Spelling, Vocabulary, and Confusing Words

a vs. an	Rule. Use a when the first letter of the word following has the sound of a consonant. Keep in mind that some vowels sound like consonants when they’re sounded out as individual letters. Examples: a finger a hotel a U-turn (pronounced You-turn) a HUD program a NASA study Rule. Use an when the first letter of the word following has the sound of a vowel. Remember that some consonants sound like vowels when they’re spoken as individual letters. Examples: an FBI case (F is pronounced ef here) an honor (H is silent here) an unusual idea an HMO plan (H is pronounced aitch here) an NAACP convention (N is pronounced en here) Deciding whether to use a or an before abbreviations can be tricky. The abbreviation for Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) causes confusion because it can be pronounced as a word (fak), or one letter at a time (F-A-Q). Using the guidelines above, one would say a FAQ when it is pronounced as one word, and an FAQ when it is pronounced one letter at a time.
accept except	to agree; to receive but, with the exception that
ad add	advertisement to perform addition
ades aides AIDS aids	fruit drinks people who help; assistants acronym for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome helps, assists
adverse averse	unfortunate; strongly opposed (refers to things, not people) Examples: an adverse reaction to the medication                 adverse weather conditions having repugnance (refers to people) Example: He is averse to a military draft.
advice (noun) advise (verb)	recommendation the act of giving a recommendation
affect vs. effect	Rule 1. Use effect when you mean bring about or brought about, cause or caused. Example: He effected a commotion in the crowd.   Meaning: He caused a commotion in the crowd. Rule 2. Use effect when you mean result.  Example: What effect did that speech have? Rule 3. Also use effect whenever any of these words precede it: a, an, any, the, take, into, no. These words may be separated from effect by an adjective.   Examples:  That book had a long-lasting effect on my thinking.                    Has the medicine produced any noticeable effects? Rule 4. Use the verb affect when you mean to influence rather than to cause.  Example: How do the budget cuts affect your staffing? Rule 5. Affect is used as a noun to mean emotional expression. Example: She showed little affect when told she had won the lottery.
ail ale	to be ill; to cause pain or distress malt beverage more bitter than beer
air err heir	what we breathe make a mistake one who inherits something
aisle I’ll isle	passageway contraction for I will a small island
all awl	entire, everything a tool
allot a lot	to parcel out always two words meaning many
allowed aloud	gave permission to said out loud; spoken
all ready already	means all are ready Example: We are all ready to go. refers to time Example: Is it summer already?
all together altogether	refers to a group; all of us or all of them together Example: It is wonderful to be all together to celebrate your birthday. entirely Example: It is not altogether his fault.
altar alter	pedestal, usually religious Example: They exchanged wedding vows at the altar of the church. to modify Example: Please don't alter your plans until we have the final schedule approved.
allude elude illude	to refer indirectly Example: He alluded to his past as a spy. avoid capture Example: The fugitive eluded the police for a month. mislead Example: He illuded her about his age.
allusion illusion	an indirect mention of something false perception
ambiguous ambivalent	to have more than one meaning Example: The law was ambiguous. to have mixed feelings Example: She is ambivalent about her wedding dress.
amicable amiable	friendly (refers to things, not people) friendly (refers to people) Example: The amiable couple had an amicable divorce.
among between	involves three or more Example: Who among us has not lied? involves just two Example: She couldn’t decide between Chinese and Thai food.
amount number	used for things not countable Example: We couldn't handle that amount of ill will. used for things that can be counted Example: The number of accidents increased by ten percent.
ant aunt	a bug the sister of a parent
ante auntie	a bet placed before playing affectionate term for a parent’s sister
anxious eager	to have anxiety or worry Example: She is anxious about taking the test. excited Example: She is eager to get a puppy.
any more anymore	something additional or further Example: It didn’t rain any more this year than last year. any longer, nowadays Example: Harry doesn’t travel anymore.
