When to Use Dear and Deer

The words dear and deer  are  homophones: they sound alike but have different meanings.As an adjective or adverb, dear means greatly loved or valued, high-priced, or earnest. (Dear is used with a name as a polite form of address.) As a noun, dear refers to a person who is loved or whos endearing. As an interjection, dear is used to express surprise, sympathy, or distress. The noun deer refers to a hoofed, ruminant mammal. (Plural, deer.) Examples It was hard to say goodbye to such dear friends.My family paid a terrible price, perhaps too dear a price for my commitment.(Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom, 2008)Her dear students were gaping like guppies, their eyes unblinking and their little mouths opening and closing silently.  (Joan Hess, Dear Miss Demeanor, 2007)She took the fall bravely, whacking her thigh painfully on the dressing-table corner. Oh dear, she gasped. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.  (Kate Morton, The Distant Hours, 2010)The deer is a remarkably adaptable animal, one that can live almost anywhere.