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MOST COMMONLY CONFUSED WORDS IN ENGLISH

English is filled with words that look alike or sound alike (or both), but mean very
different things — so it’s easy to get confused and use the wrong word at the
wrong moment.

Here’s a list of some of the most commonly confused words in the English
language:
1. ‘Dessert’ or ‘desert’
Dessert is a sweet dish, while the desert is a hot, dry place which is often full of
sand.
• I ordered ice cream for dessert after my main course.
• I visited a desert while I was in Saudi Arabia
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2. ‘Accept’ or ‘except’
To accept means to receive or agree to something, while except means
‘excluding’.
• If you are happy with the contract, sign here to accept
• I like most vegetables except for carrots.

3. ‘There’ or ‘their’
There is an adverb of place which we user to talk about where something is.
Their is a possessive pronoun that we use to talk about something that belongs to a
group of people.
• He has lived there for 20 years.
• They love their parents.
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4. ‘Principle’ or ‘principal’
Principles are beliefs, values or basic truths, while principal means the head of a
school, or the main thing.
• He has many principles. One of which is that we should all be kind to each
other.
• The principal actor in the play gave a great performance.
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5. ‘Advice’ or ‘advise’
Advice is a noun and advise is a verb, so you can advise someone by giving them
good advice.
• My mother always gives good advice.
• I advised him to look for another job.
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6. ‘Borrow’ or ‘lend’
To borrow means to receive something as a loan, while to lend means to give
something as a loan.
• Can I borrow your car?
• Sorry, I can’t lend it to you today.

7. ‘Despite’ or ‘although’
These have a similar meaning but are used differently. Despite is usually followed
by a gerund or a noun whereas although is usually followed by a whole clause.
• Despite the rain, we still had a great time.
• Despite getting wet cold, we still had a great time.
• Although it was raining, we still had a great time.

8. ‘Affect’ or ‘effect’
Affect is a verb and effect is a noun.
• The war has affected all sectors of the economy.
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• The effect of the war is enormous.

“Affect” is almost always a verb meaning to act upon, to make a change to

something.
“Effect” is usually a noun, and typically means a change that happened already,
one that resulted from something else acting on it.
• The heat affected the woman.
• The heat had an effect on the woman.
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9. ‘Personal’ or ‘personnel’
Your personal details include your name, age and nationality,
while personnel mean the employees of a company.
• Be careful with your personal details on the Internet.
• This company has great personnel – they all work so hard!

10. ‘Assure’ or ‘ensure’

To assure someone means to remove doubt or reassure them, while ensure means
to make certain that something happens.
• I assured him that you would be there.
• Please ensure that you get to the meeting on time.
So, now you know the difference between these confusing English words. Make an
example sentence with each one to help you remember it or try using the new
words in conversation today.
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11. Lie vs. Lay

Lie is a verb meaning to recline or rest on a surface.
Lay is a verb meaning to put or place.
Kim lies down to take a nap every day at 3:30 p.m.
Before falling asleep, Kim lays her bracelet on the table.
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12. Lose vs. Loose

Lose is a verb meaning to misplace. Loose is an adjective meaning slack,
moveable, or weak.
I always manage to lose my loose-fitting tank top.

13. Than vs. Then

Than is a conjunction used to compare two things.
Then is usually an adverb indicating time.
Do you think that Pepsi Cola is better than Coca Cola? We went to the store,
and then to a movie.
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14. Their vs. There vs. They’re

Their is a pronoun that is plural possessive.
There is a word that means place.
They’re is a contraction that means they are.
Their dog is over there digging through the trash. They’re not the most
responsible pet owners.
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15. To vs. Too vs. Two

To is a preposition indicating direction. Too is an adverb meaning in addition or
also. Two is a number.
Too many times, students go to their adviser to set up their classes, but only
have two of their five classes picked out.

16. Who vs. Whom

Who is a pronoun, used as the subject of a sentence. Whom is a pronoun, used as
a direct object.
Who is responsible for the research on this group project? We assigned research
to whom for this group project?
NOTE: As a general rule, if you can substitute “she” then “who” is the
appropriate choice. If you can substitute “her” then “whom” is the appropriate
choice.
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17. Your vs. You’re

Your is a pronoun that is second person possessive. You’re is a contraction that
means you are.
Your clothes will wrinkle if you’re not careful with the drying cycle you choose.

