1.

Allusion / Illusion

Allusion: an indirect reference (The book makes an allusion to Greek mythology.)

Illusion: a false perception or deceptive appearance (The magician created the illusion
of floating.)

2. Elicit / Illicit

Elicit: to draw out (The teacher’s question elicited no response.)

Illicit: illegal or not allowed (He was arrested for illicit trading.)

3. Imply / Infer

Imply: to suggest without stating directly (She implied I was wrong.)

Infer: to deduce from evidence (I inferred she was upset from her silence.)

4. Precede / Proceed

Precede: to come before (Dark clouds preceded the storm.)

Proceed: to move forward (Please proceed with your presentation.)

5. Assure / Ensure / Insure

Assure: to promise or comfort (I assure you everything is fine.)

Ensure: to make certain (Please ensure the door is locked.)

Insure: to protect financially (I need to insure my new phone.)

6. Discreet / Discrete

Discreet: careful and tactful (She was discreet about her opinion.)

Discrete: separate or distinct (The essay is divided into discrete sections.)

7. Cite / Site / Sight

Cite: to quote or reference (Cite your sources in the essay.)

Site: a location (We visited the construction site.)

Sight: vision or something seen (The sunset was a beautiful sight.)

8. Averse / Adverse
Averse: strongly opposed (He is averse to taking unnecessary risks.)

Adverse: harmful or unfavourable (They faced adverse weather conditions.)

9. Capital / Capitol

Capital: a city, money, or uppercase letter (Paris is the capital of France.)

Capitol: a government building (They toured the U.S. Capitol.)

10. Appraise / Apprise

Appraise: to evaluate or estimate (The jeweller appraised the diamond.)

Apprise: to inform (I will apprise you of any changes.)

11. Complaisant / Complacent

Complaisant: willing to please (The complaisant waiter quickly fulfilled all requests.)

Complacent: self-satisfied, smug (He grew complacent after his early success.)

12. Emigrate / Immigrate

Emigrate: to leave one country (They emigrated from Italy in 1900.)

Immigrate: to enter a new country (They immigrated to Canada.)

13. Explicit / Implicit

Explicit: clearly stated (She gave explicit instructions.)

Implicit: implied or understood (There was an implicit trust between them.)

14. Principle / Principal (Reinforced at higher level)

Principle: a fundamental truth (She lives by strong moral principles.)

Principal: head of a school or main item (The principal reason is cost.)

15. Affect / Effect (Advanced nuance)

Affect: noun in psychology – emotion (He showed no affect after the event.)

Effect: verb – to cause (The new manager will effect major changes.)

16. Moral / Morale

 Moral: a lesson about right and wrong (The moral of the story was to always tell the
truth.)
 Morale: the spirit or confidence of a group (The team’s morale improved after the
win.)

17. Continual / Continuous

 Continual: occurring repeatedly with interruptions (The continual noise made it hard
to focus.)
 Continuous: unbroken or nonstop (The machine ran in continuous motion.)

18. Perspective / Prospective

 Perspective: point of view (From her perspective, the rule was unfair.)
 Prospective: likely to happen or become (He is a prospective candidate for the
position.)

19. Conscience / Conscious

 Conscience: a sense of right and wrong (His conscience told him to admit the
mistake.)
 Conscious: awake or aware (She was conscious during the procedure.)

20. Prescribe / Proscribe

 Prescribe: to recommend or authorize (The doctor prescribed antibiotics.)

 Proscribe: to forbid by law or rule (The regime proscribed all forms of dissent.)

21. Eminent / Imminent

 Eminent: famous or respected (An eminent scientist was invited to speak.)

 Imminent: about to happen soon (A storm is imminent.)

22. Defuse / Diffuse

 Defuse: to calm or reduce tension (He tried to defuse the argument.)

 Diffuse: to spread out (The scent diffused through the air.)

23. Ingenious / Ingenuous

 Ingenious: clever and inventive (Her solution was truly ingenious.)

 Ingenuous: innocent and naive (He gave an ingenuous response.)

24. Historic / Historical

 Historic: significant in history (The moon landing was a historic event.)

 Historical: related to history (They wore historical costumes.)

25. Lie / Lay

 Lie: to recline (I need to lie down.)
 Lay: to place something down (Please lay the book on the table.)
(Past tense of "lie" is "lay"; past tense of "lay" is "laid")

26. Everyday / Every day

 Everyday: adjective meaning ordinary or typical (These are my everyday shoes.)

