Prisma Health



Words Frequently Misused

A – (indefinite article) used before words beginning with a consonant sound

An – (indefinite article) used before words beginning with a vowel sound

Accept – (verb) to take, to receive

Except – (preposition) “all but” or excluding

Acute – (adjective) sudden, sharp

Chronic – (adjective) having long duration or appearing often

Advice – (noun) suggestions given

Advise – (verb) to make suggestions or recommendations

Affect – (verb) to influence

Effect – (noun) result of something (verb) to bring something about

(The council effected policy changes.)

Aid – (verb) to help (noun) help given

Aide – (noun) a person who assists

All ready – (adverb) everything is complete

Already – (adverb) has occurred by this time

Alumna – (singular noun) a female who has attended or graduated from a school Alumnae – (plural noun) several females who have attended or graduated from a school

Alumni – (plural noun) several males who have attended or graduated from a school; also used for groups of graduates with both males and females

Alumnus – (singular noun) a male who has attended or graduated from a school

All together – (pronoun and adverb combination) everyone is assembled Altogether – (adverb) wholly, completely

Alot – misspelling of a lot

Alright – (adverb) incorrect version of all right, meaning satisfactory

Altar – (noun) place in a church

Alter – (verb) to change something

Among – (preposition) used in talking about three or more items

Between – (preposition) used in talking about two things

Amount – (noun) used for items that are mass nouns, that is, not countable

(The amount of waste is amazing.)

Number – (noun) used to talk about items that are countable

(The number of times he repeated that slogan got on my nerves.)

Anytime – incorrect version of any time

Appraise – (verb) to estimate the value of something

Apprise – (verb) to fill someone in on something, to inform

Assure – (verb) to give confidence to, to remove doubt

Ensure – (verb) to make certain or sure

Insure – (verb) to write policies covering damage to property or people

Awhile – (adverb) modifies a verb, adjective or adverb

(She hopes to stay awhile.)

A while – (noun) a time period

(She hopes to stay for a while.)

Beside – (preposition) by the side of

Besides – (adverb or preposition) in addition to

Bring – (verb) movement from a farther to nearer place (think delivery food)

Take – (verb) the opposite movement (think take-out food – you take it away)

Center around – illogical phrase; better replaced by “center on”

Cite – (verb) the quote or use as an example

Sight – (verb or noun) to see or the ability to see

Site – (noun) a location

Complement – (verb or noun) to complete or the thing that makes something complete

Compliment – (noun) words praising something; complimentary means “free”

Conscience – (noun) an inner voice

Conscious – (adjective) fully aware

Continual – a process that is interrupted from time to time

Continuous – a never-interrupted process

Council – (noun) a group of officials or advisers

Counsel – (verb) to give advice, (noun) advice

Credible – (adjective) believable

Creditable – (adjective) deserving praise

Criterion – (noun in the singular) standard for judging something

Criteria – (noun in the plural) standards for judging something

Data – (noun in the plural) fact, pieces of information

Datum – (noun in the singular) fact, piece of information

NOTE: AP style now says “data” can be singular.

Desert – (noun) arid area, (verb) to abandon

Dessert – (noun) the last course in a meal

Device – (noun) a mechanism

Devise – (verb) to arrange

Different from – correct phrase

Different than – incorrect phrase

Different to – incorrect phrase

Disburse – (verb) to pay out

Disperse – (verb) to break up

Discreet – (adjective) private, tactful

Discrete – (adjective) in parts

Disinterested – (adjective) unbiased

Uninterested – (adjective) without interest in

Due to – (preposition) best replaced with “because of” or “as a result of”

Each other – (pronoun) used in talking about two people

One another – (pronoun) used in talking about more than two people

Elicit – (verb) to draw out of someone

Illicit – (adjective) against the law

Emigrate – (verb) to leave one’s country

Immigrate – (verb) to move to a foreign country

Explicit – (adjective) fully explained or expressed

Implicit – (adjective) implied, unexpressed but understandable

Envelop – (verb) to surround

Envelope – piece of stationery

Every day – (adjective-noun combination) each day

Everyday – (adjective) ordinary

Farther – (adverb) used in talking about physical distance

Further – (adverb) used in talking about extent or degree

Fewer – (pronoun or adjective) used in talking about countable items

(He owns fewer chairs than I do.)