18. Among vs Between

Among expresses a collective or loose relationship of several items: Chester found
a letter hidden among the papers on the desk.
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Between expresses the relationship of one thing to another thing or to many other
things: Posey spent all day carrying messages between Chester and the other
students. The idea that between can be used only when talking about two things is a
myth—it’s perfectly correct to use between if you are talking about multiple binary
relationships.

19. Breath vs Breathe

Breath is a noun; it’s the air that goes in and out of your lungs: Chester held his
breath while Posey skateboarded down the stairs.
Breathe is a verb; it means to exhale or inhale: After Posey’s spectacular landing,
Chester had to remind himself to breathe again.
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20. Capital vs Capitol

Capital has several meanings. It can refer to an uppercase letter, money, or a city
where a seat of government is located: Chester visited Brasίlia, the capital of
Brazil.
Capitol means the building where a legislature meets: Posey visited the cafe in the
basement of the capitol after watching a bill become a law.

21. Complement/Compliment
A complement is something that completes something else. It’s often used to
describe things that go well together: Chester’s lime green boots were a perfect
complement to his jacket.
A compliment is a nice thing to say: Posey received many compliments on her
purple fedora.
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22. Stationary/Stationery
Stationary means unmoving: The revolving door remained stationary because
Posey was pushing on it the wrong way.
Stationery refers to letter writing materials and especially to high quality paper:
Chester printed his résumé on his best stationery.
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23. Resign and Re-sign

This one is a little tougher. These two words have identical spellings – except for
the hyphen – and opposite meanings.

Resign — without the hyphen — means to quit your job and the “s” is pronounced
like a “z.”
• My boss didn’t want to increase my salary so I decided to resign. This will
be my last week of work.
Re-sign — with the hyphen — means to sign a contract again and it usually also
means that you’ve decided to stay in your current job! In re-sign, the “s” is
pronounced as an “s,” and you emphasize the first syllable.
• I love my current job, so I happily re-signed for another year.
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24. Advice and Advise

With these words we have similar spellings, similar meanings and only a slight
difference in pronunciation.

Advice — with an “s” sound — is a noun. You can give your friend some advice.
• My father gave me one piece of advice – “Always be on time.”
Advise — with a “z” sound — is a verb. With this word, you can advise your
friend. The meaning of the two words is basically the same.
• She advised me to invest my money more carefully.
26. Affect and Effect
Again, with these two words the main difference is grammatical, although they’re
pronounced slightly differently. Usually, affect is a verb and effect is a noun, and
they’re used when talking about the results or consequences of particular actions.

• I’m worried that your lazy habits will affect your studies (your lazy habits
will have a bad effect on your studies).
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• Before you start an argument with your boss, consider the effects of your
actions (before you start an argument, consider how your actions
will affect the situation).
27. Compliment and Complement

Compliment — If someone says to you “I really like your shirt” then they’re
complimenting you. In other words, they’re giving you a compliment. As a verb
and noun, compliment means saying something nice about someone.
• I complimented my sister on her delicious cooking (verb).
• I gave my sister a compliment on her delicious cooking (noun).
Complement — is when two things go well together, or complete each other. This
word is often used in food and in fashion to describe matching styles or
ingredients.
• My blue tie really complements my white shirt (my blue tie and white shirt
go well together).
• That wine complements the meat dish well.
28. Disinterested and Uninterested
Many native speakers use these two words with the same meaning – bored, or not
interested. That’s certainly the meaning of uninterested, but it’s not the meaning
of disinterested. The real meaning of disinterested is impartial, objective or not
taking a side in an argument. A judge hearing a court case should be disinterested,
but definitely not uninterested!
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• The children wanted to play outside and were very uninterested in doing any
studying.
• Sometimes a stranger can make a disinterested and fair decision more easily
than a family member.
These days, many people believe that disinterested can also mean uninterested. But
it’s still helpful to know the difference.
29. Bear and Bare
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Bear — as a verb — has several meanings, including to hold up or support a heavy

