For most of us, English is still a challenge. With all its irregularities, exceptions and rules, English is a very difficult language to master.
With that in mind, rediff.com presents our English Bloopers series. Here, we publish written and spoken mistakes spotted and sent to us by observant Get Ahead readers. It's a great way to review the basics, clarify a few issues and share a laugh or two!
Jagruti Sharma, director of Words Infocom Limited, sent a tremendous list of homonyms that tend to trip up non-native speakers of English. Homonyms are words that sound the same when pronounced, but are spelled differently and have different meanings.
Example: 'Loose' and 'lose'
Many people make this mistake. They inevitably interchange the words 'loose' and 'lose' while writing. 'Lose' means to 'suffer a loss or defeat'. Thus, you would write:
~ 'I don't want to lose you," and not 'I don't want to loose you.'
'Loose', on the other hand, means 'not firm' or 'not fitting.' In this context, you would write,
~ "My shirt is loose," not "My shirt is lose."
Twice a week, we'll provide the most common homonyms in the English language. We'll go in alphabetical order. Today, let's look at the letters 'C', 'D' and 'E'.
hidden storage, as in: Lost in the woods, we were happy to find a cache of food belonging to some hunters.
cash
money paid at the time of purchase, as in: Will this be cash or charge?
calendar
device for showing divisions of time, as in: Mark this date on your calendar.
colander
strainer, as in: Use the colander to drain the noodles.
callous
unfeeling, as in: Drinking and driving shows a callous disregard for life.
callus
hard, thickened skin, as in: I have a callus on my finger from holding the pencil.
canvas
durable cloth made from cotton, linen, or hemp, as in: This fine painting is oil on canvas.
canvass
go around asking, as in: Canvass the neighborhood to see if anyone saw the suspect.
capital
(1) city where the seat of government of a state or country is located, as in: Washington, D. C. is the capital of the United States of America.
(2) upper case letter, as in: Writing in all capitals on the Internet is considered shouting, and is rude.
Capitol
building in which the US Congress meets, as in: When I visited Washington, DC, I toured the Capitol.
carton
lightweight container or box, as in: Please send me one carton of printer cartridges.
cartoon
drawing, often humorous, as in: Dilbert is a popular cartoon character.
casual
informal, as in: For a picnic in the park, it's best to wear casual clothes.
causal
relating to a cause, as in: The causal forces behind many diseases have not been discovered yet.
cease
stop, as in: If someone violates your copyright, send them a Cease and Desist letter immediately.
seize
grab, as in: The guerillas tried to seize control of the town.
siege
prolonged period of trouble or annoyance, as in: Our family has had a siege of bad colds this year.
cede
yield, as in: At the war's end, the loser had to cede the disputed territory to the winner.
seed
beginning of a new plant, as in: The seed of an avocado can be planted in soil or water.
ceiling
upper limit of a room, as in: A light-colored ceiling makes a room seem brighter.
sealing
closing airtight, as in: Sealing the containers is important to keep the contents fresh.
cell
small room, as in: She will spend two months in a prison cell for her mistake.
sell
offer for sale, as in: I will sell you my car.
cellar
underground room, as in : In our house, the cellar was always damp.
seller
one who offers for sale, as in: Amazon.com is a seller of books.
census
population count, as in: The last census showed an increase in single-parent families.
senses
sound mental faculties, as in: Don't call me until you have come to your senses.
cent
one-hundredth of a monetary unit, as in: In the US, a penny is worth one cent.
scent
odor, as in: The detective smelled the scent of almonds-could it be cyanide poisoning?
sent
past tense of send, as in: I sent you Email yesterday.
cents
plural of cent, as in: His opinion is only worth two cents.
sense
method of perception, as in: Ears provide us with the sense of hearing.
cereal
breakfast food prepared from grain, as in: My favorite cereal is Grape-Nuts; what's yours?
serial
arranged in a series, as in: I hope they catch that serial killer soon.
cession
act of ceding (surrendering) to another, as in: The treaty included cession of all captured territories.
session
meeting or term, as in: I will take two classes during the summer session.
chews
grinds with teeth, as in: She chews her food carefully.
choose
select, as in: There are many good programs to choose from.
chose
past tense of choose, as in: My son chose a university near home.
chic
stylishness and elegance: "Paris is the city for timeless bargain chic, in almost any category."
chick
small chicken or bird: A chick pecks its way out of the egg.
chord
a combination of musical tones played simultaneously, as in: His symphony is entitled The Lost Chord.
