Which statement correctly distinguishes polysemy from homonymy?

• A. Polysemy describes two unrelated words
• B. Polysemy describes one word with related meanings; Homonymy describes two unrelated words that sound alike
• C. Polysemy describes multiple spellings
• D. Polysemy and homonymy are the same

Answer: (B)

Polysemy is about one word that takes on several related senses, all linked by a common idea or concept. Homonymy, on the other hand, refers to two distinct words that happen to share the same form but have unrelated meanings. The statement aligns with that distinction: polysemy describes one word with related meanings, while homonymy describes two unrelated words that share the same form and often sound alike.

For context, think of a word like mouth. It can mean the body opening (human mouth), the opening of a cave, or the opening of a bottle—these senses all trace back to a common idea of an opening, so they’re related meanings of a single word. In contrast, a pair like bat (the animal) and bat (the sports implement) share the same spelling and pronunciation but have no related meanings; they’re separate words that look and sound alike.

So the described statement captures the essential distinction: related senses within one word versus unrelated meanings in two words that look or sound alike. The other options misstate or oversimplify this difference.