₦airaland Forum

hercatonchires:
Commonly confused English words
Some people are mindful of their spoken grammar, while some are more concerned about writing. On the other hand, some are actually mindful of their grammar generally i.e both spoken and written.
You could get away with some blunders when speaking, but when you write, you get exposed.
In English language, we have words that have the same pronunciation, spellings but different meaning. We also have some with different spellings, the same pronunciation and different meanings.
They are categorised as;
Homograph: A word spelt same as another regardless of pronunciation.
Homophone: A word pronounced the same as another word but differs in spelling or meaning.
Homonym: A word that both sounds and is spelt the same as another but has a different meaning.

In our daily use of English, we encounter homonyms, homophones, and homographs and they can be very confusing. I have taken time to compile a list of words that are commonly confused for each other/one another as the case may be.
They include but not limited to the following:


Altogether: Completely; on the whole
All together: All in one place; all at once

Advice: Recommendations about what to do
Advise: To recommend something

Afford: Rich enough; to be able, bear, incur
Avoid: Keep away; abstain

Altar: Sacred table in church
Alter: To change; Edit

Appraise: To assess
Apprise: To inform someone

Adverse: Unfavourable; Harmful
Averse: Strong disliking

Assent: Agreement; approval
Ascent: The action of rising or climbing up
Accent: Manner of speaking or pronunciation

Aural: Relating to the ears or hearing
Oral: Relating to the mouth or spoken

Bear: To carry; to put up with
Bare: Naked; uncovered


Bazaar: Selling articles that are exotic
Bizarre: Strange


Borrow: To take and use (something that belongs to someone else) for a period of time before returning it; to RECEIVE temporarily
e.g. I borrowed his book; no one borrows in our family
Lend: To give something to someone to be used for a period of time and then returned; to GIVE temporarily
e.g. Lend me your book; no one lends money to our family

Born: Having started life
Borne: Carried

Brake: A device for stopping a vehicle
Break: To separate into pieces; a pause

Breach: Breakthrough or break a rule
Breech: The back part of a gun barrel

Canvas: A type of strong cloth
Canvass: To seek people’s votes

Centre: British spelling of “Center” Middle portion of something
Center: American spelling of “Centre”

Compliment: Praise; congratulation
Complement: Complete; make whole

Complacent: Smug and self satisfied
Complaisant: Willing to please

Contempt: Scorn; disdain; open disrespect or wilful disobedience
Content: satisfied
Contend: Debate; struggle

Convince: Make someone believe by using logic, argument or evidence
Confuse: Mistake one thing for another; mix-up; to disorder
Council: A group of people who advise or manage
Counsel: Advice; to advise

Corps: An organised group of people united by a common purpose.
Corpse: Dead body
I remember seeing a post on social media. A prospective corps member wrote;
“I thank God for making me be among the YOUTH CORPSE”
Obviously, she meant something else. If she had spoken the words other than writing, she might have gone away with it.

Cue: Signal for action; a wooden rod
Queue: A line of vehicles or people

Defuse: To make a situation less tense
Diffuse: To spread over a wide area

Desert: Waterless, empty area; to abandon someone
Dessert: The sweet course of a meal

Discreet: Careful not to attract attention, privacy, secrecy, quiet
Discrete: Separate and distinct

Dual: Having two parts
Duel: A fight between two people, a contest

Illicit: Invalid, not approved by law
Elicit: To draw out a reply or reaction

Exercise: Physical activity; to do
Exorcise: T drive out an evil spirit

Loath: Reluctant; unwilling
Loathe: To hate; despise

Loose: To unfasten; set free
Lose: To be unable to find; misplace

Meter: A measuring device
Metre: A metric unit


Sight: Ability to see
Site: A location
Cite: To quote; repeat from a book or word(s) of another

Stationery: Writing material
Stationary: Not moving

Story: A tale; sequence of events
Storey: Level of a building

Aloud: Out loud
Allowed: Permitted

Censor: Review in order to remove
Censure: Criticize; condemn; Reprimand

Order: Arrangement, sequence
Other: Alien; different; second

Live: To be alive; to have life
Leave: Depart; Exit

Reign: Exercise of sovereign power; period during which a monarch rules
Rain: Any matter moving or falling; water falling from a cloud

Live: Seen or heard from a broadcast as it happens
Life: the period during which one is alive

Acre: A unit of surface area {equivalent to about 4,046.86 square metres}
Hectare: A unit of surface area {10,000 square metres or approximately 2.5 acres}

Aisle: A passage between rows of seats
Isle: An island

Sibling: A person who shares same parents
Offspring: Children

Pour: Cause something to flow; to dispense from a container
Pore: Study meticulously; meditate/reflect

These: Plural of “This”
This: {pronoun} Singular form. The thing that is closest to you or that is being shown to you

In order: You use "in order to" when you describe an action, and the goal of this action.
e.g.
"I hid all of the aliens' corpse in the basement in order to avoid questions."

In other: You use "in other words" when you wish to point out some of the implications of the previous phrase or simply rephrase it.
e.g.
"Unfortunately, my wife went to clean the basement on Friday. In other words, Busted!"