cord
small rope, as in: Please pull the silver cord to summon the maid.
chute
slanted shaft from a higher level to a lower one, as in: The gravel came rumbling down the chute.
shoot
to discharge a weapon, as in: Don't shoot! I'm unarmed.
cite
quote, as in: Your proposal will be more persuasive if you cite results of a recent survey.
sight
vision, as in: Our eyes provide us with one sense of sight; our imagination, another.
site
exact location, as in: Thank you for visiting my web site. Please come back often.
cliche
overused expression, as in: A good business writer tries to avoid using a cliche.
click
make a light, sharp sound, as in: The instructions said to click on the left mouse button.
clique
small, exclusive group of people, as in: I wasn't invited to join their clique.
climactic
having to do with the climax of something, as in: The villain falling off the cliff was the climactic scene of the movie.
climatic
having to do with climate, as in: The climatic conditions in the South Pole can be described in one word: cold!
close
shut, as in: Please close the door when you leave.
clothes
wearing apparel, as in: Wear your nicest business clothes for your interview for that job.
cloths
pieces of fabric, as in: Use the cloths under the sink for dusting.
rough, as in: Their garments were made of a coarse cloth.
course
(1) natural development, as in: The doctor said the disease must run its course.
(2) a unit of study, as in: She got an A in that course.
collision
crash, as in: Was anyone hurt in the collision?
collusion
conspiracy, as in: The price rise was due to collusion among the manufacturers.
coma
unconscious state, as in: The accident victim was in a coma for six months.
comma
punctuation mark, as in: Use a comma to show where you would normally pause if you were reading the sentence out loud.
command
give an order, as in: That sounded more like a command than a request.
commend
praise, as in: I commend you for the effort in reading this list.
commence
begin, as in: We commence work Monday at 9 A.M.
comments
remarks, as in: I appreciate your comments about this list.
complement
that which completes, as in: As an author, I need input from readers to complement my point of view.
compliment
expression of praise, as in: Sometimes a critical remark is more useful than a compliment.
comprehensible
understandable, as in: I was surprised that the instructions were so comprehensible.
comprehensive
covering a wide area, as in: In order to graduate, one must take a comprehensive examination of the subject.
confidant
someone you tell secrets to, as in: He was always my best friend and confidant.
confident
self-assured, as in: Are you confident you can finish the project on schedule?
confidentially
spoken in a private manner, as in: Confidentially, I am looking for another job.
confidently
firmly assured, as in: You can confidently raise your arms in public if you use a CERTAIN brand of deodorant, according to their television commercial.
conscience
inner sense of right and wrong, as in: Wouldn't it bother your conscience to lie to your friends?
conscious
aware or awake, as in: The patient was conscious for an hour, then relapsed into a coma.
conservation
protection from loss or waste, as in: We show concern about conservation of bandwidth by making efficient Web pages .
conversation
talk between people, as in: I very much enjoyed our conversation yesterday.
consul
representative of a foreign government, as in: For our next seminar about exporting, let's see if we can get a consul from an Eastern European country to be a featured speaker.
council
elected or appointed group of people assembled for governing or advising, as in: We're going to have to take that idea up with the town council.
counsel
(1) give advice or opinion, as in: Volunteers counsel the young people.
(2) attorney, as in: I had this contract drawn up on advice of counsel.
consular
having to do with the representative of a foreign government, as in: Phone Wieslaw Czyzowicz, the man in charge of consular affairs at the Polish Consulate.
councilor
appointed or elected member of a council, as in: As councilor for this township, I welcome your ideas.
counselor
advisor, as in: You need a letter from your guidance counselor for your scholarship application.
continual
occurring frequently and regularly, as in: Every night we are disturbed by the continual barking of your dog.
continuous
unbroken, as in: He writes his name in one long, continuous line.
contiguous
adjacent or touching, as in: The contiguous states of the United States do not include Alaska and Hawaii.
cooperation
work together for a common purpose, as in: Many people believe cooperation will help you succeed more than competition will.
corporation
a business structure, as in: A corporation is established by the authority of a state government and exists independent of the people who own it.
core
central or essential part, as in: A good communicator emphasizes the core of the message.
corps
a group of people who act as a body rather than as individuals, as in: She was satisfied to dance with the corps de ballet rather become a soloist.
corespondents
joint defendants in a court case, as in: The bank official and his secretary were corespondents in the divorce trial.
correspondence
exchange of letters, as in: I'm so busy with work it's hard to keep up with my correspondence.
