Commonly Confused Words

English has a lot of commonly confused words. They either look alike, sound alike or, worst of all, look and sound alike but have completely different meanings. Other words look and sound different but are similar in meaning, and it’s hard to determine which is the correct one in a given context. Hopefully the following list of pairs of commonly confused words will help you keep them straightened out.

Accept vs. Except

Accept (verb) - to receive

·         I accepted all my birthday gifts with gratitude.

Except (conjunction) - apart from; otherwise than; were it not true

·         When Susan travels, she packs everything except the kitchen sink.

Affect vs. Effect

Affect (verb) - to have an effect on; influence; produce a change in; to stir the emotions

·         The dog's death affected his owners.

Effect (noun) - anything brought about by a cause or agent; result

·         The new speed limit law had little effect on the speed of the motorists.

A Lot vs. Allot

A lot (noun phrase) -many

·         A lot of people came to the party.

*"A lot" is always two separate words. "Alot" is not a real word.

Allot (verb) - to distribute, give or assign

·         Fifteen minutes were allotted to each of the speakers at the conference.

Allusion vs. Illusion

Allusion (noun) - an indirect reference

·         The Austin Powers movies often make allusions to the James Bond films.

Illusion (noun) - a false idea or conception; belief or opinion not in accord with the facts; an unreal, deceptive, or misleading appearance or image

·         The magician created the illusion that he was levitating.

Awhile vs. A While

Awhile (adverb) - for a while; for a short time

·         The guests planned to stay awhile.

A while (noun) - for a short time; when while is used as the object of the preposition (for a while) then the "a" is separated from the "while"

·         The guests planned to stay for a while.

Bad vs. Badly

Bad (adjective) - not good

·         Your feet smell bad.

Badly (adverb) - not well; in a bad manner; harmfully; incorrectly; wickedly; unpleasantly

·         Charlotte plays tennis very badly.

·         The people involved in the accident were badly hurt.

*Here, a note. Adjectives generally describe nouns, so even if you use the word “bad” following a verb in a sentence, if it’s meant to describe the thing itself, then use the adjective. “Bad” here means the same as “rotten,” “rancid” or “stinky,” all of which are adjectives. If you can replace “bad” with another adjective and still have a sentence that makes sense, then you know that “bad” was the correct choice. Adverbs often describe the manner in which something is done. To say, “your feet smell badly” is to say that your feet are inhaling through the nose and perceiving odors, and that they’re going about it all wrong. 

Borrow vs. Lend

Borrow (verb) - to take or accept something for a short time with the intention of returning it to its rightful owner

·         May I borrow a pencil, please?

Lend (verb) - to give something for a short time with the intention of getting it back

·         Would you please lend me a pencil?

Breath vs. Breathe

Breath (noun) - air taken into the lungs and then let out

·         Take a deep breath.

Breathe (verb) - to inhale and exhale

·         Just calm down and breathe.   

Complement vs. Compliment

Complement (noun) - that which completes or brings to perfection; (verb) - to make complete

·         Red wine is a nice complement to a steak dinner.

Compliment (noun) - something said in admiration, praise, or flattery; (verb) - to pay a compliment to; congratulate

·         She gave me a nice compliment when she said I looked thin.

Comprise vs. Compose

Comprise (verb) - to include; to contain; to consist of; to be composed of

·         The state of North Carolina comprises 100 counties.

Compose (verb) - to form in combination; make up; constitute

·         One hundred counties compose the state of North Carolina.

Desert vs. Dessert

Desert (verb) - to forsake or abandon; to leave without permission; to fail when needed

·         Soldiers should not desert their posts.

Desert (noun) - dry, barren, sandy region

·         The largest desert in the world is the Sahara.

Dessert (noun) - a sweet course served at the end of a meal

·         Fruit makes a healthy dessert after lunch or dinner.

Done vs. Did

Done (adjective) - completed; sufficiently cooked; socially acceptable

Done (verb) - the past participle of do

·         After an hour, the roast was done.

Did (verb) - past tense of do

·         The children did not want to leave the playground.

Elicit vs. Illicit

Elicit (verb) - to draw forth; evoke

·         The teacher elicited answers from the students.

Illicit (adjective) - unlawful; illegal

·         The teacher discovered illicit drugs in a student’s desk.

Its vs. It’s

Its (possessive pronoun) - of, belonging to, made by, or done by it

·         The dog will only eat its food when I am also eating.

It’s (contraction) of it + is

·         It’s a very strange dog.

I Could Of vs. I Could Have

I could of - an incorrect use of the verb phrase could have; when written as a contraction "could've" sounds like "could of."