 Every day: adverbial phrase meaning each day (I go for a walk every day.)

27. Altogether / All together

 Altogether: entirely or completely (The project was altogether a success.)

 All together: in a group or all at once (We sang all together at the concert.)

28. Any more / Anymore

 Any more: additional quantity (Do you have any more paper?)
 Anymore: used in negative constructions to mean “now” (I don’t live there anymore.)

29. Maybe / May be

 Maybe: adverb meaning perhaps (Maybe we’ll go out tonight.)

 May be: verb phrase (It may be too late.)

30. Sometime / Some time / Sometimes

 Sometime: an unspecified point in the future/past (Let’s meet sometime next week.)
 Some time: a span or duration of time (It took me some time to understand.)
 Sometimes: occasionally (I sometimes forget my keys.)

31. All ready / Already

 All ready: fully prepared (We’re all ready to leave.)

 Already: by this time (She already finished her homework.)

32. All right / Alright

 All right: correct or acceptable (Everything is all right now.)

 Alright: informal version of “all right” (often discouraged in formal writing)

33. Set / Sit

 Set: to place something (Please set the dish on the table.)

 Sit: to be seated (Come sit beside me.)

34. Who / Whom

 Who: subject of a verb (Who is calling?)

 Whom: object of a verb or preposition (To whom did you speak?)
*(Tip: Try replacing with “he/she” or “him/her” to check.)
 access vs. excess
Access is used as a noun referring to the ability
to enter, as in "access to the building," and as a
verb meaning "to enter," as in "access the stage
from the rear."
Excess functions as a noun or adjective that
typically has to do with an amount that is more
than usual or necessary, as in "an excess of salt"
and "excess baggage."
 addition vs. edition
Addition and edition are both
nouns. Addition refers to something added, as in
"new additions to the museum's collection" and
"an addition to the house," as well as to the
process of adding, as in "the addition of cream to
the soup" and "math problems involving addition
and subtraction." It's also the word used in
phrases with in: "cookies in addition to the pie
and cake."
Edition refers to a particular version of a book,
product, newspaper, etc., as in "an illustrated
edition," or to something presented as one of a
series, as in "tonight's edition of the show."
 allude vs. elude
Allude is a verb that means "to speak of or
mention something or someone in an indirect
way," as in "they alluded to difficulties at their
former school."
Elude is a verb that most often means "to avoid
or escape someone or something by being quick,
skilful, or clever," as in "a criminal who has
eluded capture."
 Check out this article for more about these two
words
 allusion vs. illusion
Allusion is a noun that means "a statement that
refers to something without mentioning it
directly," as in "a colleague's allusion to a former
spouse."
Illusion is a noun that refers to something that
looks or seems different from what it is, as in
"paint that creates the illusion of metal" and "an
optical illusion." It also refers to an idea that is
based on something that is not true, as in "they
were under the illusion that the car was brand
new."
 base vs. bass
Base is a noun, verb, and adjective. The noun has
a variety of meanings, several of which refer to a
literal or figurative foundation or bottom, as in
"the lamp's base," "the base of a mountain," "the
company's customer base," and "base of
operations." It's also used in various phrases like
"touch base" and "on base." The
verb base means "to have a particular place as
the main place where a person works or lives or
where a business operates," as in "a company
based in Iowa." It is also used in phrases
with on and upon: "an economy based on
tourism." The adjective base means "not honest
or good," as in "base motives."
Bass is a noun that refers to a low or deep sound
or voice, or to a musical instrument. Another
word bass rhymes with pass and refers to a kind
of fish.
 bridal vs. bridle
Bridal is an adjective that is used to describe
things relating to a bride or wedding, as in "a
bridal gown" and "bridal party."
Bridle is a noun that refers to a device that fits
on a horse's head and that is used for guiding
and controlling the horse. Bridle is also a verb
with two meanings: one is "to put a bridle on a
horse"; the other is "to react in an angry way," as
in "he bridled at their criticism of his methods."
 climactic vs. climatic
Climactic and climatic are both
adjectives. Climactic is related to the
word climax ; it means "most exciting and
important," as in "the movie's climactic chase
scene."
Climatic means "of or relating to climate," as in
"climatic conditions in the region that make it an
ideal place to grow grapes."
 collaborate vs. corroborate
Collaborate and corroborate are both
verbs. Collaborate means "to work with another
person or group in order to achieve or do
something," as in "collaborating on a book about
dogs."
Corroborate means "to support or help prove a
statement, theory, etc. by providing information
or evidence," as in "two witnesses corroborated
her story" and "a theory corroborated by recent
studies."
 currant vs. current
Currant is a noun that refers to a small raisin or
berry.
 Current is a noun that refers to a continuous
movement of water or air in the same direction,
as in "ocean currents," and also to a flow of
electricity, as in "a strong/weak electrical
current." Current also functions as an adjective
meaning "happening or existing now," as in "the
current month" and "the magazine's current
issue."

