Frequently Confused Words

Test your Knowledge Do you know the differences between any of the following words? It’s/Its Accept/Except There/Their/They’re Your/You’re To/Too/Two Then/Than Advice/Advise Of/Have Use/Used Quite/Quiet Fewer/Less Between/Among Who’s/Whose Everyday/Every Day

See if you figured it out Open your Writer’s Reference book to the usage glossary on page 159. See if you can find out what the differences are between the words on the previous slide.

Verbal English vs. Written English Many people have no knowledge of the differences between these kinds of words because they rely very heavily on verbal English. When we speak, the spelling often doesn’t matter because the people listening to us aren’t able to see the words we’re using. When we write, it’s a different matter. In English, there are many words that we use to mean specific things, and most of the time, these words have different spellings. So when people who primarily use verbal English try to write, they often use words incorrectly unless they’ve become aware of the differences between certain words and have internalized them.

How do we get better? People who have problems with frequently confused words should aim for long-term solutions as well as strategies to help them in the short term. Long-term solutions include reading frequently and consistent practice writing and getting feedback as well as becoming aware of and working with problem words frequently. Short-term solutions include discovering the words that are problematic and making notes, and practicing editing papers that contain these sorts of errors. No one gets better overnight, but with patience, work, and effort, we can get better eventually.

Know Yourself Do you know any words that you frequently get mixed up, or didn’t know were often confused? What are they? Look them up in the usage glossary in your book and make notes of the meanings.

Editing Practice: Look at the following paragraph. See if you can find and correct the confused word errors. In the middle of a debate in my speech class last week, I suddenly became very self-conscience. My heart started beating faster, and I didn’t no what to due. I looked around me to see if my show of nerves was having an affect on the audience. Of coarse, they could here my voice trembling. The topic we were debating involved weather it would be best to eliminate letter grades in college, and everyone else was doing so well. But for some reason, my face turned red, and I would of left the room if the door had been closer. After the debate, my classmates tried to give me complements, but I new they were just trying to make me feel better.

The Answers: In the middle of a debate in my speech class last week, I suddenly became very self-conscious. My heart started beating faster, and I didn’t know what to do. I looked around me to see if my show of nerves was having an effect on the audience. Of course, they could hear my voice trembling. The topic we were debating involved whether it would be best to eliminate letter grades in college, and everyone else was doing so well. But for some reason, my face turned red, and I would have left the room if the door had been closer. After the debate, my classmates tried to give me compliments, but I knew they were just trying to make me feel better.

Finally If you missed some in the practice, don’t panic. It just means that you need to continue to work to develop your editing skills when you read a passage like this. Here are a few strategies that often make editing for grammar errors easier: Read the text aloud. Often you will discover what you say is not the same as what’s on the printed page. Read the text backwards. Read the last sentence first, then the next before it, and the next before that until you have read the entire document. Set the text aside for a few hours or a day and then read it again.