weight and to suffer or endure difficulties. We’re not talking about big hairy bears
that live in forests.
• Don’t stand on that old chair, it cannot bear your weight.
• I cannot bear to see my son in pain.
Bare, meanwhile, is an adjective that means naked or uncovered, or a verb which
means to uncover or reveal.
• Visitors to the temple must not have bare arms or legs, so wear long pants
and a jacket (adjective).
• I bared my arm to show them my new tattoo (verb).
30. Further and Farther
These two are very confusing. Further and farther both have the same meaning but
are used in different situations. They’re pronounced in a similar way too, but with
a difference – fur and far.

Farther — with far — is used when we’re talking about physical distance.
• As a passenger in a car, you can ask the driver “How much farther until we
reach our destination?”
• In a race, you can say “She ran farther and faster than him.”
Further — with fur — is used for more abstract situations.
• The human resources representative told me: “If you have
any further complaints, please tell me.”
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• The professor told us: “If you have any further questions you can ask me at
the end.”
In those examples, complaints and questions are not physical things, so you cannot
use the word farther. Take one more look at the difference between this two words
in context:
If we drive any farther tonight we’ll be too tired to continue driving tomorrow.
We should discuss this topic further before we make a decision.
31. Hanged and Hung
The difference between hanged and hung can be deadly.

Hung is the past of the verb to hang, most of the time.

• I hung the painting on the wall and I hung my clothes on the clothes line.
Hanged is the deadly exception, as it’s the past tense of hang in one very particular
situation. Hang can also mean to execute a criminal by hanging them with a rope.
In that case, the past tense of hang is hanged.
• The judge sentenced the murderer to be hanged.
• The criminal was hanged in the prison.
32. perquisite vs prerequisite
A prerequisite is a thing that is required as a prior condition.
A perquisite, or perk for short, is something that you get in addition to your normal
job salary, usually a non-cash benefit like use of a company car — or if you’re
really lucky, a private jet. (Hey, we can dream…)
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• A working knowledge of a foreign language was a prerequisite for the job.

• In addition to a great salary, he got a nice perquisite: a leased luxury car.

33. “copywrite” and “copyright”

Remember, you don’t copywrite what you wrote, you copyright it.
“Copyright” is a legal right (notice the “right”) giving the creator of an original
work the exclusive legal entitlement to it.
“Copywriting” is something people in advertising do — they write copy (or text).
Incidentally, no one says “copywrite” without the “ing,” they “write copy.”
• Original written works are protected by copyright law.
• The top copywriter at the ad agency writes stellar copy.
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34. “discrete” and “discreet”

“Discreet” means capable of keeping secrets or unobtrusive.
“Discrete” means separate or distinct. Both come from the same Latin word, but
evolved to become very distinct words that are frequently confused. We’ve seen
sex toys advertised as being shipped in “discrete” packages, which only means
they’re being shipped separately.
• People always felt comfortable telling her secrets, since she was so discreet.
• The pieces were arranged in discrete piles.
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35. “hone in” and “home in”

Never say “honing in.” You home in.
“Homing in” initially described carrier pigeons returning to their homes, then, by
the 1920s, described aircraft and missiles being guided to a target. From there, it
came to generally mean anyone or anything focusing on or directed towards a goal.
“Hone,” on the other hand, means “to sharpen,” as with a knife.
• We’re homing in on the right solution to this problem.
• Researchers are homing in fast on the source of the virus.
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36. “in regard to” and “in regards to”

It’s “in regard to.” Or better yet, just say “regarding.” You can say “as regards,” or
offer someone your “best regards,” both with the “s.”
But in regard to “in regards to,” leave that “s” off!
• I had a long talk with him in regard to his request for a loan.
• The teacher talked to the students in regard to their homework.

37. “should of” and “should have”

If, like all too many people, you said “should of,” well, you should have picked the
second version.
“Have” is the main verb part of this phrase, and it should always be included,
either as the complete “have” or the contraction”’ve.”
The wrong “of” usage comes from how that contraction sounds.
• I should have never used “should of” in that sentence!
• Those plates were expensive ... you should have been more careful.
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38. Quite vs Quiet

Quite Quiet

Meaning The word ‘quite’ is used to refer to The word ‘quiet’ means to make no or
the utmost degree or completely. little noise, i.e., being noiseless and
discreet.