appraise apprise	to put a value on something to notify
arc ark	arch, crescent, half moon a vessel or a refuge
ascent (noun) assent (noun or verb) consent	movement upward enthusiastic agreement; to agree agreement
assistance (noun) assistants (noun)	help people who help
assumption presumption	an idea not based on evidence an idea based on evidence
assure ensure insure	to promise or say with confidence to make sure something will/won't happen to issue an insurance policy
ate eight	past tense of eat the number after seven
aural oral	having to do with hearing having to do with the mouth
averse	(see adverse)
awed odd	in a state of amazement unusual; opposite of even when referring to numbers
aye eye I	yes organ one sees with pronoun
bald bawled	having no hair cried
ball bawl	a sphere to cry or wail loudly
band banned	a group, sometimes a group of musicians forbidden
bare bear	naked, unconcealed, plain the animal
base bass	the bottom; vulgar; headquarters (singular) low vocal or instrumental range (pronounced like lace); a type of fish (pronounced like lass)
based baste	be dependent or supported to moisten; to criticize or lash out at
bases (noun, verb) basis (noun)	headquarters (plural of base); builds on foundation; belief
be bee	to exist or live insect
beach beech	sandy area with water type of tree with smooth, gray bark
beat beet	to strike violently; to flutter or flap; to pound as with a drum; to defeat; to stir vigorously a plant with a fleshy red or white root
beau bough (noun) bow (noun) bow (noun, verb)	boyfriend (pronounced like owe) branch of a tree (pronounced like cow) part of a set with arrows (pronounced like owe) boat front, a male's form of curtsy, bending at the waist; comply (pronounced like cow)
because vs. since	Rule. Because and since can be used almost interchangeably although because always indicates cause and effect and since is used for a relationship or time. Example: Since I have some extra money, I will buy shoes. (not cause and effect) Example: I will go to the game because my daughter is on the team. (cause and effect) Example: I have wanted to talk to you since yesterday. (time)
been bin	form of be used with has or have container
bell belle	chime or alarm; a signal beautiful or charming woman
berth birth	a boat dock; bedroom or bed being born; beginning
better bettor	of higher quality someone who places bets
between	(see among)
biannual biennial semiannual	twice a year every two years twice a year (same as biannual)
bite byte	to use one’s teeth to tear food computer term for eight bits of information
billed build	charged a fee construct
blew blue	past tense of blow the color
bloc block	a group united for a particular purpose city street; a cube-shaped object
boar bore	male pig someone or something not interesting
board bored	piece of wood; a group of people uninterested
boarder border	someone who pays for room and food perimeter; boundary
bode bowed	predict bent (pronounced like owed)
bold bowled	daring to have gone bowling; knocked over
bolder boulder	more daring a large rock
boos booze	sounds made by disapproving audience alcohol
bough	(see beau)
bow	(see beau)
boy buoy	male child a naval beacon or marker
brake break	stop separate into pieces
bread bred	a food; slang for money past tense of breed; raised
brewed brood (verb, noun)	fermented mull over; a cluster or family
brews bruise	ferments a black-and-blue mark, contusion
bridal bridle	relating to brides a harness, usually for a horse
bring take	you bring something towards you take something away
broach brooch	to raise a topic a bauble; a piece of jewelry
brows browse	the hairs in the arch above the eyes search for, peruse
but butt (noun/verb)	except bottom; joke object; to ram
buy by bye	purchase, acquire near, next to short for goodbye
cache cash	hidden stash money
calendar colander	chart of days and months sieve to drain off liquids
can may	able to permission to
cannon canon	large, mounted gun rule, commandment
canvas canvass	awning cloth, tarp to poll; a poll
capital capitol	assets; essential; main city statehouse
carat caret carrot karat	unit of weight in gemstones a proofreading mark to show insertion (^) edible root a unit for measuring the fineness of gold
cast (noun, verb) caste	group of actors; to throw a social class, a rigid system of social distinctions
cay key quay	a small, low island (also spelled key) a small, low island; instrument for opening locks (pronounced key) wharf, dock, pier
cede seed	to surrender reproductive germ
cell sell	prison room; basic structural unit of an organism to exchange for money
censor (verb, noun) censure sensor	disallow; person who disallows Example: The soldier's letters were censored before mailing. to disapprove of; criticize strongly Example: The children were censured by the principal. a device that measures heat, light, etc. and transmits a signal to a control or measuring instrument
cent scent sent	a penny a smell, aroma transmitted
cereal serial	breakfast food a series or array
chance chants	accident(al) chorus, melody
chased chaste	went after pure, virginal
chews choose	how one eats food with teeth to pick
childish childlike	immature innocent
Chile chili chilly	a country in South America a type of pepper; a dish with peppers in it cold, brisk
choral (adj.) chorale (noun) coral (noun, adj.) corral (noun, verb)	having to do with a chorus or a choir Example: My choral group meets on Wednesday evenings. a hymn; a group of singers specializing in church music material that makes up reefs; orange color a horse pen; to confine
chord cord cored	three or more musical tones sounded simultaneously; line segment joining two points on a curve a rope or strand of flexible material removed the center of something
chute shoot (verb, noun)	an inclined shaft to discharge from a weapon; a stem
cite sight site	to assert; to quote from; to subpoena vision, the power to see a location or position
classic classical	important; fundamental having to do with Greek or Roman antiquity; pertaining to eighteenth-to nineteenth-century music
clause claws	in grammar, a group of words containing a subject and verb; part of a contract an animal’s nails
click clique	a sound a group
climactic climatic	having to do with the climax having to do with the climate
close (verb, adjective) clothes	to shut (pronounced like rose); nearby (pronounced like dose) apparel
coarse course	rough, lacking in fineness of texture; crude a class; a path
colander	(see calendar)
colonel kernel	an officer in the military a seed
complement compliment	completing part of an order praise
confidant confident	someone confided in certain, sure
connote denote	to suggest, imply Example: A growling dog connotes danger. to be a sign of Example: Certain clouds denote rain on the way.
consent	(see assent)
continual continuous	repeated but with breaks in between; chronic Example: The continual problem of our car not starting forced us to sell it. without interruption in an unbroken stream of time or space Example: The continuous dripping of the faucet drove me crazy.
core corps corpse	center or crucial part trained group dead body
cosign cosine	to sign along with a trigonometry term
council counsel (verb, noun)	a group of people meeting for a purpose advise; advice, an attorney
creak creek	a sound a stream
crews cruise	many groups a trip or vacation by sea
criteria criterion	plural of criterion a standard for evaluating or testing something
cue queue	a hint; a stimulus a line of people waiting
currant current	type of small berry up to date
curser cursor	someone who swears or wishes misfortune on another a blinking symbol indicating position on a computer screen