The words whop, wop sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. Why do whop, wop sound the same even though they are completely different words?
The answer is simple: whop, wop are homophones of the English language.
To strike with a heavy blow.
To defeat soundly; thrash.
A heavy blow; a sharp thud.
Offensive Slang Used as a disparaging term for a person of Italian birth or descent.
Offensive Slang Used as a disparaging term for a person of Italian birth or descent.
Definitions from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition and Wordnik.
Homophones (literally "same sound") are usually defined as words that share the same pronunciation, regardless of how they are spelled.
If they are spelled the same then they are also homographs (and homonyms); if they are spelled differently then they are also heterographs (literally "different writing").