Writing Tips
Commonly Misused Words & Phrases
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phrases
⇾ another think coming (not another thing coming)
⇾ bated breath (not baited breath)
⇾ beck and call (not beckon call)
⇾ buck naked (not butt naked)
⇾ by accident (not on accident)
⇾ by and large (not by in large)
⇾ case in point (not case and point)
⇾ change tack (not change tact)
⇾ couldn’t care less (not could care less)
⇾ deep-seated (not deep-seeded)
⇾ desert: dry terrain // dessert: sweet course
⇾ due diligence (not do diligence)
⇾ exact revenge (not extract revenge)
⇾ for all intents and purposes (not for all intensive purposes)
⇾ free rein (not free reign)
⇾ homing in (not honing in)
⇾ hunger pangs (not hunger pains)
⇾ jibe with (not jive with)
⇾ moot point (not mute point)
⇾ nerve-wracking (not nerve-wrecking)
⇾ nip it in the bud (not nip it in the butt)
⇾ on tenterhooks (not on tender hooks)
⇾ one and the same (not one in the same)
⇾ palm off (not pawn off)
⇾ per se (not per say)
⇾ piqued my interest (not peaked my interest)
⇾ pore over (not pour over)
⇾ scot free (not scotch free or scott free)
⇾ shoo-in (not shoe-in)
⇾ sleight of hand (not slight of hand)
⇾ spit and image (not spitting image)
⇾ whet your appetite (not wet your appetite)
❋
words
⇾ accept: receive something (verb) // except: exclusion (preposition)
⇾ adverse: something harmful // averse: feeling of dislike
⇾ advice: guidance (noun) // advise: to give counsel (verb)
⇾ affect: to influence (verb) // effect: result (noun)
⇾ all together: same place, same time // altogether: whole or complete
⇾ allowed: permitted // aloud: audibly
⇾ allude: make indirect reference // elude: escape
⇾ amiable: referring to person // amicable: referring to interaction
⇾ among: expresses relationship between several items // between: expresses relationship of one thing to another or to many other things
⇾ amoral: lacking morality // immoral: not conforming to standard morality // nonmoral: morality is irrelevant
⇾ any time: noun phrase used after preposition // anytime: adverb
⇾ assure: to tell someone something with confidence // ensure: to make certain something will occur // insure: to protect
⇾ a while: noun // awhile: adverb
⇾ bate: angry mood // bait: lure
⇾ blond: masculine // blonde: feminine
⇾ breath: air inhaled and exhaled (noun) // breathe: the action of inhaling and exhaling (verb)
⇾ canvas: closely woven close used to make items // canvass: to look closely or to illicit votes
⇾ capital: city, wealth, or resource // capitol: building where lawmakers meet
⇾ carat: a measure of the purity of gold // caret: a mark placed below the line to indicate a proposed insertion in a text // carrot: a vegetable
⇾ complement: enhances something // compliment: expression of praise
⇾ conscience: noun; one’s awareness // conscious: adjective; awake or alert
⇾ continual: occurring at regular intervals // continuous: occurring without interruption
⇾ dichotomy: entirely opposite // discrepancy: relatively minor inconsistency // disparity: significant difference
⇾ disc: music or throwable object // disk: computer storage
⇾ discreet: unobtrusive // discrete: separate
⇾ disinterested: impartial // uninterested: bored or not wanting to be involved
⇾ each: refers to individual object or person in a group of two or more // every: refers to a group of objects or people in a group of three or more
⇾ e.g.: for example (exampli gratia) // i.e.: in other words (id est)
⇾ emigrate: to move away // immigrate: to move into
⇾ empathy: ability to understand another’s perspective or emotions (but do not necessarily share them) // sympathy: understand from one’s own perspective (and share feelings)
⇾ envy: feeling of desiring something one does not have // jealous: feeling of fearing losing something one does have
⇾ every day: adverb // everyday: adjective
⇾ farther: physical distance // further: metaphorical distance
⇾ fazed: disturbed // phased: staged
⇾ fewer: countable difference // less: metaphorical difference
⇾ flaunt: to show off // flout: to defy
⇾ hanged: death of person via hanging // hung: to have suspended something
⇾ historic: famous or influential // historical: related to history
⇾ ingenious: to be clever and creative // ingenuous: to be innocent and unsuspecting
⇾ its: possessive form // it’s: it is