costume
specialised style of dress, as in: I wore a peasant costume to the Renaissance Fair.
custom
habitual practice, as in: In the United States, business people have the custom of shaking hands when they meet.
courtesy
politeness, as in: Your staff extended me every courtesy during my stay at your hotel.
curtsy
bow with bended knees, as in: When a woman is presented to the Queen, she is expected to curtsy.
credible
believable, as in: Unfortunately, we don't have a credible witness to the crime.
creditable
praiseworthy, as in: He did a creditable job in winning us that contract.
credulous
gullible, as in: What kind of credulous fool do you think I am, to believe in such an impossible scheme?
critic
one who evaluates, as in: The critic gave the new movie a favorable review.
critique
a formal analysis of a work, as in: Please send your request for a site review to the HWG critique mailing list.
cue
signal to begin, as in: At the meeting, I won't say anything until I get the cue from you.
queue
people in line, as in: We had to wait in the queue to get tickets for the movie.
currant
a berry, as in: I made some fresh currant jam to go with the biscuits.
current
up to date, as in: The current issue of Internet World has some good information on graphics design.
having to do with milk and milk products, as in: Our best customer sells dairy products.
diary
daily record of events, as in: I kept a diary when the twins were tiny, to help me remember which baby I fed last.
data
facts and figures, as in: He designed a survey to collect data about visitors to his Web site.
datum
a single fact, as in: We based our measurements on the datum of the boiling point of water. (Note: rarely used outside scientific literature)
deceased
dead, as in: I am sorry to report that our hospital records show that your uncle is deceased.
diseased
seriously ill: The fact that he was poor and diseased never seemed to affect his wonderful sense of humor.
decent
in good taste, as in: Gestures considered decent in one culture may be obscene in another.
descent
going downward, as in: His descent from the airplane was much slower after he pulled the cord on his parachute.
dissent
disagreement, as in: Of the twelve judges ruling on the case, hers was the only voice of dissent.
dissidence
strong disagreement and outright opposition, as in: The government's oppressive policies led to such dissidence that they were ousted in the next election.
decree
official decision or order, as in: The decree made all the striking workers return to their jobs.
degree
step, grade, or rank, as in: She suffered third-degree burns on her arms rescuing the child.
decry
to openly condemn or ridicule, as in: Those who believe in a democratic society decry tyranny in any form.
descry
to see or catch sight of, often from a distance, as in: When I descry the island, I'll shout, "Land Ho!"
deduce
form an opinion from a solid basis of fact, as in: From the size of these shoeprints, I deduce the intruder was wearing large shoes. (You thought I was going to say had large feet, didn't you?)
deduct
subtract, as in: Please deduct this amount from my bill.
defer
(1) delay or postpone, as in: We can defer the charges one month.
(2) yield out of respect, as in: I defer to my colleague's greater experience in this field.
differ
disagree, as in: I must differ with you about the meaning of that word.
deference
courteous regard, as in: The young people in that family showed great deference for their elders.
difference
distinguishing characteristic, as in: The difference is that my web site loads quickly while your's does not.
delusion
mistaken belief of a confused state of mind, as in: He was under the delusion that he could fly.
allusion
indirect or casual mention, as in: No one made any allusion to the scandal while she was in the room.
elusion
evasion or clever escape, as in: The embezzlers celebrated their elusion of the police a little too soon.
illusion
presentation of a false or misleading idea, as in: The magician gave the illusion of sawing the woman in half.
deposition
sworn, written statement, as in: Before the start of the trial, each of the witnesses gave a deposition of their testimony.
disposition
(1) tendency to react in a certain way, as in: Pollyanna had an especially cheerful disposition.
(2) final settlement, as in: The disposition of my father's estate took longer than I thought it would.
depraved
extreme departure from what is normal and good, as in: He was a depraved murderer.
deprived
take away from, as in: He claimed that, during his childhood, he was deprived of any warmth and affection.
deprecate
belittle, as in : Have you noticed that he seems to deprecate himself just so we have to compliment him?
depreciate
fall in value or price, as in: A new car will start to depreciate as soon as you drive it off the lot.
desert
(1) hot, dry, sandy place, as in: Not all kinds of plants can grow in a desert.
(2) abandon or forsake, as in: The loyal little dog refused to desert his master.
dessert
end of a meal, usually something sweet, as in: I don't think I'll order any dessert today, thank you.
desolate
(1) deserted or uninhabited, as in: They washed up on the shore of a desolate island.
