Commonly Misspelled and Confused Words

Commonly Misused/Misspelled Words and Phrases

The following words and phrases are commonly misspelled/misused:

• acknowledgment
• afterward (not afterwards)
• allright (not al right)
• a lot (not alot)
• amid (not amidst)
• among (not amongst)
• backward (not backwards)
• bestseller
• best-selling
• firsthand
• forward (not forwards)
• in regard to (not in regards to)
• interdisciplinary
• judgment
• MasterCard (credit card)
• minuscule
• pastime
• regardless (not irregardless)
• résumé
• till (not 'til)
• toward (not towards)
• Visa (credit card)
• yearlong
• year-round

Additional Commonly Misused/Misspelled Words and Phrases

Affect/Effect

Affect is almost always a verb and means to influence or have an effect on.
Effect is usually a noun and means an outcome or result. It can sometimes be a verb, meaning to produce or make happen.

• The bad weather affected the soccer game schedule.
• The documentary about dolphin poaching had a powerful effect on me.
• The director outlined her strategy for effecting change.

Allude/Elude

To allude is to refer to something indirectly.
To elude is to escape notice or understanding.

• He alluded to the fact that her tardiness was upsetting him.
• The reason for her tardiness eluded him.

All ready/Already

All ready means “prepared.”
Already means “previously.”

• Juan is all ready for the holiday party.
• Juan already sent out the invitations for the holiday party.

All together/Altogether

All together means “all in one place.”
Altogether means “completely.”

• Cassy’s toys, which had been strewn about the house, were now all together in the den.
• Marcy’s behavior had him altogether perplexed.

Alternate/Alternative

Alternate means a substitute or taking turns with another.
Alternative means there is a choice between two or more things.

• We had to take an alternate route to the beach due to construction.
• Marge asked if there was an alternative menu option for vegetarians.

Among/Between

Among is used when there are more than two objects.
Between is used when there are two objects.

• She divided the candy evenly among the four children.
• Between you and me, I don't think he should have said that.

Assure/Ensure/Insure

To assure is to make certain to a person/people.
To ensure is to make certain that an event will/won't happen.
To insure is to be paid or pay money in the case of loss.

• Chloe assured her mother that she wouldn’t be late to the party.
• Chloe bought a new watch to ensure that she would not be late to the party.
• Chloe insured her car for the maximum amount since she parks it on the city street.

Awhile/A while

Awhile is an adverb.
A while is a noun phrase that follows the preposition for or in.

• She waited at the restaurant awhile before deciding to leave.
• They stopped at a rest stop for a while.

Bare/Bear

Something bare is uncovered or exposed.
To bear is to carry or put up with something.

• Kim left the walls of the apartment bare for years.
• It was a lot of stress to bear for that length of time.

Bring/Take

To bring means moving something toward a location.
To take means moving something away from a location.

• What can I bring to the holiday party?
• Do you mind if I take these leftovers home?

Cite/Site

To cite means to refer to something as a source of information or proof.
A site is a location or place.

• He cited Wikipedia as his source.
• The department members toured the future building site.

Communication/Communication

Communication is the exchange of information through talking, gestures, or writing.
Communications refers to the technology used for the information exchange (phone/radio/TV).

• Dr. Irwin is researching nonverbal communication in children this semester.
• The company used a variety of communications to promote the new product line.

Compliment/Complement

To compliment means to give someone praise.
To complement means that something completes or perfects something.

• Geoff complimented Jan on her table decorating skills.
• The vase of white roses complemented the red tablecloth.

Comprise/Compose/Composed of

Comprise means to contain, include, or be made up of.
Compose is to combine or make up.
Something is composed of something, not comprised of something.

• The United States comprises 50 states.
• The United States is composed of 50 states.

Continual/Continuous

Something that is continual is frequently repeated or intermittent.
Something that is continuous never stops.

• The neighbors’ continual drum practice at all hours of the night was becoming too much for her to bear.
• He made an appointment to see his doctor after suffering a continuous headache for three days.

Discreet/Discrete

To be discreet is to be careful not to draw attention. 
To be discrete is to be separate or distinct.

• Samantha’s exit from the press conference was discreet.
• Molly was aware of each of her student’s discrete dietary needs.

Elicit/Illicit

Elicit means to draw out or bring forth.
Illicit means illegal.

• Todd elicited an answer by asking a pointed question.
• Terri showed Jane where she kept the stash of illicit drugs.

Entitled/Titled

To be entitled is to have a right to something. 
To be titled is to be named something.

