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“Lichen” or “Liken”

lichen / liken are similar-sounding terms with different meanings (referred to as homophones). To better understand the differences, see below for definitions, pronunciation guides, and example sentences using each term.

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Definitions

What each term means

Same sound, different spellings and meanings, shown with a pronunciation guide for each term.

lichen l·AY·k·ah·n

  • nounany of several eruptive skin diseases characterized by hard thick lesions grouped together and resembling lichens growing on rocks.
  • nounany thallophytic plant of the division Lichenes; occur as crusty patches or bushy growths on tree trunks or rocks or bare ground etc..

liken l·AY·k·ah·n

No dictionary entry for this spelling — see the usage examples below for how it shows up in writing.

Usage

Examples in context

Real sentences for each spelling. Hover an example to copy it.

“lichen”

  • …known colloquially as blue-gray rosette lichen and powder-back lichen.
  • If a crustose lichen starts to disintegrate, it will…
  • …a living substrate such as lichen.
  • Vermilacinia corrugata is a fruticose lichen that grows on trees and…
  • …known colloquially as blue-gray rosette lichen and powder-back lichen, is a…
  • …larvae feed on mosses or lichen growing on trees, but they…
  • …of relatively bare rock with lichen.
  • A leprose lichen is a lichen with a…
  • Leprose lichen
  • …of the Lithosiini tribe of lichen moths are placed as incertae…

“liken”

  • liken Scribble's incorporation of Vurt technology…

Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license. Definitions are drawn from WordNet.

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