(2) miserable, as in: I am desolate that you believed I could do a thing like that.
dissolute
characterised by loose moral standards, as in: The younger son led a dissolute lifestyle before he returned home to his family.
detract
take something away from the value or reputation of, as in: Words that are not properly used can detract from a writer's credibility.
distract
divert attention from, as in: A blinking graphic on a Web page will distract a reader trying to read text.
device
invention, as in: If your device works, I think you should get a patent for it.
devise
think up a way to do something new, as in: HTML was devised to tell a Web browser how to show the relative importance of lines of text in a Web document.
dew
moisture, as in: It was a beautiful spring morning, and the grass sparkled with dew.
do
make, cause, perform, carry out, act, as in: What shall I do to convince them?
due
payable, as in: The rent is due the first of every month.
die
(1) stop living or existing, as in: The doctor said without an operation the patient would surely die.
(2) device for shaping, as in: He used to be a tool-and-die maker before the terrible accident.
dye
color, as in: I think I will dye my hair a lighter shade.
disapprove
view with disfavor, as in: His parents disapprove of his truancy.
disprove
prove to be false, as in: The accused was determined to disprove the charges against him.
disassemble
take apart, as in: It was easy to disassemble the clock, but it wasn't so easy to put it back together again.
dissemble
disguise or conceal the real nature of, as in: I'd rather be honest about my shortcomings than dissemble or pretend to be something I'm not.
disburse
pay out funds, as in: Do you think the foundation will disburse the funds soon?
disperse
scatter, as in: The security guards told the crowd to disperse or face arrest.
discreet
prudent, trustworthy, as in: A discreet accountant is a valuable business asset.
discrete
separate and distinct, as in: The company is composed of three discrete units.
disinterested
not influenced by personal motives, as in: To mediate this argument, we need a disinterested person.
uninterested
unconcerned, as in: I knew she was sick because she was uninterested in food.
divers
various, several, as in: We have provided divers acts for your entertainment.
diverse
markedly different or conspicuously contrasting, as in: His hobbies are as diverse as whitewater-rafting and needlepoint.
done
completed, as in: Call me when the Web site is done.
dun
demand repeatedly, as in: The collection agency went to great lengths to dun him for payment of his
published version, as in: Read the latest edition of the Tax Tips and Tactics newsletter.
addition
something added, as in: We toured the addition to the hospital yesterday.
effect
(1, a noun) immediate or direct result, as in: What effect does that medicine have on you?
(2, a verb) accomplish, as in: He braided the bedsheets to effect an escape.
affect
to act upon or influence, as in: Strong emotions can affect your health.
effective
producing the desired result, as in: He has an effective introduction in his presentation.
efficient
producing the desired result with the least waste, as in: I design graphics for Web pages that are an efficient use of bandwidth.
eight
the number after seven, as in: Breakfast will be at eight in the morning.
ate
past tense of eat, as in: We ate in that new restaurant last week.
elapse
(of time) pass by, as in: Three minutes elapsed before her page had completely loaded--too many graphics!
lapse
(1) to slip or fall, as in: When the announcement came, we all lapsed into silence.
(2) to lose effect, as in: Your insurance policy will lapse if you don't pay the premiums.
relapse
a slip backwards, as in: Just when we thought he was going to get well, he suffered a relapse.
elicit
draw out, as in: The band's performances always elicit praise from the critics.
illicit
not allowed, as in: Illicit copying of another person's work is punishable by law.
eligible
qualified for, as in: Every person who submits a new word this month is eligible to win the prize.
illegible
hard to read, as in: I have seen Web sites where the text was illegible because the background was too strong a design.
ineligible
legally disqualified, as in: In the US, a president who has been elected twice is ineligible to run again.
allusion
indirect or casual mention, as in: No one made any allusion to the scandal while she was in the room.
illusion
presentation of a false or misleading idea, as in: The magician gave the illusion of sawing the woman in half.
delusion
mistaken belief of a confused state of mind, as in: He was under the delusion that he could fly.
elusion
evasion or clever escape, as in: The embezzlers celebrated their elusion of the police a little too soon.
elusive
hard to catch or grasp, as in: The solution to the problem proved more elusive than they first thought.
illusive
deceptive or unreal, as in: Lost in the desert, he saw an illusive oasis called a mirage.
emerge
come out of something enclosed, as in: Out of four candidates, you emerge as the favorite.
immerge
plunge into (same as immerse), as in: Immerge the burn in cold water to minimize the skin damage.
immerse
plunge into, as in: Sometimes we get so immersed in our work, we forget how much time has elapsed.
emigrate
move out of a country, as in: My neighbors decided to emigrate to New Zealand while the children were still young.
immigrate
move into a country, as in: My mother immigrated to this country from Lithuania.
emanate
flow out from, as in : She was so creative that ideas just seemed to emanate from her.
eminent
outstanding, as in: Steven Hawking is one of the most eminent thinkers of our time.
imminent
impending, as in: When she heard a storm was imminent, she backed up her work and unplugged the computer.
en route
on the way, as in: En route to town to sell the cow, Jack traded the cow for some magic beans.
root
(1) underground part of a plant, as in: A carrot is a root vegetable.
