Most spellcheck and grammar check programs are useful, but they are far from perfect. An author might have spelled a word correctly but used it incorrectly, or we might have used the wrong homonym. These are issues that free grammar and spelling tools are not likely to correct. Raise your hand if you’ve been guilty of mixing up words that sounded similar but had different meanings. Hand raised! Sometimes, those mistakes can even be embarrassing, right? Well, never fear! We are here to explain how to correctly use 40 of the most easily confused English words and save you from embarrassing blunders!
40 Easily Confused Words Authors Should Know
Written by Wordvice HJ4,046Updated Sep 28, 20225 min read
- 1.Accept vs. Except
- 2.Advice vs. Advise
- 3.Affect vs. Effect
- 4.Among vs. Between
- 5.Assure vs. Ensure vs. Insure
- 6.Bare vs. Bear
- 7.Climatic vs. Climactic
- 8.Complement vs. Compliment
- 9.Disinterested vs. Uninterested
- 10.Economic vs. Economical
- 11.Elicit vs. Illicit
- 12.Farther vs. Further
- 13.Historic vs. Historical
- 14.Imply vs. Infer
- 15.It’s vs. Its
- 16.Lay vs. Lie
- 17.Principal vs. Principle
- 18.Stationary vs. Stationery
- 19.Than vs. Then
- 20.Their vs. There vs. They’re
Accept vs. Except
Advice vs. Advise
Affect vs. Effect
Among vs. Between
Assure vs. Ensure vs. Insure
Bare vs. Bear
Climatic vs. Climactic
Complement vs. Compliment
Disinterested vs. Uninterested
Economic vs. Economical
Elicit vs. Illicit
Farther vs. Further
Historic vs. Historical
Imply vs. Infer
It’s vs. Its
Lay vs. Lie
Principal vs. Principle
Stationary vs. Stationery
Than vs. Then
Their vs. There vs. They’re
For more instruction on academic writing, visit our Academic Resources page. And to receive expert revision on any written document, check out our all-in academic editing services.
Is this article helpful?
