Extra Word(s) You Learned in This Lesson:
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A N S W E R S
P ra c t i c e 1 : I d e n t i f y i n g Us e f u l S y n o ny m s
1. a. To distortis to change the shape or sound of something.
2. c. To fluctuateis to change frequently.
3. b.Something that is inevitableis certain to happen.
4. b.An incentiveis an encouragement or stimulus to action.
5. b.An innovationis an introduction of a new idea, a new process, a new method, or an invention.
analogous chaotic diminish fluctuate imply
incentive inevitable innovation nạve persist
P ra c t i c e 3 : I d e n t i f y i n g A n t o ny m s
1. d.Chaoticmeans in a state of confusion, without order.
2. b.Nạvemeans innocent, uneducated, and without artificiality.
3. b.To persistmeans to continue doing something even if it is difficult or not approved of by others.
4. a. To implyis to suggest something indirectly, without saying it precisely or exactly.
5. a. Analogousis an adjective that is used to describe something that is similar to another thing.
DO YOU KNOW the difference between accept and except? How about duel and dual? Or the real show-stoppers, affectand effect? These are examples of some of the most commonly misused words. Sometimes people get confused because words such as these look similar, sound similar, and are often spelled similarly. Other times, the mistakes occur because the meanings of the words are just plain confusing. Whatever the cause of the confusion, you need to be able to use these words correctly if you want a strong vocabulary.
Here are some categories of confusing words you need to use carefully in order to use them correctly:
• Homophone. A word that’s pronounced the same as another word but is different in spelling and meaning. Example: carrot and karat(the unit of measure for precious gems).
• Homonym.A word that is either spelled or sounds the same as another word, but has a different meaning. Example: meetand meat.
L E S S O N 9
which is the right word?
I never made a mistake in grammar but one in my life and as soon as I done it I seen it.
—CARLSANDBURG(1878–1967) AMERICAN POET
This lesson focuses on some common yet confusing words you’re likely to use as you write and speak.
• Commonly Confused Words.There are many words that are fre- quently confused and used incorrectly. The confusion arises because the words use the same root, or sound similar, or have similar meanings.
S O M E C O M M O N C O N F U S I N G WO R D PA I R S
The following list shows some of the most common homophones and confusing word pairs, along with brief definitions. Memorize these words and their mean- ings. Using them correctly is the sign of an educated, word-powerful person.
Confusing Word Groups Brief Definitions
accept/except to acceptis to recognize or take on exceptmeans to exclude something adapt/adopt to adaptis to adjust or modify something
to adoptis to take something or someone as one’s own
affect/effect to affectis to modify or change something effectis a noun that means the result all ready/already all readyis the state of being prepared
alreadymeans by this time
all ways/always all waysmeans every method or path alwaysmeans forever, as in time
bibliography/biography a bibliographyis a list of books or other documents a biographyis the story of one person’s life
breath/breathe breathis a noun describing the intake of air breatheis the verb, the process of using the air
dual/duel dualmeans two, or double
duelis a formal fight between opposing parties ensure/insure to ensureis to make something or some idea certain
to insureis to make something certain in financial terms
disinterested/uninterested to be disinterestedis to have no opinion either way to be uninterestedis to be not interested
persecute/prosecute to persecuteis to punish in an extreme manner to prosecuteis to take legal action against someone personal/personnel personalmeans belonging to an individual
personnelmeans all the employees in a company
Confusing Word Groups Brief Definitions
precede/proceed to precedeis to go ahead of
to proceedis to continue in the same direction stationary/stationery stationarymeans unmoving, still
stationeryis paper for correspondence their/there/they’re theirdescribes something belonging to them
thereis a description of a place where something is they’reis a contraction of they are
weather/whether weatherrefers to the conditions in the climate whetheris a conjunction that means oror perhaps who/whom whois the substitute word for he, she, or they
(subject)
whomis the substitute for him, her, or them (object) your/you’re yourdescribes something that belongs to you
you’reis a contraction of you are
TIP: The only sure way to know the definitions and differences between confusing words is to memorize them. So pay close attention to the chart above and do the exercises carefully. They’ll help you learn the words permanently, so you can use them easily and correctly.
P R AC T I C E 1 : I D E N T I F Y I N G T H E C O R R E C T I F C O N F U S I N G WO R D Circle the correct word in each sentence. The answers at the end of the lesson include definitions for both word choices.
1. The students were convinced their teacher was (persecuting/prosecuting) them with way too much homework.
2. One of the assignments was to create a (bibliography/biography) of all the books the students had read during the school year.
3. The teacher’s goal was to help the students (adopt/adapt) good study habits.
4. The students, on the other hand, had a (duel/dual) objective: they wanted less homework and longer summer vacations.
5. The teacher promised that the in-class essay she assigned would have no (affect/effect) on the students’ final grades.
6. In an attempt to convince the teacher to change the assignment, the stu- dents argued that they had (all ready/already) done enough in-class writ- ing for the week.
7. The teacher smiled and told the students to take a deep (breath/breathe) and begin their writing assignment.
8. The students decided to stop resisting the inevitable and start getting down to work on their (personal/personnel) essays.
9. (Whether/Weather) or not the students’ essays were neatly written and legible, the teacher planned to read them carefully and comment on them.
10. The (stationary/stationery) desks where the students sat suddenly fell silent when the essay writing finally began.
P R AC T I C E 2 : M ATC H I N G C O N F U S I N G WO R D S W I T H T H E I R D E F I N I T I O N S
Draw lines to match each confusing word with its definition.
Confusing Word Definition
1.adapt a. double
2.except b.written clearly
3.persecute c. have an effect on something 4.bibliography d.punish
5.legible e. exclude
6.dual f. list of books
7.affect g.modify or change
8.adopt h.take legal action against 9.prosecute i. go ahead or in front of 10.precede j. take on as one’s own
P R AC T I C E 3 : U S I N G C O N F U S I N G WO R D S I N S E N T E N C E S Fill in the blanks with words you’ve learned in this lesson.
1. Submitting school assignments in __________ form is always sure to get you halfway to your teacher’s heart.
2. Authors often include a __________ at the end of their books in order to direct readers to additional resources on the same subject.
3. Jin and Lin, both from Beijing, were ________ by the Adams family last year.
4. To _______ to American ways, the girls have had to learn new customs as well as new words.
5. The _________ of studying regularly is often an improvement in your schoolwork.
6. _________schoolwork often suffers when athletes spend too much time on the field.
7. The teacher, _______ the students call Ms. Sunshine, always smiles and laughs at her students’ jokes.
8. The mean girls in the classroom next door were __________ in trouble with their teacher.
9. The __________ of the Beatles usually starts with their beginnings in Liverpool.
10. Georgina, who claimed she only listened to classical music, was _________ in the Beatles.