 detract vs. distract

Detract and distract are both
verbs. Detract means "to reduce the strength,
value, or importance of something," as in "a
minor error that does not detract from the overall
quality of the report."
Distract means "to cause someone to stop
thinking about or paying attention to someone or
something and to think about or pay attention to
someone or something else instead," as in
"noises in the hallway that distracted the
students."
 device vs. devise
Device is a noun that most often refers to an
object, machine, or piece of equipment that has
been made for some special purpose, as in
"electronic devices."
Devise is a verb that means "to invent or plan
something that is difficult or complicated," as in
"devising a new method for converting sunlight
into electricity."
 eminent vs. imminent
Eminent and imminent are both
adjectives. Eminent means "successful, well-
 known, and respected," as in "an eminent
physician."
Imminent means "happening very soon," as in
"awaiting their imminent arrival" or "their arrival
is imminent."
 envelop vs. envelope
Envelop is a verb that means "to completely
enclose or surround someone or something," as
in "she enveloped the baby in the blanket" and
"mist enveloping the mountains."
Envelope is a noun that refers to an enclosing
cover for a letter, card, etc. The word is also used
in the phrase "push the envelope," which means
"to go beyond the usual or normal limits by doing
something new, dangerous, etc.," as in "a writer
whose new novel pushes the envelope."
 formally vs. formerly
Formally and formerly are both
adverbs. Formally is used to describe things done
in a serious and proper or official way, as in
"guests were dressed formally" and "she has
formally announced her candidacy."
Formerly means "at an earlier time," as in "a car
formerly owned by my neighbour."
 forth vs. fourth
Forth is an adverb used especially in literary
contexts to mean "out into notice or view," as in
"spring's blossoms bursting forth," and "onward
or forward in time or place," as in "from this day
forth." It is also used in various phrases such as
"and so forth," "back and forth," "bring forth,"
and "set forth."
 Fourth is used as a noun, an adjective, and an
adverb with meanings that relate to the number
four. As a noun it can mean "number four in a
series," as in "arriving on the fourth of May," and
"one of four equal parts of something," as in "cut
the cake into fourths." As an adjective it means
"occupying the number four position in a series,"
as in "the fourth day"; as an adverb it means "in
the fourth place," as in "he finished fourth in the
race."
 hoard vs. horde
Hoard is used as a noun to refer to a large
amount of something valuable that is kept
hidden, as in "a dragon's hoard of treasure," and
as a verb to mean "to collect and hide a large
amount of something valuable," as in "a dragon
hoarding treasure."
Horde is a noun that refers to a large group of
people, as in "a horde of shoppers crowded the
store."
Read this article for more on these two words.
 incredible vs. incredulous
Incredible and incredulous are both
adjectives. Incredible means "difficult or
impossible to believe," as in "a movie telling an
incredible story of survival," and "extremely
good, great, or large," as in "the musician's
incredible skill" and "a place of incredible
beauty."
Incredulous means "not able or willing to believe
something," as in "people were incredulous that
the child had achieved the feat."
 This article can give you more detail on these
two words.
 liable vs. libel
Liable is an adjective that can mean "legally
responsible for something," as in "determining
who is liable for the damage"; or "likely to be
affected or harmed by something," as in "a
condition that makes her liable to illness"; or
"likely to do something," as in "you're liable to
fall if you're not more careful."
Libel is a noun and a verb. As a noun it refers to
the act of publishing a false statement that
causes people to have a bad opinion of someone,
as in "a newspaper found guilty of libel." As a
verb it means "to write and publish a false
statement that causes people to have a bad
opinion of someone," as in "the jury found that
the article libelled him."
Read more on these two words here

