100Common Uncommon Words

100Common

Uncommon Words

F Michael Kloran

100 Common

Uncommon Words F Michael Kloran

100 Common Uncommon Words grew out of the experience of making vocabulary cards for my classes while I was teaching at Nihon Fukushi University. The goal was to inspire interest in language while getting my students to use a wider range of vocabulary and build their confidence in using it at the same time. Over time, my illustrations and teaching improved as well as my ability to integrate my images into my classes regardless of the topic. Now, I share them with teachers around the world through my website: My English and The Vocabulary Blog.

Any collection of vocabulary terms for students should, I believe, focus on language they are going to encounter and use the most in the real world. But as you can guess from the title, the terms in this text were chosen because they are more infrequently encountered and yet well known to native speakers. In fact many of the words here are likely to be misused or misspelled even by native speakers.

My hope is that the study of these unusual words will help students

identify simpler ways of saying the same things while increasing their

vocabulary and love of language. If these images are a help to you and

your students, then I'll truly be pleased.

FMK

Mxyzptlk

(10 commonly misspelled words)

misspell - verb to spell a word incorrectly.

misspelled

misspelled - adj

Usage: That's right, misspell is one of the most common English

SAMPLE words that people

make a mistake with when writing. Watch out for that double s and the double l. Also, there is a variation in the past participle. Both misspelled and misspelt are correct.

I can't believe I misspelled so many easy words on my test! If not for my spell checker I would ____________ most of the words in my essay. - _______________________________________________________________________

espresso

espresso - noun a coffee drink made by forcing steam through finely ground coffee beans.

Usage: Because of the rush it gives you,

SAMPLEespresso is often misspelled and mispronounced as "expresso," as in express. Espresso comes from Italian and unfamiliarity with the word when a sudden coffee shop boom hit the U.S. helped this mistake develop.

A girl at the caf? laughed at me when I ordered an expresso. She said it's "espresso." My wife wants to buy an ____________ machine but I think they are too expensive. - _______________________________________________________________________

separate verb: to divide into

separate

smaller parts / groups.

adjective: individual, apart from others.

Usage: This word is often misspelled due

SAMPLE to a change in the

pronunciation. As a verb the final "a" is the same as in "ate."

In the adjective form the final "a" sounds like the i in "written."

She had to separate the children because they wouldn't stop screaming and fighting.

My garage is ___________ from the rest of the house. It's not attached.

- _______________________________________________________________________

atheist

atheist - noun a person who does not believe in gods, spirits, ghosts or anything supernatural.

Usage: The A and E in this word are both

SAMPLElong which should help you remember the spelling.

An atheist doesn't believe in anything supernatural. To talk about one specific thing, just say, "I don't believe in _______."

I'm an atheist because it's impossible to prove god's existence but science is easy to prove. She's not an ___________. She doesn't believe in ghosts but she ________________ god. - _______________________________________________________________________

believe - verb to think an idea or opinion is true.

believe

Usage: Lots of words that use ie get misspelled.

Remember the

SAMPLE general spelling rule:

i before e, except after c.

(except as in words like neighbor and weigh.)

I don't understand why my sister believes in ghosts, Santa Clause and god. Some people ____________ that our ghosts all live in the sky after we die. - _______________________________________________________________________

queue

queue noun: a line, usually of people or cars.

verb: the act of forming or getting into a line.

SAMPLEAlso: line up, wait in line, fall in line, a row

Usage: This word is more common in British English and rarely used in the U.S. It is often mistakenly written as "cue."

We queued for the movie for almost an hour before we got in. Long ____________ are really annoying. I hate having to ____________ for coffee. - _______________________________________________________________________

et cetera. - adverb the rest, there are too many to say, or list.

Also: and so on, and so forth, et al., and what have you, and what not

SAMPLEetc. Usage: This word is

often misspelled as ect. and often mispronounced as eksetrah. Be careful to say it correctly and your spelling will follow.

The little boy said he wanted a train, and a robot, and a video game, and a baseball etc. I lost my bag with all my things. My computer, my mouse, charger, iPad ___________. - _______________________________________________________________________

embarrassed

embarrassed - adj a feeling of shame or social awkwardness.

Also: red-faced, ashamed, humiliated, awkward

SAMPLEUsage: This is a word we use every day but the double r, and the double s, are both common spelling mistakes. I like to say students should never feel embarrassed about asking for help.

In fourth grade Steve was really embarrassed because he had an accident. You shouldn't feel ____________ . Everyone has accidents sometimes. Right? - _______________________________________________________________________

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