Words Often Confused

Words often confused are like anything else in life. With a little patience and a lot of hard work you can master words often confused.

Below, you will find the third page of words often confused in the English language.

I'm not going to say that "that's all there is" because just when I thought I had them all... along came some more!

Admission / Admittance

I went to the U.S. Consulate but was refused admittance.

No admission will be charge at the school concert.

There is no admittance into that country without a visa.

Air / Airs

There was air pollution near the factories.

I don’t like people who put on airs.

There was an air of excitement when the match began.

Alone / Lonely

“Leave me alone”, shouted John.

John felt lonely when she remained alone in the house.

Almost / Most / Mostly

She is the most intelligent student in the class.

The people in Hong-Kong are mostly Chinese.

Most of the students wish to have a rest after long hours of work.

As a whole / On the whole

Let us take the whole incident into consideration as a whole.

Jack is on the whole an industrious student.

Assure / Ensure / Insure

The manager assures us that the recorder would be repaired properly.

The owner of the goldsmith wants to insure against robbery.

You must check your work carefully to ensure that you do not make any mistakes.

Cause / Reason

What are the causes of their quarrel?

What is your reason for studying in this school?

Charge / Cost / Price / Value / Worth

These books cost a lot of money.

These books are worth a lot of money.

The price of the books has been raised recently.

An antique has no value if it is broken.

We did not need to pay any service charge after using the hall.

Clash / Crash

What a pity that the two meetings clash.

He saw a bus crash into the lamp post.

Ann and Mary often quarrel because their ideas often clash.

Cloth / Clothing / Clothes

John cleaned the table with a cloth.

He laid a cloth on the ground and put down some clothes.

Her clothes got wet after the rain.

I don’t like wearing thick clothing in winter.

Compose / Comprise / Consist

The class club committee comprises eight members.

The class club committee consists of eight members.

The committee is composed of teachers and students.

Compare to / Compare with

You may compare your work with David’s and see which is better.

Your work is nothing compared with David’s.

Many poets like to compare life to morning dew.

Concern / Concerning / Concern

All the classmates are concerned about his health.

The topic is concerned with careless driving.

They are discussing something concerning the youth problem.

Continual / Continuous

The continual rain made us feel bored.

They enjoyed a continuous performance till midnight.

Copy / Imitate

You should not copy your neighbor’s answers.

The teacher advised his students not to imitate him.

Credible / Credulous / Incredible

       That is really an incredible story. I don’t think it’s real one.

       He is such a credulous man that he often believes what you say.

            Did the committee find his statement credible?

Damage / Injure / Hurt / Wound

            He hurt his leg after jumping down from a tree.

       Many huts are damaged by the fire.

       A tall man hurt him with an axe.

       Many fire victims were injured and taken to hospital.

Disinterested / Uninterested

       A disinterested judge is said to make a fair judgment.

       He is uninterested in dancing.

Divide / Share

       John shared the books among themselves.

       The teacher divided the students into four groups.

Economic / Economical / Economics / Economy

       Mrs. Young is said to be an economical housekeeper.

       He is going to study economics in the university.

       Tourism plays an important part in the economy of Greece.

       The economic indicators say we are headed towards a depression.

Eligible / Legible

            She is eligible for promotion due to her hard work and dedication.

            Mr. Kontogeorgakis’ handwriting is almost not legible.

Eminent / Imminent

            Dr. Chevereney is an eminent surgeon in our city.

            Most people were in a hurry to go home as a typhoon was imminent.

Equal / Identical / Similar

            The tow applicants are of equal ability.

            Your book is similar to the one that I lost last week.

            They are surprised to find that their shirts are identical.

Error / Mistake

            I took his book by mistake.

            An error of judgment can be disastrous.

            There are so many errors in this letter I don’t understand it.

Crime / Sin/ Fault

       Don’t punish him. It is not his fault.

       He confessed his sin to a priest.

       He is very careful man but he makes mistakes occasionally.

       His sentence was death because he committed a very heinous crime.

Exciting / Excited / Excitement

The boys became excited when they watched such an exciting basketball match.

When they heard that he had passed the examination, he jumped up and down out of excitement.

Everyday / Every Day

            What do you do every day?

            John seems to be very busy with everyday work.

            She writes ten letters every day.

Fare / Fee

            A student has to pay the fare when he takes a bus.

            The fare is more by taxi than by minibus.

            When will the students pay the school fee?

Hang / Hanged / Hung

            Last night the criminal was hanged to death.

            John hung a picture on the wall a few minutes ago.

Handed / Hand

            He took her by the hand to cross the street.

            John was handed an award for being on time all semester long.

Hard / Hardly

            Hardly had he finished his work when the bell rang.

            He could hardly see in darkness.

            He tried hard to improve himself.

Hire / Let / Rent

            This house is not to let.

            The young couple rented a flat in the building.

