whin, win, wynn

The words whin, win, wynn sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. Why do whin, win, wynn sound the same even though they are completely different words?

The answer is simple: whin, win, wynn are homophones of the English language.

whin
  1. :: noun

    See gorse.

  2. :: noun

    A whinstone.

win
  1. :: verb-intransitive

    To achieve victory or finish first in a competition.

  2. :: verb-intransitive

    To achieve success in an effort or venture: struggled to overcome the handicap and finally won.

  3. :: verb-transitive

    To achieve victory or finish first in.

  4. :: verb-transitive

    To receive as a prize or reward for performance.

wynn
  1. :: noun

    An Old English rune having the sound (w) and used in Old English and early Middle English writing.

Definitions from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition and Wordnik.

Share whin, win, wynn

About Homophones

Homophones (literally "same sound") are usually defined as words that share the same pronunciation, regardless of how they are spelled.

If they are spelled the same then they are also homographs (and homonyms); if they are spelled differently then they are also heterographs (literally "different writing").