In English, there are many words that sound or look alike
but have different meanings, and your spell checker cannot always tell the difference.
So let's review some of the most commonly confused pairs of words in writing.
Quit, quiet, and quite. Quit as a verb that means to give up. I'm going to quit my job.
Quiet is an adjective describing little or no noise. You must be quiet at the library.
Quite is an adverb that means entirely, rather, or exceptionally. The movie was quite entertaining!
Weather and whether. Weather refers to the climate outside. We're going to have great weather this summer.
Whether introduces alternatives or indirect questions. You must decide whether or not to pursue your degree.
“A” is for air and weather describes the temperature of the air outside.
Principal and principle. A principal is the head of a school. Go to the principal's office! A principle is an idea or belief. I disagree on principle.
The principal is your pal! A principle is like a rule--both end and -le.
Accept and except. Accept means to take something offered or to come to terms with something. I accept your apology.
Except excludes things or sets them apart. No mammal lays eggs except the platypus.
The A is for allow. You allow the thing that is offered. The ex is for exclude. You exclude that exception from the rule.
Affect and effect. Affect is a verb that means to cause a change. Being teased at school deeply affected him.
Effect is a noun referring to the change itself. The effect was low self-esteem.
A is for action, which should help you remember that affect is a verb.
E is for event, which should help you remember that this is a noun or a thing.
Your and you're. Your is the possessive form of you. Those are your new shoes. You're is a contraction that means you are.
You're going to love those new shoes! The apostrophe replaces the letter -a,
so turn it into an -a and see if you are makes sense in your sentence.
To, Too, and Two. To is a preposition that expresses direction or location. Let's go to the store.
Too is an adverb that means in access, or as well. I'd like to go to the store too, but it's too far to walk.
Two is the number 2. The store is 2 miles away!
When there are too many o's it means an excess. Two has a double-u and double means two.
Than and then. Than is used to compare things. The zoo is more fun than the park.
Then is used to express order or time. We will go to the park, and then to the zoo.
A is for another. You compare one thing to another. E is for expressing order or time.
Their, there, and they're. Their is a possessive pronoun of they. That's their house.
There expresses location. The house is over there. They’re is a contraction that means they are.
They're happy in the house. Again, in contractions the apostrophe stands for a vowel.
So turn it into an A to get they are. When you see their think of the i which stands for the item they possess.
Its and it's. Its with no apostrophe is a possessive pronoun of it.
The car has a crack and its windshield. It's with an apostrophe means it is.
It's too expensive to have the crack fixed. Once again. that apostrophe stands for a vowel.
Turn it into the letter “I” to get “it is” and see if your sentence still works.
Still confused? Don't worry. Just keep a dictionary handy as you write.
Or, even better, just right click on words to look them up online.
You don't have to use all of these into instances. Just keep your eyes peeled and double-check.