English Grammar - Homonyms and Homophones

English Grammar
English Grammar - Homonyms and Homophones

Select the sentence containing the homonym of the highlighted word: The historian referenced a bailey in Norman military architecture.


Options:

  1. The shepherd gathered his sheep in the bailey.
  2. The bailey was reinforced with wooden palisades.
  3. The outer bailey surrounded the motte.
  4. The king's guard patrolled the lower bailey.

Right Answer: The shepherd gathered his sheep in the bailey.

In Norman military architecture a 'bailey' is the walled enclosure or courtyard of a castle, most familiar from the motte-and-bailey design. Options two, three and four all keep the word firmly in this fortification sense, mentioning palisades, the motte and the king's guard. Option one, however, places the word in a pastoral setting where a shepherd gathers sheep, so the term is being used in a different, non-military sense rather than as part of a castle. That shift of meaning is what the question is testing. Hence option one is correct.

This question is part of English Grammar - Homonyms and Homophones, which has 7 practice questions with answers.

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