 median vs. medium

Median and medium both function as both nouns
and adjectives. As a noun, median can refer to a
grassy or paved area that divides a highway (also
called "a median strip"), or, in mathematics, to
the middle value in a series of values arranged
from smallest to largest. The adjective median is
usually used in mathematics to mean "having a
value that is in the middle of a series of values
arranged from smallest to largest," as in "the
median price of homes in the area."
Medium as an adjective means "in the middle of
a range of possible sizes, amounts, etc.," as in "a
 person of medium height" and "a medium blue."
The noun medium has several meanings, among
them "something that is sold in a medium size,"
as in "I wear a medium," and "a particular form
or system of communication (such as
newspapers, radio, or television)," as in "an
effective advertising medium."
 moral vs. morale
Moral is a noun and an adjective. The noun refers
to a lesson that is learned from a story or an
experience, as in "the moral of the story is to
appreciate what you have," and in its plural
form morals to proper ideas and beliefs about
how to behave in a way that is considered right
and good by most people, as in "I don't question
her morals." The adjective is used with a variety
of meanings having to do with right or wrong
behaviour, as in "moral issues/standards" and
"moral conduct."
Morale is a noun referring to the feelings of
enthusiasm and loyalty that a person or group
has about a task or job, as in "employee morale
was high in the wake of the project's success."