                They hired a truck to take the furniture to their new flat.

Hope / Expect / Wish

            I don’t expect to see him at the airport next Monday.

            What do you expect him to do?

            I wish I could help you to solve the problem.

            She hopes she will be admitted to the university.

Imaginary / Imagination / Imaginative

            This story was about an imaginary situation.

            Why does John have so much imagination?

            He’s got an imaginative mind.

Migrate / Immigrant

            Where do the birds migrate when winter comes?

            Too many immigrants may lead to various social problems.

Interesting / Interested / Interest

            These story books do not seem to interest the students.

            He is very interested in taking photographs.

            You can never find this book interesting if you don’t read it.

Insist / Persist

            John insisted on going for a walk despite the heavy rain outside.

            The boy persisted in his plan though it was not very practical.

Intense / Intensive

       Most of the onlookers felt hot because of the intense heat.

       Last year I took an intensive course in Japanese.

Journey / Voyage / Tour / Trip

            We shall take a trip to Vienna on Sunday.

            Mr. Chan had a tour in Europe during the summer vacation.

            How long does a journey from Chicago to New York take?

            One of the tourists caught a cold on the voyage.

Late / Lately / Later / Latter / Latest / Last

       I haven’t seen Mary lately.

 Both John and Jack are hardworking students, but the latter was   more active at school.

 Mary is always fascinated by the latest fashion.

 Read the last line of the third paragraph carefully.

            Jane is always late for school.

Loud / Loudly / Aloud

            Would you mind not talking so loud?

 You have to speak aloud; otherwise your classmates can’t hear what you say.

 It’s impolite to speak in a loud voice.

 A woman shouted loudly that her handbag was stolen.

Maybe / May Be

            Maybe he is unable to solve the problem himself.

            David may be doing his work now.

Memorize / Memory / Memorial / Memorable / Remember

                I shall never forget taking part in such a memorable occasion.

               I remembered seeing him read a newspaper a few minutes ago.

              I do not take history because there are too many facts to memorize.

            My uncle has bad memory for dates.

            A memorial school is built for the chairman of the association.

Movable / Portable

            The large cupboard in the kitchen is not movable.

You may bring along your portable cassette recorder when you go for the picnic.

Neglect / Negligent / Negligible

            Good parents never neglect their children.

            It was said that John was rather negligent in his work.

            He was dismissed because he was negligent of his duties.

The manager did not report the burglary to the police because the amount of money stolen was negligible.

Noise / Sound

            Don’t make any noise; otherwise you’ll be punished.

            Some strange sounds were made by the wild bird.

Personal / Personnel

            It is only my personal opinion. What’s yours?

The personnel manager of the firm interviewed all the candidates   for the job.

Respectable / Respectful / Respective / Respectively

The candidates went to their respective classrooms when the bell rang.

He belongs to the respectable upper classes.

The crowd stood at a respectful distance from the governor.

Our principal is a respectable man.

The students went back to their classrooms respectively after the assembly.

Presently / Recently

A new metro will be built in Thessaloniki presently.

John has made much improvement recently.

Raise / Rise / Arouse / Arise

Many problems arise after the government announced the new taxation policy.

You may raise your hands if you have questions.

The minibus drivers usually raise the fare when a typhoon comes.

The food price has risen a lot recently.

Two young men wearing sunglasses arouse the policemen’s suspicion.

Refuse / Reject / Decline

He refused to help us organize the annual carnival.

He was disappointed to hear that this application was rejected again.

He was so busy that he declined his friend’s invitation to dinner.

The committee had considered carefully before rejecting his proposal.

Mr. Wright refused to discuss his plan with his colleagues.

Scene / Scenery

They were fascinated by the scenery of the countryside.

That soldier never forgets the scene of a great battle.

The drama consists of five scenes.

Sometime / Sometimes / Some time

He will leave for Scotland sometime next year.

Sometimes I watch television till midnight.

We haven’t seen Amy for some time.

Successive / Succession / Success / Successful

They were busy with their work in five successive days.

They did not give up in spite of a succession of defeats.

It is said that John will be in succession to his father’s property.

Congratulations! Your plan is really a treat success.

Thorough / Through

The police carried out thorough investigation into the murder case.

That window is too narrow to get through.

I wondered how he got through his examination.

Tired / Tiresome

He felt tired after Working for a long time.

The tiresome students made the teacher very angry.

Valuable / Invaluable / Priceless / Worthless

I would like to thank Sergeant Alexander for his invaluable service to us.

This is really a very valuable gift.

She was given a priceless diamond ring for her wedding anniversary.

Nobody will take care of a worthless old car.

Wake / Awake / Awaken / Waken

Mary got up late this morning because her mother forgot to wake her up.

It is difficult to make him awake to the problem.

The accident awakens him to the danger of careless driving.

Is the patient awake or asleep?