning - A.M. vs mourning - remembering the dead

-knight - feudal horsemen vs night - evening

-fairy - elf vs ferry - boat

-eminent - distinguished vs imminent - soon

-dough - uncooked bread vs doe - deer

-discreet - tactful vs discrete - distinct

-cruise - ride in the boat vs crews - gang

-council - committee vs counsel - advise

-allusion -indirect reference vs illusion -misleading image

-bread - baked food item vs bred - produced

Which One Is Right: Ambiance Or Ambience?

After we use ambiance on our discussion sa isang malutong at mabangong lechon topic below ... may nagtanong kung tama ba ang gamit natin ng ambiance. At may nagdududa kung tama ba ang spelling ko. If course tama ako ... ako pa? Of course hija huwag kang pikon ... dahil tama ka rin.

Ang nagrereklamo complains na mali daw ang ambiance.  Sa pagkaalam niya ambience is the right spelling.

Mali hija ... parehong tama ang dalawa. Ambience is most widely used ... hence more popular. Ambiance is the alternative spelling of the word. It is just getting its momentum ... the next thing we know ... its popularity will zoom like the other one.

Let me just remind you ... ambiance is not a misspelling ... it is another way of spelling it.

The question now is which one would you opt to use ... the popular or the alternative?