The Ant-Homonym

Once upon a time, there was a tale. Not a dog or cat tail. Tale as in story. There was a major construction corporation in a beauti ul city. One day, the mayor called up the construction corporation and as!ed them to raise a building. He wanted to ma!e the building higher. "n ortunately, the construction corporation heard that the mayor wanted to raze the building, which, o course, sounds the same. The corporation promptly proceeded to ra#e the building to the ground. The mayor showed up only to see that instead o raising the building, the corporation had ra#ed it. He was urious. $hy did you ra#e it% He shouted. &ou as!ed us to ra#e it' ()claimed the construction wor!er. * wanted you to raise it, said the mayor, his patience as thin as the hair on his head +or lac! thereo ,. &es' -esponded the wor!er, And so we did. $e razed it' He was pleased to report their success and gestured eagerly to the rubble. No, no no' The mayor shouted, wanted you to raise it, not raze it' The construction wor!er blin!ed, .uite stunned with bewilderment. $ell *... we... we did ra#e it, he cried, gesturing again, this time by wildly by swinging his arms in hori#ontal slicing motions at the demolished building. &ou were supposed to raise it, the mayor growled through clenched teeth, gesturing as wildly as the construction wor!er, but swinging his arms /ertically at the ruin. Ah, was the wor!er0s only reply. 1inally, he understood. 1inally the wor!er and the mayor bro!e through the barrier o the (nglish language and understood each other.

Maybe we can eventually make language a complete impediment to understanding. - Hobbes, from Bill Watterson s !alvin and Hobbes