# Why English creates so many words spelled the same. Why we say 'ye olde' instead of 'the old.'

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/grammar-girl-for-writers-and-language-lovers-159700/why-english-creates-so-many-words-spelled-the-same-why-we-say-ye-olde-instead-of-the-old
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/grammar-girl-for-writers-and-language-lovers-159700/why-english-creates-so-many-words-spelled-the-same-why-we-say-ye-olde-instead-of-the-old.md
Podcast: [Grammar Girl: For Writers and Language Lovers.](https://stenobird.com/podcast/grammar-girl-for-writers-and-language-lovers-159700)
Published: 2026-04-28T09:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/grammar-girl/episodes/1180
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/69c1476c007cdcf83fc0964b/e/69e6a98eeefc66ef2b21a66b/media.mp3
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Duration seconds: 955

## Resource

1180. Why does "Ye Olde Shoppe" look old-fashioned? This week, we look at the vanished letters of English — thorn, eth, and yogh — and at why English has so many words that are spelled the same but have different meanings, such as "compact" (an agreement) and "compact" (to press together).  The homographs segment was written by Samantha Enslen who runs Dragonfly Editorial. You can find her at dragonflyeditorial.com . The Old English segment was written by Karen Lunde who writes the newsletter I'll Go First. Find her on igofirst.org . 🔗  Join the Grammar Girl Patreon. 🔗  Share your familect recording in   Speakpipe  or by leaving a voicemail at 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475) 🔗  Watch my   LinkedIn Learning writing courses . 🔗  Subscribe to the   newsletter . 🔗  Find an edited   transcript . 🔗  Get   Grammar Girl books . | HOST: Mignon Fogarty | Grammar Girl is part of  the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network . Audio Engineer:  Castria Communications Director of Podcast: Holly Hutchings Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson Marketing and Video: Nat Hoopes, Rebekah Sebastian Podcast Associate: Maram Elnagheeb | Theme music by  Catherine Rannus . | Grammar Girl Social Media:  YouTube .  TikTok .  Facebook .  Threads .  Instagram .  LinkedIn .  Mastodon .  Bluesky . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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