I could have - is the past perfect tense of the verb could

·         I could have gone to the play, but I had to study that night

I Should of vs. I Should Have

I should of - an incorrect use of the verb phrase should have; when written as a contraction "should've" sounds like "should of."

I should have - is the past perfect tense of the verb should

·         I should have gone to the play instead of study because I failed my test anyway.

I Would Of vs. I Would Have

I would of - an incorrect use of the verb phrase would have; when written as a contraction "would've" sounds like "would of."

I would have - is the past perfect tense of the verb would

·         I would have gone to the play except my car wouldn't start.

Lead vs. Led

Lead (noun) - a heavy, soft, malleable, bluish-gray metallic chemical element used in batteries and in numerous alloys and compounds

·         I think it was Mrs. White in the billiard room with the lead pipe.

Led (verb) - past tense and past participle of the verb "to lead"

·         The two coaches have each led their teams to numerous championships.

Lose vs. Loose

Lose (verb) - to become unable to find; to mislay; to fail to win or gain

·         Did you lose your glasses again?

·         How many games did your team lose last season?

Loose (adjective) - not tight; giving enough room

·         I’ve lost twenty pounds, and now these jeans are really loose.

Passed vs. Past

Passed (verb) - past tense of the verb "to pass"

·         I think we passed the store. Let’s turn around and go back.

Past (adjective) - of a former time; bygone; (noun) - the time that has gone by; days, months, or years gone by

·         In the past, I’ve gotten lost a lot, but this time I know where we are.

Precede vs. Proceed

Precede (verb) - to be, come, or go before in time, place, order, rank, or importance

·         The election of a new president precedes his inauguration.

Proceed (verb) - to advance or go on, especially after stopping

·         After your first assignment has been completed and approved, you may proceed to the second one.

Principal vs. Principle

Principal (noun) - a governing or presiding officer, specifically of a school; (adjective) - first in rank, authority, importance, degree, etc.

·         The student’s parents had to have a meeting with the principal.

Principle (noun) - a fundamental truth, law, doctrine, or motivating force, upon which others are based

·         The student’s parents thought that they had instilled stronger moral principles in their son.

Seen vs. Saw

Seen (verb) - past participle of the verb see; must be used with the verbs has, have, or had

·         I have seen the movie three times.

·         *Note: I seen the movie three times is not correct though it is commonly used in spoken language.

Saw (verb) - past tense of the verb see

·         I saw the movie yesterday.

Sell vs. Sale

Sell (verb) - to give up, deliver or exchange for money

·         People who move often sell unwanted items instead of packing them.

Sale (noun) - the act of selling; the work, department, etc. of selling

·         After Christmas sales always bring in the bargain shoppers.

Site vs. Sight

Sight (noun) - something seen, a view, field of vision

·         She was a sight for sore eyes.

Site (noun) - a piece of land considered for a specific purpose

·         The corner lot was a perfect site for the new shopping center.

Stationary vs. Stationery

Stationary (adjective) - not moving or not movable; fixed or still

·         I rode the stationary bike at the gym for an hour.

Stationery (noun) - writing materials; specifically, paper and envelopes used for letters

·         My grandmother has given me a lot of stationery over the years. I think she wants me to use it to write her.

Than vs. Then

Than (conjunction) - used to introduce the second element in a comparison

·         My right foot is bigger than my left foot.

Then (adverb) - at that time; next in order; (adjective) - of that time; (noun) - that time

·         Take off all your clothes first. Then get in the shower.

·         Emily drove up to New York with her then boyfriend, Nick.

·         Let's wait until we're hungry; we can decide what we want to eat then.

Their vs. There vs. They’re

Their (adjective) - of, belonging to, made by, or done by them

·         They were proud of their work.

There (noun) - that place or point

·         Just put it over there.

They’re (contraction) of they + are

·         They’re going out to dinner tonight.

To vs. Too vs. Two

To (preposition) - in the direction of and reaching; as far as; to the extent of

·         I’m going to Baltimore.

Too (adverb) - in addition; as well; besides; also; more than enough; superfluously; overly; to a regrettable extent; extremely

·         I’m going to Baltimore, too.

·         I'm too busy. I can't go to Baltimore.

Two (adjective) the number 2

·         I have two jobs.

Your vs. You're

Your (adjective) - belonging to you

·         Is this your dog?

You're (contraction) - you are

·         You're a great mother!

Who vs. Whom

Who (subject pronoun) - what or which person or persons; the person or persons that, or a person that (used to introduce a relative clause)

·         Who is going to the party with you?

Whom (object pronoun) - what or which person or persons; the person or persons that, or a person that (used to introduce a relative clause)

·         With whom are you going to the party?