Home
>
Writing
>
Pairs/Groups Of Words Often Confused - Part 3 of 6

Pairs/Groups Of Words Often Confused - Part 3 of 6

ELICIT, ILLICIT

Elicit means to extract or draw out; illicit means not legal.

EVERYONE, EVERY ONE

Everyone means every person in a group; every one means each person and is always followed by "of".

"Everyone needs to know how to swim."

"Every one of you should be able to swim."

FAIR, FARE

Fair means average, good-looking, pale, unbiased (what a lot of meanings for one little word!); fare is the money you pay to go somewhere by bus, train, plane, taxi, etc. It can also refer to a passenger. As a verb it means do, as in:

"I didn't fare as well in my exams this year as I'd hoped."

FAZE, PHASE

The most common error is the use of phase when the writer means faze. To faze someone is to fluster or confuse them, whereas phase is mostly used in reference to a stage in someone's life--though it can be a stage in almost anything else:

"Like most children, Danny's going through a phase of refusing to eat his vegetables."

"Nothing fazes my mother, who can produce a meal for unexpected guests at a moment's notice."

FOREWORD, FORWARD

Foreword is the preface in a book, usually written by someone who is not the author; forward means ahead, near the front.

FORTH, FOURTH

Forth means forward; fourth is after "third".

FOUL, FOWL

Foul can mean dishonourable (by foul means), disgusting (a foul smell), entangle (rubbish dumped in the river can foul fishing lines); fowl is a bird.

GORILLA, GUERRILLA

Gorilla is a large ape; guerrilla is a particular kind of soldier.

HANGED, HUNG

A criminal is always hanged; a picture is hung:

"We hung the portrait where everybody could see it."

"John Smith was hanged yesterday at dawn."

Just remember, "I'll be hanged if they're going to hang me," and you won't forget the difference again!

HERD, HEARD

Herd is a group of animals; heard is the past tense of hear.

HERE, HEAR

Here refers to a location (as in "over here"). Hear is always what your ears do. I can't see why writers should get confused here, but they must do because I have seen this more than once. (And, no, that's not a sample sentence!)

IRREGARDLESS, REGARDLESS

There is no such word as irregardless; the correct word is regardless.

HOLE, WHOLE

Hole is an opening; whole means complete.

ITS, IT'S

This is confusing because possessives normally have an apostrophe, but in this case it's is short for it is and its is possessive--always.

"Its colour is green and it's quite beautiful."

Other possessives that don't have an apostrophe are theirs, hers, yours and his--though I doubt anyone is likely to try putting one in his!

About The Author

Laraine Anne Barker writes fantasy for young people. Visit her web site at http://lbarker.orcon.net.nz. Fantasy for Children & Young Adults for FREE stories and novel excerpts. Sign up for the NOVELLA OF THE MONTH CLUB, absolutely FREE!

efficient cleaning crew Northbrook ..

In The News:

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.

South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.

Archer Aviation has acquired Hawthorne Airport for $126M to launch an LA air taxi network ahead of the 2028 Olympics, featuring AI-powered eVTOL operations and next-gen aviation tech.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Fake AI apps disguised as "ChatGPT" and "DALL·E" are flooding app stores with dangerous malware that steals data and monitors users without detection.

Fake buyers demand specific vehicle reports from unknown sites to steal credit card information from car sellers, but warning signs can help identify these scams before paying.

Android users can now manage apps across multiple devices more easily with Google Play Store's updated remote uninstall button in the latest update.

NASA's Perseverance rover discovers shiny metallic rock on Mars that could be a meteorite from an ancient asteroid, containing high levels of iron and nickel.

Holiday scams spike during Black Friday and Cyber Monday as criminals exploit your leaked personal data. Learn how to protect yourself from fake stores and phishing.

Commerce Department proposes TP-Link router ban over Chinese security risks. Learn how this potential prohibition could affect your home network and devices.

Pairs/Groups Of Words Often Confused - Part 3 of 6

Writing