Heteronym
"Does" has two different pronunciations with two different meanings. Say DUZ when it means present tense of "do" (verb), and DOHZ when it means plural of "doe" (female deer) (noun). Which one is correct depends entirely on the sentence.
verb
DUZ
present tense of "do"
“She does her homework.”
noun
DOHZ
plural of "doe" (female deer)
“The does grazed nearby.”
Each button speaks the respelling, not the spelling — otherwise the speech engine would pick a single default pronunciation for both senses.
| Pronunciation | Part of speech | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| DUZ | verb | present tense of "do" |
| DOHZ | noun | plural of "doe" (female deer) |
"Does" has two different pronunciations with two different meanings. Say DUZ when it means present tense of "do" (verb), and DOHZ when it means plural of "doe" (female deer) (noun). Which one is correct depends entirely on the sentence.
Pronounced DUZ, "does" is a verb meaning present tense of "do". For example: "She does her homework."
Pronounced DOHZ, "does" is a noun meaning plural of "doe" (female deer). For example: "The does grazed nearby."
"Does" is a heteronym: two distinct words that happen to be spelled the same way. English spelling did not standardise around pronunciation, so unrelated words sometimes converged on one spelling while keeping separate sounds.
See the full entry for “does”, browse all 76 heteronyms and stress pairs, or learn how English stress works.