Commonly Confused Words
In written language, there are lots of words that can be easily confused. Some of the most common ones are words like "too" and "to" or "there", "their", and "they're". You can easily learn proper usage by studying and applying a few simple usage rules with these special cases. There are other commonly confused words whose rules may be a bit more difficult to grasp, like "inquiry" versus "enquiry". Below you'll find a list of the most commonly confused words, and simple rules to help reinforce proper usage. If you just spend a little time studying these, you'll avoid many common writing mistakes!
- A Lot:
- The Easy Explanation “Alot” does not exist; there…
- Allude vs. Elude:
- The Easy Explanation “Allude” is a verb that means…
- Bare vs. Bear:
- The Easy Explanation “Bare” is an adjective that…
- Coarse vs. Course:
- The Easy Explanation “Coarse” is an adjective that…
- Dependent vs. Dependant:
- The Easy Explanation In British English, dependent is…
- e.g. vs. i.e:
- The Easy Explanation “e.g.” is an abbreviation that…
- Inquiry vs. Enquiry/Inquire vs. Enquire:
- The Easy Explanation The words “inquiry” and…
- It’s vs. Its:
- Its is the possessive form of “it”: The car lost…
- Later vs. Latter:
- The Easy Explanation “Later” refers to time and…
- Lead vs. Led:
- The Easy Explanation “Lead” (rhymes with “bead”…
- Lose vs. Loose:
- The Easy Explanation “Lose” means to fail to win or…
- One vs. Won:
- One refers to the numeral “1” and means “a single…
- Past vs. Passed:
- Past can refer to an earlier period of time, but it can…
- Principle vs. Principal:
- Principle means “a guiding moral belief” or “a…
- Spilled vs. Spilt:
- Spilled is the U.S./American English spelling for the…
- Stationary vs. Stationery:
- Stationary means “not moving or not changing”: The…
- Sympathy vs. Empathy:
- Sympathy means “to have compassion for, or feel sorry…
- Then vs. Than:
- The Easy Explanation “Then” usually shows a time…
- There vs. Their vs. They’re:
- The Easy Explanation “There” means in that place:…
- To vs. Too vs. Two:
- The Easy Explanation “To” means toward: Mom gave a…
- Whether vs. Weather vs. Wether:
- The Easy Explanation “Whether” means if: The guide…
- While vs. Whilst:
- While and whilst have the same meaning: both mean…
- Who’s vs. Whose:
- The Easy Explanation “Who’s” is a contraction for…
- You’re vs. Your:
- The Easy Explanation “You’re” is a contraction of…