Term (also equivocation) for the property of a word to be ambiguous. An example is "dew", which can mean a morning rainfall, a rope or the 19th letter of the Greek alphabet. In the case of grape varieties, similar varieties are grouped together under one name (homonym), although genotypically they are independent varieties. Examples are Clevner, which is used to name numerous largely unrelated grape varieties, and above all Malvasia, with well over 50 varieties with this part of the name.
Due to the formerly widespread practice of planting different varieties in the vineyard in a mixed set, common names were frequent. In contrast to the homonym, the synonym with different names stands for the same term. However, there are also names that are used for several grape varieties due to a common characteristic. An example for Italy is Pagadebit ("debt payer") for varieties with high yields.
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Dominik Trick
Technischer Lehrer, staatl. geprüfter Sommelier, Hotelfachschule Heidelberg