Tuesday Tricksters, August 23: Kernal -- Knave

More than a year ago, I began publishing a weekly edition of Tuesday Tricksters, those tough words in English that sound the same (or nearly so), but are spelled differently and have different meanings. They're known as homophones.

I've done this alphabetically to help me remember what the next group of words should be. My goal is to remind my readers of the danger of allowing spellcheck to have the final say on publishing anything; if we spell words correctly, spellcheck is happy. And as I'm typing here on LI, I see that we no longer even have spellcheck working for us. I typed several words incorrectly, but spellcheck didn't flag them.

Be very careful, dear readers!

Kernel (n.): a grain or seed; the most important part of something
Colonel (n.): a high-ranking military officer

Key (n.): an object designed to open and close a lock; a crucial step or requirement; a guide explaining symbols or terminology; a legend;
(v.): to unlock; to enter data using a keyboard
Cay (n.): a small, low island largely made of sand or coral
Quay (n.): a wharf, usually of concrete or stone, for use in loading and unloading ships

Klick (n.): (slang, military): a kilometer
Click (n.): a slight, sharp sound; (v.): to produce a slight, sharp sound; with computers, to press down and release a button or touch a link on a computer screen; (slang): to have good social or working relations; to hit it off; to become clear; to fall into place
Clique (n.): a small exclusive group of friends or associates

Knap (v.): to break or chip stone with sharp blows, as in shaping flint or obsidian into tools; to snap at or bite
Nap (v.): to sleep for a brief period, often during the day; to doze; to be unaware of imminent danger or trouble; (n.): a brief period of sleep; a soft or fuzzy surface on fabric or leather

Knave (n.): an unprincipled, crafty fellow; a male servant
Nave (n.): the middle or body of a church, extending from the transepts to the principal entrances

You can find more definitions of these words at www.yourdictionary.com. 

Were any of these words new to you? I had NO idea what knap meant, so I learned something that may be useful some day -- maybe in a crossword puzzle. 

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