⇾ lay: placement of something // lie: act of reclining
⇾ loose: not fixed in place (adjective) // lose: to be deprived of or defeated (verb)
⇾ may: high possibility // might: low possibility
⇾ palate: roof of mouth // palette: thin board of colors // pallet: bed or platform
⇾ peak: mountain top // peek: quick look
⇾ persecute: to harass // prosecute: to bring legal action
⇾ prescribe: dictate a rule to follow // proscribe: forbid something
⇾ principal: head of organization or sum of money // principle: basic truth or law
⇾ reign: to rule // rein: to control or restraint
⇾ sleight: deceitful dexterity // slight: insult
⇾ stationary: unmoving // stationery: letter writing materials
⇾ subconscious: not in current focus awareness // unconscious: processes that occur automatically and are not available to introspection
⇾ than: for comparisons // then: for passage of time
⇾ that: restrictive; indicates something specific // which: nonrestrictive; adds information
⇾ their: possessive form // there: place // they’re: they are
⇾ to: preposition // too: adverb meaning also // two: number
⇾ well: adverb // good: adjective
⇾ who: subject // whom: object
⇾ who’s: who is // whose: possessive form
⇾ worse: comparative // worst: superlative
⇾ your: possessive form // you’re: you are
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Words to describe facial expressions
Absent: preoccupied
Agonized: as if in pain or tormented
Alluring: attractive, in the sense of arousing desire
Appealing: attractive, in the sense of encouraging goodwill and/or interest
Beatific: blissful
Black: angry or sad, or hostile
Bleak: hopeless
Blinking: surprise, or lack of concern
Blithe: carefree, lighthearted, or heedlessly indifferent
Brooding: anxious and gloomy
Bug eyed: frightened or surprised
Chagrined: humiliated or disappointed
Cheeky: cocky, insolent
Cheerless: sad
Choleric: hot-tempered, irate
Darkly: with depressed or malevolent feelings
Deadpan: expressionless, to conceal emotion or heighten humor
Despondent: depressed or discouraged
Doleful: sad or afflicted
Dour: stern or obstinate
Dreamy: distracted by daydreaming or fantasizing
Ecstatic: delighted or entranced
Faint: cowardly, weak, or barely perceptible
Fixed: concentrated or immobile
Gazing: staring intently
Glancing: staring briefly as if curious but evasive
Glazed: expressionless due to fatigue or confusion
Grim: fatalistic or pessimistic
Grave: serious, expressing emotion due to loss or sadness
Haunted: frightened, worried, or guilty
Hopeless: depressed by a lack of encouragement or optimism
Hostile: aggressively angry, intimidating, or resistant
Hunted: tense as if worried about pursuit
Jeering: insulting or mocking
Languid: lazy or weak
Leering: sexually suggestive
Mild: easygoing
Mischievous: annoyingly or maliciously playful
Pained: affected with discomfort or pain
Peering: with curiosity or suspicion
Peeved: annoyed
Pleading: seeking apology or assistance
Quizzical: questioning or confused
Radiant: bright, happy
Sanguine: bloodthirsty, confident
Sardonic: mocking
Sour: unpleasant
Sullen: resentful
Vacant: blank or stupid looking
Wan: pale, sickly
Wary: cautious or cunning
Wide eyed: frightened or surprised
Withering: devastating
Wrathful: indignant or vengeful
Wry: twisted or crooked to express cleverness or a dark or ironic feeling
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“A lot of native speakers are happy that English has become the world’s global language. They feel they don’t have to spend time learning another language,” says Chong.
“But… often you have a boardroom full of people from different countries communicating in English and all understanding each other and then suddenly the American or Brit walks into the room and nobody can understand them.”
The non-native speakers, it turns out, speak more purposefully and carefully, typical of someone speaking a second or third language. Anglophones, on the other hand, often talk too fast for others to follow, and use jokes, slang and references specific to their own culture, says Chong. In emails, they use baffling abbreviations such as ‘OOO’, instead of simply saying that they will be out of the office.
“The native English speaker… is the only one who might not feel the need to accommodate or adapt to the others,” she adds.
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