Commonly Confused Words

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Advice is a noun meaning a piece of information meant to help a situation or individual.

Ex: I gave my best friend some advice, or information, to help her with her troubles.

Advise is the action of giving advice.

Ex: I advised (or gave advice to) my best friend to help her with her troubles.

Affect is primarily a verb. It is often used when the subject of the sentence is doing the action. You can also think of affect as "influence".

Ex: His grades affect his ability to focus on sports.

Ex: His grades influenced his ability to focus on sports.

Effect can be either a noun or a verb. It is sometimes used in describing the recipient of the action. You can also think of effect as "result".

Ex: The weighty effects of his decision had not yet hit him.

Ex: The weighty results of his decision had not yet hit him.

Ex: Studying hard for an exam might give you the effects you want.

Ex: Studying hard for an exam might give you the results you want.

Contrary to popular belief, among and amongst are the same word. The former, among, is an earlier English form. They can be used interchangably. These words are prepositions that refer to the space between many things.

Ex: My dog hid among the flowers of the field.

Ex: My dog hid amongst the flowers of the field.

Between is a preposition that refers to the space or distance that separates two things.

Ex: Eliza was caught between a rock and a hard place.

Ex: Sam walked between the cars, clicking her key fob.

Assure is a verb meaning to encourage or give confidence to.

Ex: Teddy assured me the bill was paid on time.

Ensure is also a verb, but it means to make certain.

Ex: Teddy ensured the team's victory.

Insure is another verb, meaning to arrange for something to be protected from damage.

Ex: Teddy insured the car, which prevented us from paying out of pocket when he got in an accident.

Allot is a verb meaning to give a certain portion.

Ex: Julia was allotted three cookies for snack.

A lot is a pronoun that refers to a large quantity. One way to know if this is the correct word is to replace a lot with an actual number.

Ex: Julia has a lot of cookies.

Ex: Julia has seventy-two cookies.

Allude means to hint at or suggest.

Ex: The author alluded to the fact that he was talking about modern government.

Elude means to escape or evade.

Ex: The fugitive continued to elude the police.

Illude means to trick or deceive as in an illusion.

Ex: The magician illuded the audience when he made the woman disappear.

Beside is a preposition used to indicate that the location of something is next to another. It can also be used figuratively to describe someone who is very upset.

Ex: The chalk is beside the staircase.

Ex: She was beside herself with grief.

Besides can be used to indicate location OR it can mean except or in addition to.

Ex: Everyone came to the party besides Alan.

Bored refers to being uninterested.

Ex: I am bored in school today.

Board refers to a flat, thin piece of material OR to get onto something.

Ex: I enjoy board games.

Ex: The cardboard was very flimsy.

OR

Ex: It was time for us to board the Disney Cruise.

By is a preposition used to describe location or indicate who completed an action.

Ex: The sticky note pad sits by my desk.

Ex: The song was written by Stevie Wonder.

Buy indicates that something is purchased.

Ex: I like to buy candy when I am sad.

Bye is a shortened form of the word "goodbye."

Ex: "Bye!" the friends said to each other as they departed.

Complement is a noun meaning a thing that completes.

Ex: The complement angle to an angle measuring 80 degrees is 100 degrees.

Compliment is a noun or verb meaning a polite or admonishing thing to say.

Ex: I complimented her on her floral skirt.

Capitol is noun referring the building which holds a state or government legislature. It can also refer to the city holding this building.

Ex: The capitol of North Carolina is Raleigh.

Capital is also a noun but it refers to one's assets.

Ex: I have a lot of capital in real estate.

A council is a group of people gathered to give advice or make decisions.

Ex: The city council is meeting this week to decide on the Maple Street Park plans.

Counsel is the advice itself.

Ex: Becky tried to give her sister counsel after they lost their grandmother.

All of these words are modals, or words that help the verb that also indicate tense or intensity.

Could is a modal that implies ability.

Ex: I could go to the gym this evening.

Would is a modal that implies desire or a possible future.

Ex: I would like green eggs and ham.

Ex: I would volunteer this month, but I work that day.

Should is a modal that implies wisdom or responsibility.

Ex: I should eat a salad today for lunch.

Dessert is the sweet portion of a meal that usually comes at the end. A trick to remember this is that you want seconds and there are two S's in dessert.

Ex: After the pot pie, we had cinnamon apple cheesecake.

Desert can be a noun referring to a dry and desolate place OR a verb meaning to abandon. A tick to remember this is that a desert dries up the second s.

Ex: I was stranded in the desert, surrounded by tumbleweed.

Ex: My friends deserted me after I told them I had no money.

Dual is an adjective that means there are two components.

Ex: My new car has dual air conditioning.

A duel is a fight or contest between two people.

Ex: Aaron Burr challenged Alexander Hamilton to a duel.

E.g. means "example." One way to see if it makes sense is to replace the phrase with "for example".

Ex: I like to eat all kinds of fruit (e.g. apples, bananas, oranges, strawberries).

Ex: I like to eat all kinds of fruit (for example, apples, bananas, oranges, strawberries).

I.e. means "that is." One way to see if it makes sense is to replace the phrase with "that is."

Ex: I like the best sports team in the U.S., i.e. the Carolina Panthers.

Ex: I like the best sport team in the U.S., that is, the Carolina Panthers.

Exercise refers to physical activity.

Ex: Today I am going to exercise by running a mile

Exorcise means to cast out demons.

Ex: The priest used holy water to exorcise the possessed man.

