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“Wail” or “Whale”

wail / whale 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.

wail w·EY·l

  • verbcry weakly or softly.

whale w·EY·l

  • nounany of the larger cetacean mammals having a streamlined body and breathing through a blowhole on the head.
  • verbhunt for whales.
Usage

Examples in context

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

“wail”

  • Remembering the haunting wail of the train whistle rumbling…

“whale”

  • …of harpoon points out of whale bone.
  • …the oil of a sperm whale, to rigid specifications.
  • …16th century, umiak and kayak whale hunting had ceased in the…
  • , a French whaler launched at Philadelphia that after…
  • …for the buildings came from whale bones.
  • …relied heavily on the bowhead whale for survival because bowhead whales…
  • …soared free like a great whale gliding through the sea of…
  • Their houses were made of whale bones from summer hunts.
  • …mid-Atlantic, her target: the Norwegian Whale ship N.T.
  • Kujira (鯨, くじら, クジラ): Whale

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

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