‘Slay’ vs ‘Sleigh’: What’s the difference? Two words that sound identical, but when you see them spelled out, you are usually able to see exactly when they would be used. Interestingly, one of these words has popularized itself into having a new pop culture definition. Want to learn more? You’re in the right place.
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The tricky thing about ‘Slay’ vs ‘Sleigh’ is that they are obviously spelled differently, but without seeing them in front of us, we may not know that. This is because these words are what’s called homophones.
Some other examples of homophones are:
Since ‘Slay’ vs ‘Sleigh’ are homophones, finding a way to tell them apart that isn’t just memorizing their definition can be helpful in remembering how to identify which spelling matches which meaning. A major helpful tip is learning their parts of speech, which helps dictate how a word functions in a sentence.
One way to remember that ‘Slay’ is a verb is by remembering that this spelling contains the letter “a,” which you can use to remember the word ‘action.’ You can also use the letter “a” to remember the word ‘attack’ since the verb ‘Slay’ is a rather violent one in some cases.
While spelling clues and other memory tricks can be helpful, they’re only a stepping stone to fully learning a new word. So, let’s take a closer look individually at the definitions of ‘Slay’ vs ‘Sleigh’.
According to Oxford Languages, ‘Slay’ is a verb that means:
Despite the drastic difference between these two verb meanings, you can see how the original, more violent definition would have evolved into the more modern form. For example, we sometimes say someone has “killer looks” or is “killing that outfit.”
On a historical note, it is important to know that as a more informal or 'slang' term, the word 'Slay' emerged from the Black and LGBTQ+ communities in the mid-1980s. It was used in admiration and support, particularly of those performing in a drag show, dance competition, or other ballroom-type performance. This sense of the word has evolved and is very common in the vocabulary of young people — and while it has taken on a sort of new meaning since being further popularized by social media, it is crucial to understand the word's pop-culture origin.
Finally, as a noun ‘Slay’ can also mean:
According to Oxford Languages, ‘Sleigh’ is a noun that means:
As a verb, ‘Sleigh’ can also mean:
We don’t just write words down; and we use them more often in conversations, or in some cases even in songs. Because of this, knowing how to say words properly is just as important as knowing what they mean. Below, you’ll find the tools you need to make sure you can both say and sing these words correctly.
Use this phonetic spelling of ‘Slay’ and ‘Sleigh’ as a guide:
The final step to mastering vocabulary is putting them into action because if you can’t actually use a word, there’s no point in memorizing definitions and pronunciations. But, given ‘Slay’ vs ‘Sleigh’ are homophones, when using them in real-world conversations, you’ll need to be extra careful that you’re putting the words in the right context. We want to make sure you feel confident using these words in a variety of scenarios, so here we have a few sample sentences for you to read.
Learning new words can be especially confusing when the words sound identical. But if you take care to learn their definitions, as well as pay attention to learning tips and possible contextual scenarios, you’re sure to pick up the words in no time.
Need a review? Here’s a quick recap of what was covered:
Want to learn more about homophones? Be sure to check out other confusing word articles for more tips and tricks to telling words apart, as well as more advice on parsing through context. Remember, the more careful you are when learning new words, the easier they will be to keep in mind after the fact.
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