 pedal vs. peddle

Pedal is a noun that most often refers to a flat
piece of metal, rubber, etc., that you push with
your foot to make a machine move, work, or
stop, as in "the bike's pedals" and "the car's
brake pedal." As a verb it typically means "to
push the pedals of something, such as a bicycle,"
as in "pedalling faster and faster."
 Peddle is a verb that is usually used to mean "to
sell something usually in small amounts and
often by traveling to different places," as in
"peddling fruits and vegetables from a roadside
cart."
 personal vs. personnel
Personal is an adjective often used to describe
what belongs to or relates to a particular person,
as in "personal property" and "my personal
opinion," or to a person's private thoughts,
feelings, etc., as in "a very personal question."
Personnel is a noun most often used to refer to
people who work for a particular company or
organization.
Here is some more detail on how to keep these
words apart.
 pole vs. poll
Pole is a noun. It can refer to a long, straight
piece of wood, metal, etc., that is often placed in
the ground so that it stands straight up.
Additionally, pole refers to either end of the
imaginary line around which something (such as
the earth) turns, as in "the north/south pole"; to
either one of the two ends of a magnet; to the
positive point or the negative point on a battery;
or to either one of two opposite positions,
situations, etc., as in "opposite poles of an
argument."
Poll functions as both a noun and a verb. As a
noun it refers to an activity in which several or
many people are asked a question or a series of
questions in order to get information about what
most people think about something; this noun
 use has a related verb use: a magazine might
"conduct a poll," and a magazine might "poll its
readers." The noun poll in its plural
form polls refers to the record of votes that were
made by people in an election or to the places
where those people vote.
 pore vs. poor vs. pour
Pore functions as a verb meaning "to read or
study something very carefully," as in "spent
hours poring over the map." As a noun it refers to
a very small opening on the surface of your skin.
Poor is an adjective used to mean "having little
money or few possessions," as in "a poor
person," or to describe something of low quality
("poor soil"), or someone of low skill ("a poor
player").
Pour is a verb that means "to cause something to
flow in a steady stream from or into a container
or place," as in "pour a cup of coffee."
 pray vs. prey
Pray is a verb that is used to mean "to speak to
God especially in order to give thanks or to ask
for something," as in "praying for forgiveness,"
as well as "to hope or wish very much for
something to happen," as in "praying they will
succeed."
Prey is used as a noun to refer to an animal that
is hunted or killed by another animal for food, as
in "the owl's prey," or to someone who is a
victim. It also functions as a verb meaning "to
hunt," or "to hurt, cheat, or steal from someone,"
as in "thieves who prey on the city's tourists."
 preposition vs. proposition
 Preposition and proposition are both
nouns. Preposition refers to a word (such
as in, on, or to) that is used with a noun,
pronoun, or noun phrase to show direction,
location, or time, or to introduce an object.
Proposition is a noun that most often refers to
something, such as a plan or offer, that is
presented to a person or group of people to
consider, as in "a business proposition."
 quiet vs. quite
Quiet functions as an adjective, a verb, and a
noun. As an adjective, it mostly describes things
or people who make little noise, as in "a quiet
engine" and "a quiet person," or a situation or
event in which there is little noise, as in "a quiet
dinner for two." As a verb, it means "to make or
become calmer or less noisy," as in "a lullaby to
quiet the crying baby." The noun quiet refers to
the quality or state of being quiet or calm, as in
"the quiet of the house at midnight."
Quite is an adverb that most often means "very,"
as in "quite tired"; "completely or entirely," as in
"we quite agree"; or "exactly or precisely," as in
"not quite what I said."
 resume vs. résumé
Resume is a verb that is usually used to mean "to
begin again after stopping," as in "the musicians
resumed playing."
Résumé is a noun used especially to refer to a
short document describing your education, work
history, etc., that you give an employer when you
are applying for a job.
 right vs. rite vs. write
 Right functions as an adjective, adverb, noun,
and verb. Some common adjective uses are
"morally or socially correct or acceptable," as in
"the right thing to do," and "accurate or correct,"
as in "the right answer." Adverbial uses include
the directional "toward the right," as in "turn
right," and "correctly," as in "you guessed right."
Among meanings of the noun right are
"behaviour that is morally good or correct," as in
"knowing right from wrong," and "something that
a person is or should be morally or legally
allowed to have, get, or do," as in "human
rights." As a verb, right often means "to correct
something wrong or unjust," as in "trying to right
a wrong."
Rite is a noun that refers to an act that is part of
a usually religious ceremony, as in "funeral
rites."
Write is a verb with various meaning including
"to form letters or numbers on a surface with a
pen, pencil, etc.," as in "learning to write the
alphabet," and "to create a book, poem, story,
etc.," as in "writing a book about parrots."
 role vs. roll
Role is a noun that to refers to the character
played by an actor, or to a part or function that
someone has in a group, situation, etc., as in
"scientists who had a role in finding a cure to the
disease."
Roll functions as a verb and a noun. As a verb it
has various meanings relating to movement,
especially by turning over and over, as in "a ball
rolling down a hill," or in a smooth continuous
 movement, as in "clouds rolling past" and "a car
rolling to a stop." As a noun, roll often refers to a
long piece of cloth, paper, film, tape, etc., that is
rolled to form the shape of a tube or ring, as in "a
roll of tape," or to a round sweet cake ("a
cinnamon roll"), or to a deep continuous sound,
as in "a roll of thunder."
 stationary vs. stationery
Stationary is an adjective meaning "not moving"
or "not changing," as in "a stationary target" and
"a stationary population."
Stationery is a noun that refers to materials
(such as paper, pens, and ink) that are used for
writing or typing, or specifically to paper that is
used for writing letters and that usually has
matching envelopes, as in "business stationery."
Read this article for some tips to keep them
apart.
 statue vs. stature vs. statute
Statue, stature, and statute are all
nouns. Statue refers to a figure usually of a
person or animal that is made from stone, metal,
etc.
Stature refers to the level of respect that people
have for a successful person, organization, etc.,
as in "a writer of her stature," as well as to a
person's height, as in "a person of rather short
stature."
Statute refers to a written law that is formally
created by a government, or to another kind of
written rule or regulation.
 track vs. tract
 Track functions as a noun and a verb. As a noun,
it often refers to a mark left on the ground by a
moving animal, person, or vehicle, as in "tire
tracks," or to a pair of metal bars that a train,
trolley, or subway car rides along, as in "train
tracks." The verb track often means "to follow
and try to find an animal by looking for its tracks
and other signs that show where it has gone," as
in "hunters tracking deer," or "to follow and find
someone or something especially by looking at
evidence," as in "tracking the suspect."
Tract is a noun that usually refers to a system of
body parts or organs that has a particular
purpose, as in "the digestive tract," or to an area
of land.
 waist vs. waste
Waist is a noun that refers to the middle part of
your body between the hips and chest or upper
back, or to the part of a piece of clothing that fits
around your waist.
Waste is a verb that means "to use something
valuable in a way that is not necessary or
effective," as in "trying not to waste
water/money/time." As a noun, waste often refers
to material that is left over or that is unwanted
after something has been made, done, used, etc.,
as in "industrial waste."
 wander vs. wonder
Wander is a verb used especially to mean "to
move around or go to different places usually
without having a particular purpose or direction,"
as in "wandering through the meadow."
Wonder functions as both a noun and a verb. As a
noun it often means "a feeling caused by seeing
something that is very surprising, beautiful,
amazing, etc.," as in "staring up at the
monument in wonder." As a verb it frequently
means "to think about something with curiosity,"
as in "wondering about the city's history."