Mobile, mobile, and Mobile are words that are spelled identically but are pronounced differently and have different meanings, which makes them heteronyms. We will examine the definitions of the words mobile, mobile, and Mobile, where these words came from, and a few examples of their use in sentences.
Mobile (MOH bull) is an adjective that means movable, traveling, capable of change, mixing within social groups, or not stationary. Mobile is also used informally to mean a cell phone or other untethered computing device. The word mobile is derived from the Latin word mobilis, which means easily moved.
Mobile (MOH beel) is a sculpture that is suspended so that air currents can put the art piece in motion. A mobile may be made of metal, glass, paper, fabric, etc. Alexander Calder is credited with inventing the art form and naming it in the 1930s.
Mobile (moh BEEL) is a geographic area in the state of Alabama in the United States; a city, river, and bay are named Mobile. The name is said to be taken from the name of a Native American tribe encountered by settlers. Note that Mobile is capitalized, because it is a proper name.
Examples
Mobile devices, computers, drones and other technologies have become a part of society, but criminals also use them to commit crimes, including burglaries, human trafficking and to harm children. (Dayton Daily News)
Hence, he was approachable to anyone, instinctively socially mobile, believing in shared values and that conversations and engagement could lead to a common thread, a more empathetic world. (Hindustan Times)
“This is a Calder,” Hirschfeld said, of a tabletop mobile. (New Yorker)
Authorities in Mobile, Alabama, are still investigating reports that Brian Laundrie, the boyfriend of Gabby Petito, has made his way to Alabama. (Deseret News)
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