By DeAnna Cameron //
In a world where the past tense of “read,” with a long “e” sound, is “read” with a short “e” sound, it would seem that “lead,” a verb meaning to take a foremost position, should follow the same rules.
Unfortunately, the English language is a trickier beast.
The past tense of the verb “lead” is “led,” a fact further confused by the existence of a noun form of “lead,” with a short “e” sound, meaning a metallic substance, like pencil lead.
Are you still with me? I don’t blame you if you’re lost. The read/read but lead/led conundrum results in one of the most common writing mistakes I see as a copy editor, but it’s one that can be avoided if you pause when you encounter the word and consider whether it’s a noun, like “get the lead out,” or a verb, like “she led the way.”
Happy homophone hunting!
DEANNA CAMERON is the founder and managing director of O.C. Writers. She’s also a hybrid author currently writing YA dark fantasy as D.D. Croix and an occasional copy editor who’s never met an Oxford comma she didn’t like. Learn more at www.DDCroix.com.