- A--used before words and letters with an initial consonant sound
Examples:
- a CPA, a historical event
An--used before words and letters with an initial vowel sound
Examples:
- Alot--incorrect spelling for a lot
- Accept--verb: to take
Example:
- I graciously accept your invitation.
Except--verb: to omit; preposition: but
Examples:
- Mothers of small children are excepted from jury duty.
- Everyone was excused except Joe and me.
- Advice--noun (ending pronounced "ice")
Example:
- Most good advice falls on deaf ears.
Advise--verb (rhymes with devise)
Example:
- The protestors were advised to submit a list of their grievances.
- Affect--verb: to influence
Example:
- The noise affects my concentration.
Effect--noun: result; verb: to bring about
Examples:
- His speech had a positive effect on me.
- The President has effected a new tax law.
- Alright--incorrect spelling for all right
- Almost--adverb
Examples:
- We sold almost all the tickets.
Most--adjective or pronoun
Example:
- We sold most of the tickets.
- Among--used for relationships involving MORE THAN TWO people or things
Example:
- There is a silent closeness among the family members.
Between--used for relationships involving ONLY TWO people or things
Example:
- Lois and Hattie had only fifty cents between them.
- amount--used with singular (mass) nouns (see less)
Examples:
- amount of work, amount of credit
number--used with plural (countable) nouns (see fewer)
Examples:
- number of classes, number of mistakes
- as, as if, as though--used before clauses (see like)
Examples:
- It looks as if (not like) it's going to rain.
- He acts as though (not like) he has Alzheimer's disease
- Be sure and--misused for be sure to
Try and--misused for try to
- Could of--misused for could have
Should of--misused for should have
Might of--misused for might have
Would of--misused for would have
- Different than--used only when a clause follows
Example:
- The old plantation is different than it used to be.
Different from--used always except when a clause follows
Example:
- Her hairdo is different from yours.
- Due to--used to introduce adjective phrases: means "caused by"
Example:
- His mistakes were due to carelessness.
Because of--used to introduce adverb phrases: means "as a result of"
Example:
- He was dismissed because of his dishonesty.
- Due to the fact that--misused and wordy for because
- Enthuse/enthused--colloquialisms for enthusiastic
- fewer--used with countable nouns (see number)
Examples:
- fewer cigarettes, fewer people
less--used with mass nouns or general amounts (see amount)
Examples:
- Hopefully--used as an adverb meaning "in a hopeful manner," not as a sentence modifier (NOTE: Hopefully is usually misused when placed at the beginning of a sentence.)
Example:
- The children waited hopefully for the packages to arrive.
WRONG:
- Hopefully, the team will win.
- Irregardless--misused for regardless
- Is when/is where--should not be used to introduce an explanation or a definition
WRONG:
- Plagiarism is when a writer presents the thoughts and ideas of another author as his own.
Correction:
- Plagiarism occurs when a writer presents the thoughts and ideas of another author as his own.
- Kind of/sort of--correctly used preceding nouns, not adjectives
Example:
- I enjoy reading this kind of magazine.
WRONG:
- The movie was kind of boring.
Correction:
- The movie was rather boring.
- Lead & led--Lead (pronounced "leed") means "to go first." Its principal parts are lead, leads, leading, led (rhymes with red), and (have) led.
Examples:
- Priests lead lives of celibacy.
- The man led a life of celibacy before he became a priest.
NOTE: The homonym for led is a noun.
Example:
- The lead in this pencil is broken.
- Lend--verb: to allow the use of (lending, lent, [have] lent)
Examples:
- The credit union lends (not loans) money to members only.
- I lent (not loaned) my book to her last week.
Loan--noun: something lent for temporary use
Example:
- I need to establish credit so that I can be eligible for a loan.
- Lie--verb: to rest or recline (lying, lay, [have] lain)
Examples:
- I lie on the couch every day.
- I lay on the couch for hours yesterday.
- The sweater is still lying on the couch.
Lay--verb: to put or place (laying, laid, [have] laid)
Examples:
- Where did he lay my brush?
- I must have laid it down somewhere yesterday.
- I'm always laying things down and forgetting where I laid them.
- like--preposition used to introduce a phrase, not a clause (see as, as if, and as though)
Examples:
- His features are unique like a fingerprint.
- It looks like rain.
- Principal--noun: chief official; adjective: foremost, major
Principle--noun: axiom, rule
Example:
- Her principal reasons for resigning were her principles of right and wrong.
- Reason is because/reason was because--misused for reason is that/reason was that
Example:
- The reason he was promoted is that (not is because) he worked exceptionally hard.
- Rise--verb: to go up (rising, rose, [have] risen)
Example:
- She must rise early in the morning to get to work on time.
Raise--verb: to push up (raising, raised, [have] raised)
Example:
- The landlord must raise the rent to cover an increase in taxes.
- Sit--verb: to be seated (sitting, sat, [have] sat)
Example:
- Good students usually sit on the front row.
Set--verb: to put, to place (setting, set, [have] set)
Examples:
- Please set the paperwork on my desk.
- Try to set a positive example for young people to follow.
- Suppose to/use to--incorrect spellings for supposed to and used to
- Than--conjunction
Example:
- Amy is a better tennis player than I.
Then--adverb of time (often misused for than)
Example:
- The cashier rang up our sale; then he gave us our change.