Usage It is used as an Adverb. It is used as an Adjective.

Example I am quite sure I saw Peter at the The teacher asked the students to
store. remain quiet.
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39. Rise vs Raise

Rise Raise

Meaning The word rise simply means to get up The word raise means to elevate
or go to a higher position from a lower something to a higher
position. level/position.

Usage It is used as a Verb. It is used as a Verb.

Example The sun is rising over the water. The Prime Minister raises the flag
on 15th August.

40. A lot/ Alot/ Allot/ Lots/ A whole lot

A lot is used to tell how many or how much. It is used as an adverb or a
quantifier. For example, you can say that you love eating pizza a lot, or you can
say that there are a lot of pencils on the table. Either way, you are saying that
there is a large number or large amount of something.

Notice that, if you use it to describe the number of something (as a quantifier),
you need to use “of” to introduce the items.

• Dan likes to watch TV shows a lot.

• Sally uses a lot of her time at work trying to read self-help books.
Allot
to allocate, give or apportion something to someone or something.

• I allot five hours a day to learning English.

• I allotted 500 pounds towards my new games console.
Lots
The same meaning as a lot, just a bit less formal and generally used in speech
rather than writing.

• A leopard has lots of spots.

• Lots of people like to listen to music.
Lot
If you are using lot as a noun, the meaning is different. Usually it describes a
group of something that often is for sale, such as seven lots of yogurt. This
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means that there are groups of yogurts (probably in bottles) that are being sold
together.

As a noun, lot can also refer to things that people draw to decide on things. For
example, you can draw lots to see who will go first, second, third, and so on.

For example, a parking lot is a term used in the United States that talks about
the large places where you can park your car. You can also buy a lot of land,
for example.

• Since we cannot decide who should go first, we should draw lots from
this hat to decide for us.
• Pat is trying to sell his land all together, but he is willing to separate
them into lots if you really just want a little piece.
• At the auction, several lots brought in high prices while
other lots were basically given away.

41. Meanwhile vs While

While and as

We can use the word “while” or “as” to connect two actions or situations that
happen at the same time. Listen to the examples:

While I was crossing the street, the traffic light turned red.

As I was crossing the street, the traffic light turned red.

But “while” is more common. “As” can sometimes sound formal – or

even literary.

Notice that the structure of the two sentence examples is the same. Only one word
changes.

You can also put “as” or “while” in the middle of a sentence. For example, you can
say, “The traffic light turned red as I was crossing the street.”
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Meanwhile

Now, let’s talk about “meanwhile,” which means “at or during the same time.”

When we use “meanwhile,” our sentence structure changes. Listen to how the
speaker uses it:

I was crossing the street. Meanwhile, the traffic light turned red.

Here, you have two separate sentences describing what two things happened.
“Meanwhile” comes at the start of the second sentence.

42. Beside vs Besides

Beside without (s) is a preposition indicating the place, while Besides with(s) is
either a preposition or an adverb. Check the table for a clear difference between the
two:

Difference between Beside and Besides

Beside Besides

A preposition indicating the Besides can be both preposition and adverb depending
location of something on the context used.

Beside means, ‘next to’ or at Besides as preposition means, ‘in addition to’ or ‘apart
the side of or close to from’. When used as an adverb, it means, ‘moreover’,
something ‘furthermore’, ‘another thing’, ‘as well’.

Beside Examples: Besides Examples:

• Your shoes are beside • Besides Tom, who else has not completed their
the closet project?
• I feel lonely, please • Besides, there is more to what our eyes see.
come and sit beside me. • No one besides a good leader can take such a call
for citizens welfare.
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• I wish to sit beside • She is too tired to go for practice. Besides, she has
Anjelina Jolie and take hurt her knees.
a picture with her. • He wishes to learn more. Besides, he is a
• The kutcha house competitive person.
beside the highway fell
down due to storm
• She earned a place
beside the best actors in
the industry.

END