• Children of Emerson employees are entitled to free college tuition.
• Professor Pundt’s most recent book is titled The Unending Search for Purpose.

Every day/Everyday

Every day is an adverbial expression.
Everyday is an adjective.

• I get a large coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts every day.
• Going out for lunch is not an everyday occurrence.

Farther/Further

Farther pertains to physical distance.
Further pertains to a figurative distance.

• Quinn ran farther than she ever had before.
• Erik's boss replied, “No further discussion is necessary.”

Fewer/Less

Use fewer for countable things.
Use less for mass amounts.

• There were fewer people at the meeting this week.
• He should have used less salt in the recipe.

Immigrate/Emigrate

To immigrate is to enter a country to live.
To emigrate is to leave one country to live in another one.

• Jacob immigrated to England at the age of 16.
• Many of the Irish emigrants went to England or Scotland.

Impact/Affect

Impact is a noun, not a verb. Use the verb affect instead.

• Oprah’s moving graduation speech had quite an impact on me.
• Oprah’s graduation speech deeply affected me.

Imply/Infer

To imply means to suggest.
To infer means to draw as a conclusion.

• Jon’s emphatic response implied that he liked the plan.
• Marianne inferred from their conversation that he was not telling the whole truth.

Its/It's

Its is the possessive form of "it."
It’s is the contraction for "it is."

• The plant lost all of its leaves because Julia forgot to water it.
• It’s time to play the music; it’s time to light the lights.

Loose/Lose

Loose is mainly an adjective that means “not tightly fitted.”
Lose is a verb that means “to be deprived of” or “to fail to keep possession of.”

• The bracelet was so loose that she had a jeweler remove some links.
• If she loses her house key, she needs to pay for a replacement.

Peak/Peek/Pique

A peak is a summit or crest.
A peek is a quick glance.
To pique is to arouse or annoy.

• The brothers hugged each other when they reached the mountain’s peak.
• Jo looked up furtively from her book and peeked at what he was reading.
• The interesting smell wafting from the kitchen piqued Mario’s interest.

Premier/Premiere

Premier means first in importance or rank, or a chief official.
A premiere is a first performance or broadcast of a play, film, etc.

• Ewart Brown is the premier of Bermuda.
• The film’s world premiere took place at the Independent Film Festival of Boston.

Principal/Principle

Principal means someone or something first in rank, degree, or importance.
A principle is a fundamental truth, assumption, or law.

• Stephen was the principal player on this year’s soccer team.
• The students learned the principles of ethical journalism.

Reign/Rein/Rein in

A reign is a state of dominion.
A rein controls a horse.
Use rein in the idioms “take the reins,” “give free rein” and “rein in.”

• Jose tightened the reins after the horse jolted.
• Harry Richards was a royal cook during the reign of George III.

Stationary/Stationery

Stationary is a state of immobility.
Stationery is writing material.

• The construction equipment remained in a stationary position.
• Sofia wrote to Marcy using her new stationery.

That/Which

That is restrictive. It identifies a particular item being talked about.
Which is nonrestrictive. It adds something to an item already identified. It is only used restrictively when preceded by a preposition.

• She bought a scarf that matched her coat.
• She ordered a chai latte, which is her favorite hot drink.
• They found the folder in which the wills were stored.

Who's/Whose

Who's is the contraction for who is.
Whose is possessive.

• Who’s attending the public MBTA hearing? 
• Tristan wondered whose Cross pen was left on the table.

Your/You're

Your is possessive.
You’re is the contraction for you are.

• Can I borrow your muffin tin?
• You’re a rock star!

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RAS Syndrome (Redundant Acronym Syndrome Syndrome)

ATM Machine: Should be ATM. It stands for Automated Teller Machine.

GRE/GMAT Exam: Should be GRE/GMAT. It stands for Graduate Record Exam/Graduate Management Admission Test.

ISBN Number: Should be ISBN. It stands for International Standard Book Number.

LCD Display: Should be LCD. It stands for Liquid Crystal Display.

LED Light: Should be LED. It stands for Light Emitting Diode.

NPR Radio: Should be NPR. It stands for National Public Radio.

PDF Format: Should be PDF. It stands for Portable Document Format.

PIN Number: Should be PIN. It stands for Personal Identification Number.

“Please RSVP”: Should be “RSVP,” as the French translates to “Respond, please.”

SAT/ACT Test: Should be SAT/ACT. It stands for Scholastic Assessment Test/American College Testing. (Note: As of 1996, ACT is not an acronym, since the org now does more than college testing.)

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