References: Google, Merriam-Webster's dictionary, The English dictionary (Livio) (extracted from http://wiktionary.org)

No one knows it all. With much practice, we are bound to get better.

hercatonchires:
Commonly confused English words
Some people are mindful of their spoken grammar, while some are more concerned about writing. On the other hand, some are actually mindful of their grammar generally i.e both spoken and written.
You could get away with some blunders when speaking, but when you write, you get exposed.
In English language, we have words that have the same pronunciation, spellings but different meaning. We also have some with different spellings, the same pronunciation and different meanings.
They are categorised as;
Homograph: A word spelt same as another regardless of pronunciation.
Homophone: A word pronounced the same as another word but differs in spelling or meaning.
Homonym: A word that both sounds and is spelt the same as another but has a different meaning.

In our daily use of English, we encounter homonyms, homophones, and homographs and they can be very confusing. I have taken time to compile a list of words that are commonly confused for each other/one another as the case may be.
They include but not limited to the following:


Altogether: Completely; on the whole
All together: All in one place; all at once

Advice: Recommendations about what to do
Advise: To recommend something

Afford: Rich enough; to be able, bear, incur
Avoid: Keep away; abstain

Altar: Sacred table in church
Alter: To change; Edit

Appraise: To assess
Apprise: To inform someone

Adverse: Unfavourable; Harmful
Averse: Strong disliking

Assent: Agreement; approval
Ascent: The action of rising or climbing up
Accent: Manner of speaking or pronunciation

Aural: Relating to the ears or hearing
Oral: Relating to the mouth or spoken

Bear: To carry; to put up with
Bare: Naked; uncovered


Bazaar: Selling articles that are exotic
Bizarre: Strange


Borrow: To take and use (something that belongs to someone else) for a period of time before returning it; to RECEIVE temporarily
e.g. I borrowed his book; no one borrows in our family
Lend: To give something to someone to be used for a period of time and then returned; to GIVE temporarily
e.g. Lend me your book; no one lends money to our family

Born: Having started life
Borne: Carried

Brake: A device for stopping a vehicle
Break: To separate into pieces; a pause

Breach: Breakthrough or break a rule
Breech: The back part of a gun barrel

Canvas: A type of strong cloth
Canvass: To seek people’s votes

Centre: British spelling of “Center” Middle portion of something
Center: American spelling of “Centre”

Compliment: Praise; congratulation
Complement: Complete; make whole

Complacent: Smug and self satisfied
Complaisant: Willing to please

Contempt: Scorn; disdain; open disrespect or wilful disobedience
Content: satisfied
Contend: Debate; struggle

Convince: Make someone believe by using logic, argument or evidence
Confuse: Mistake one thing for another; mix-up; to disorder
Council: A group of people who advise or manage
Counsel: Advice; to advise

Corps: An organised group of people united by a common purpose.
Corpse: Dead body
I remember seeing a post on social media. A prospective corps member wrote;
“I thank God for making me be among the YOUTH CORPSE”
Obviously, she meant something else. If she had spoken the words other than writing, she might have gone away with it.

Cue: Signal for action; a wooden rod
Queue: A line of vehicles or people

Defuse: To make a situation less tense
Diffuse: To spread over a wide area

Desert: Waterless, empty area; to abandon someone
Dessert: The sweet course of a meal

Discreet: Careful not to attract attention, privacy, secrecy, quiet
Discrete: Separate and distinct

Dual: Having two parts
Duel: A fight between two people, a contest

Illicit: Invalid, not approved by law
Elicit: To draw out a reply or reaction

Exercise: Physical activity; to do
Exorcise: T drive out an evil spirit

Loath: Reluctant; unwilling
Loathe: To hate; despise

Loose: To unfasten; set free
Lose: To be unable to find; misplace

Meter: A measuring device
Metre: A metric unit


Sight: Ability to see
Site: A location
Cite: To quote; repeat from a book or word(s) of another

Stationery: Writing material
Stationary: Not moving

Story: A tale; sequence of events
Storey: Level of a building

Aloud: Out loud
Allowed: Permitted

Censor: Review in order to remove
Censure: Criticize; condemn; Reprimand

Order: Arrangement, sequence
Other: Alien; different; second

Live: To be alive; to have life
Leave: Depart; Exit

Reign: Exercise of sovereign power; period during which a monarch rules
Rain: Any matter moving or falling; water falling from a cloud

Live: Seen or heard from a broadcast as it happens
Life: the period during which one is alive

Acre: A unit of surface area {equivalent to about 4,046.86 square metres}
Hectare: A unit of surface area {10,000 square metres or approximately 2.5 acres}

Aisle: A passage between rows of seats
Isle: An island

Sibling: A person who shares same parents
Offspring: Children

Pour: Cause something to flow; to dispense from a container
Pore: Study meticulously; meditate/reflect

These: Plural of “This”
This: {pronoun} Singular form. The thing that is closest to you or that is being shown to you

In order: You use "in order to" when you describe an action, and the goal of this action.
e.g.
"I hid all of the aliens' corpse in the basement in order to avoid questions."

In other: You use "in other words" when you wish to point out some of the implications of the previous phrase or simply rephrase it.
e.g.
"Unfortunately, my wife went to clean the basement on Friday. In other words, Busted!"

References: Google, Merriam-Webster's dictionary, The English dictionary (Livio) (extracted from http://wiktionary.org)

No one knows it all. With much practice, we are bound to be better.

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