How to Use Commonly Misused Words

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The English language can be difficult to use correctly, even for its native speakers. The language has an abundance of homonyms--words that are pronounced the same, spelled differently and mean different things--and many words that sound similar to each other. Many of these words are frequently misused, making for awkward silences and unspoken corrections. Learning some of the more commonly misused words can save you from embarrassing faux pas and being the object of behind-the-back ridicule.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Step1

Learn to use accept or except and affect or effect correctly. Many people use accept and except incorrectly. "Accept" means to receive something, while "except" means to exclude it. You can accept an award, but if you except it then you are taking it off the list. "Affect" is the act of influencing something, while "effect" is what came about from the influence. For example, darkness may affect your ability to drive, the effect of which was a car crash.

Step2

Use there or their or they're correctly. These are very commonly misused, even though they all have very different meanings. "There" is a place, "their" means it belongs to them and "they're" is a contraction of the words "they" and "are." Remember this phrase to use the words correctly: "They're going there to visit their grandmother."

Step3

Know what belongs to you (your) and what you are doing (you're). "Your" and "You're" are very different. Again, "you're" is a contraction of the words "you" and "are," while "your" means it belongs to you. So the sentence "You're going to visit your grandmother on Sunday" makes correct use of the words.

Step4

Differentiate between time and comparison by using "than or then" correctly. "Then" refers to a time frame, but "than" is a word of comparison that can easily be replaced by the phrase "instead of." Consider these sentences to see how the words can be used correctly:"We went to the club, then we went back to her house.""We'd rather go to the club than go back to her house."

Step5

Learn to do the two-step. People very commonly misuse the homonyms to or too or two. "Too" is an adverb meaning "also," "two" is the number that comes after one and "to" is a preposition. You could say "The two of us were going to her house, too," and use all the words correctly.

Step6

Make a reference to something that isn't real when using allusion or illusion. Making an "allusion" is to make an indirect reference, but creating an "illusion" is create a false impression. For example, in talking about David Blaine, you could make an allusion to his greatness in creating the illusion that the Empire State Building disappeared.

Tips & Warnings

Listen carefully to the meaning of your idioms. We all know someone who "couldn't care less" about how he speaks, but remember that if he "could care less" it means that it actually bothers him a lot. You need to look "toward the future" not "towards" it and for all "intents and purposes" (not "intensive purposes") it will make a difference in your life.