Less – (pronoun or adjective) used in talking about items that cannot be counted (He has less furniture than before.)

Formally – (adverb) standing on ceremony

Formerly – (adverb) in the past

Hole – (noun) an opening

Whole – (noun or adjective) complete, all

Hopefully – (adverb) full of hope (I hopefully entered the exam room); usually misused when someone means “it is to be hoped that”

In – (adverb and preposition) a location inside something

Into – (adverb and preposition) suggests movement from outside

Include – (verb) suggests that the items following it make up only part of the total of things being considered

Comprise – (verb) suggests that the full list is given; “comprised of” is not correct

Incredible – (adjective) unbelievable

Incredulous – (adjective) unbelieving

(He was incredulous when told the facts.)

Infer – (verb) to deduce from a general principle something spoken, seen, written

Imply – (verb) to hint at something

Induce – (verb) to infer from particulars

Ingenious – (adjective) clever

Ingenuous – (adjective) naive, lacking subtlety

Irregardless – not a word

Its – possessive of the pronoun “it”

It's – contraction for “it is”

Lay – (verb) to put or place a thing somewhere

(She laid her towel by the side of the pool.)

Lie – (verb) to recline

(She lay in the sun all day. She has lain in the sun for hours this week.)

Lend – (verb) to let someone use something for a time

Loan – (noun) something borrowed for a time

Lose – (verb) to misplace something

Loose – (adjective) free or unbound

Maybe – (adverb) perhaps

May be – (verb) could happen or be the case

Media – (plural noun) means of getting a message across

Medium – (singular noun) means of getting a message across

Moral – (noun) the lesson or truth, (adjective) with goodness

Morale – (noun) state of mind

Oral – (adjective) spoken language

Verbal – (adjective) written or spoken language

Patience – (noun) calmness or steadfastness in adversity

Patients – (noun) people receiving medical care

Percent – (noun) used with numbers

(Over 60% of men returned the survey.)

Percentage – (noun) used without number

(A high percentage returned the survey.)

NOTE: AP style now says “%” can be used instead of “percent.”

Personal – (adjective) intimate, private

Personnel – (noun) people who work for a company

Precede – (verb) to go before something or someone else

Proceed – (verb) to carry on, continue

Precedence – (noun) priority

Precedents – (noun) cases or examples that have occurred before

Preventive – (adjective) keeping something from happening; use instead of

“preventative”

Principal – (noun) the administrator at a school, (adjective) chief or major Principle – (noun) a law, doctrine or code of behavior

Prostate – (noun) a male gland

Prostrate – (adjective) lying flat with face toward the ground

Respectively – (adverb) individually

Respectfully – (adverb) full of respect

Sometime – (adverb) no specific time

(Let's have lunch together sometime.)

Some time – (adjective and noun) a particular bit of time

(We need to spend some time going over the report.)

Stationary – (adjective) unmoving, stopped

Stationery – (noun) writing paper and envelopes

Than – (preposition and conjunction) shows comparison

Then – (adverb) time

That – (relative pronoun or adjective) used to introduce essential information punctuated without commas

(The ties that are in the box are for my father.)

Which – (relative pronoun or subordinate conjunction) used to introduce nonessential information that is set off by commas

(These ties, which I received for Father’s Day, are dreadful.)

Their – (possessive pronoun) something belonging to them

There – (adverb) a location

They’re – (contraction) “they are”

To – (preposition) movement toward

Too – (adverb) also

Two – (adjective) the number after one

Try and – nonstandard for “try to”

Type – (noun) kind; use with “of” (try to avoid “type of” as it is wordy)

(That convertible is the type of car I want.)

Whose – (possessive pronoun)

Who’s – (contraction) “who is”

Your – (possessive pronoun) something belonging to you

You’re – (contraction) “you are”

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