toon, tune

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

The answer is simple: toon, tune are homophones of the English language.

toon
  1. :: noun

    A tall tree (Cedrela toona) of tropical Asia and Australia, having dark red, aromatic wood.

  2. :: noun

    The wood of this tree.

  3. :: noun

    Informal A cartoon, especially an animated cartoon.

  4. :: noun

    Informal A character in an animated cartoon.

tune
  1. :: verb-transitive

    To adopt or adjust, especially in order to bring into harmony.

  2. :: noun

    Music A melody, especially a simple and easily remembered one.

  3. :: noun

    Music A song.

  4. :: noun

    Music Correct pitch.

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

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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").