(2) origin or source, as in: We can't solve this problem until we get to its root.
(3) cheer for or wish success for, as in: Who did you root for in the Olympics?
rout
terrible defeat, as in: The Super Bowl turned out to be a complete rout.
route
a path which is planned and followed regularly, as in: I'm thinking of supplementing my salary with a newspaper route.
assure
declare positively, as in: I assure you that I will be finished by next Tuesday.
ensure
make sure, as in: Order today to ensure delivery by Monday.
insure
cover by insurance, as in: This company will insure the data on my hard disk as well as the computer itself.
envelop
enfold or surround completely, as in: The python slithered forward to envelop its prey and crush it.
envelope
container for a letter, as in: Please send a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope with your request.
equable
even or equal and uniform, as in: Their goal is to create a more equable taxation system.
equitable
fair and just, as in: The injured party sought an equitable settlement.
erasable
capable of being rubbed out or removed, as in: Don't use an eraseable pen when doing your bookkeeping records, because these records are supposed to be permanent.
irascible
easily provoked to anger, as in: After years of enduring chronic pain, he became so irascible it took courage to go visit him.
especially
standing apart uniquely from the rest, as in: The air quality where I live is especially bad.
specially
given unusual treatment, as in: Look in the specially-marked boxes for your entry blank.
assay
chemical analysis, as in: The assay office will test your ore to see how much gold it contains.
essay
a short composition expressing the author's opinions, as in: Students applying for a scholarship often have to write an essay.
every day
each day without exception, as in: Every day, he comes home and says, "Hi, Honey. What's for dinner?"
everyday
ordinary, as in: Wear your everyday clothes to school, and save your finest for special occasions.
every one
each, without exception, as in: I bought a dozen eggs yesterday and every one was cracked when I got home.
everyone
everybody, as in: Everyone at work says to tell you, "Get well soon."
ewe
female sheep, as in: The ewe was bleating and looking for her lamb.
yew
evergreen tree of the taxus genus, as in: The finest violin bows are made of yew wood.
you
the one or ones being spoken to, as in: I guarantee that you will be satisfied or your money will be cheerfully refunded.
exalt
glorify or put much higher, as in: In ancient Egypt, the pharoah was exalted over his subjects.
exult
rejoice, as in: The winning team went to the restaurant to exult in their victory.
accede
(1) give in to, as in: We accede to your demands.
(2) take a position of authority, as in: When did the King accede to the throne?
exceed
to go past a stated amount, as in: It is illegal to exceed the speed limit.
accept
to agree to take, as in: I accept the terms of your offer.
except
excluding, as in: I knew all the answers on the test, except the last one.
access
permission to go in or to approach, as in: No one has access to my private files but me.
excess
more than enough, as in: We gave our excess fruit to our neighbors.
expand
enlarge, as in: One reason for a business to have a Web site is to expand its market.
expend
pay out money, as in: Because they neglected to expend any money or time on marketing their business, they soon went bankrupt.
expansive
broad, as in: Their expansive front lawn was the envy of the neighborhood.
expensive
costing a lot of money, as in: A large front lawn can be expensive when you add up the water bills, fertilizer bills, and energy consumed in mowing it regularly.
expatiate
write or speak in great detail, as in: Please forgive me if I expatiate, but this is my favorite topic.
expiate
atone for or make amends for, as in: She devoted her life to charity to try to expiate the wrongs of her youth.
extant
still existing, as in: The museum has the last extant copy of the manuscript.
extent
the limit to which something extends, as in: The extent of the Universe seems to grow as our ability to make better telescopes grows.
DON'T MISS
If you'd like to share common bloopers you come across when people speak/ write in English, do mail your list, along with their correct alternatives to englishbloopers@rediffmail.com -- we'll highlight them right here as a helpful guide to those trying to improve their English. Also, make sure you include your FULL NAME, AGE, OCCUPATION and the CITY you are based in.
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