Fewer is used to describe a small amount of something you can count.

Ex: Turner had fewer gophers than Kirsten.

Less is used to describe a small amount of something that you cannot count.

Ex: Turner had less milk than Kirsten.

A foreward is an introduction to a book.

Ex: In the foreward, the author shared his reason for writing the book.

Forward is a preposition referring to movement or location in front of something/someone.

Ex: I would like to move forward on this business deal.

Imply and infer go together like the verbs catch and throw.

Imply means to hint at something.

Ex: Theodore was implying that Laura had not done her share of the chores.

Infer means to make an educated guess.

Ex: Theodore inferred from the news article that the oil spill would have negative effects on the coastal wildlife.

It's is a contraction of "it is." If you can replace it with "it is" use this form.

Ex: It's cold outside.

Ex: It is cold outside.

Its is a possessive pronoun used to demonstrate that something belongs to something else.

Ex: I love drawing with chalk. Its powdery quality is fun to work work.

Lie can either mean the opposite of the truth OR to set something down in the present tense.

Ex: He lied to me that he was going to take a nap.

Ex: I lie down at night.

Lay means to set something down OR the past tense of lie (to set something down).

Ex: The keys are laying on the table.

Ex: He lay down to go to sleep.

Laid is the past tense of lay.

Ex: Kendall laid down for her afternoon nap.

Lain is the past participle of lie (to set down).

Ex: Garry had lain the laundry on the bed.

Laying is the present participle of lay.

Ex: Julia was laying each tile carefully.

Lying is the present participle for either definition of lie.

Ex: Mother knew Sarah was lying through her teeth.

Ex: I was lying on the couch watching the rain stream down the window.

If this is still very confusing, click here for more information!

Lose is a verb which is the opposite of "win" or to be deprived of something.

Ex: Tennessee loses to the University of Maryland!

Loose is another verb, but it means to make not tight or firm.

Ex: I need to loosen my shoe laces because they are too tight.

Many and much work similarly to fewer and less.

Many refers to a large amount of something you can count.

Ex: I have too many papers to grade.

Much refers to a large amount that you cannot count.

Ex: I have too much homework to grade.

Principal is a noun referring to a person who is in charge usually of a school. One way to remember that this is a person is the ending "pal," sometimes used to describe a friend.

Ex: The principal called me into his office to discuss my recent behavior.

Principle is a noun referring to a rule/moral law or first things.

Ex: The principle truth is that God exists.

Ex: The principle to remember is that we ought to treat others kindly.

A poll is a vote taken for the sake of some kind of election or survey.

Ex: Shelley polled (verb) the student body and found that most people prefer vanilla ice cream.

Ex: Shelley took a poll (noun) of the student body.

A pole is a long, skinny piece of material often used to hold something up.

Ex: The telephone poles near my house fell down during the thunderstorm.

To prescribe is to authorize the dispensing of medicine.

Ex: The doctor prescribed me a week of antibiotics.

To proscribe is to forbid something.

Ex: My mother proscribed the playing of video games for a month.

Raise needs to be followed by an object.

Ex: He raised his hands to the sky.

Rise does not need to be followed by an object.

Ex: He rises in the morning.

Sight refers to our vision or ability to see using our eyes.

Ex: We must walk by faith and not by sight.

Site refers to a place, often of a crime or scientific study.

Ex: The archaeological site was very dusty to say the least.

Cite refers to giving credit to authors using a citation format.

Ex: The teacher asked me to cite The Hiding Place since I quoted it in my book report.

A story is a tale or account of a real or imagined event(s).

Ex: I just finished reading a story entitled The Picture of Dorian Grey.

A storey is a level of a building.

Ex: Our office is on the 5th storey of the complex.

Than is a preposition or conjunction used to compare two things.

Ex: My boat is bigger than your boat.

Then is an adverb used to describe an event happening after another.

Ex: Then we took a walk.

There is an adverb used to describe a location, usually away from the speaker.

Ex: My cell phone is over there on the couch.

Their is a possessive pronoun used to denote how an object belongs to a group of people.

Ex: Their faces were hidden by the hoods of their coats.

They're is a contraction of they are. To check, try inserting they are in place of they're.

Ex: They're trying to take away my freedom.

Ex: They are trying to take away my freedom.

To is a preposition use to describe location and/or movement.

Ex: I went to the mall this weekend.

Too is an adverb meaning also.

Ex: I wanted to go to the store too.

Two is a number that is the sum of one and one.

Ex: I went to two stores this weekend.

Who's is a contraction of who is.

Ex: Who's at the door?

Ex: Who is at the door?

Whose is a possessive pronoun used to describe how an object belongs to a person.

Ex: Sarah, whose father is a mechanic, is in my English class.

Whom is a pronoun that can replace other pronouns as the object of a sentence. One way to find if whom is correct is to replace it with him/her/us.

Ex: Whom do you wish to speak with?

Test: I wish to speak with him/her.

A yoke is an often wooden component of a harness for animals like oxen or donkeys.

Ex: The oxen were yoked and ready to plow the field.

A yolk is the yellow embryo of an egg.

Ex: This recipe asked me to separate the egg whites from the yolks.

If you need more help on a particular pair, just click here to find out more! If you would prefer a video, check out the one below! (Note: it moves quickly so you may need to pause it periodically to make sure you understand the differences.)

If you would like to test your knowledge, try one of the links below!

1. Commonly Confused Words - Worksheet 1

2. Commonly Confused Words - Worksheet 2