by Melody Stevens

Created on: October 20, 2009

There are many words that confuse us and so get used in the wrong way. Often, they come in pairs. Here are some tricks for more frequently misused words.

Just as spellers need to look closely at their "spelling demons" to see what hooks they can use to help them remember correct spellings, one should do the same t hings with these pairs of words. Look at them and see what makes them different from each other. Sometimes it will be in the spelling, sometimes in some other type of memory-jogger.

Affect and Effect: Affect=Alter or change; Effect=End result. Ex.: How will the change in leadership affect the country? (How will it alter or change things?) The effect will be philosophical. (The end result)

Among and Between: This one is easy. Between happens with only TWo, among with Many. Ex.: Just between the two of us. You are among many friends.

Eager and Anxious: Eager is positive and Enthusiastic; Anxious is worry and Apprehension. Ex.: I am eager to hear the winning lottery numbers. I am anxious about a tax increase.

Farther and Further: FARther has to do with distance; Further has to do with degree. Ex.: How much FARther do we have to go before we get to Grandma's house? I refuse to discuss this any further.

Infer and Imply: INfer is to take in a hint or suggestion; IMPly is to throw out a hint, often an imp-y thing to do. Ex.: I inferred from her tone of voice that she was not happy with me. She implied she wasn't happy with the arrangements.

Fewer and Less: Fewer is plural; Less is singular or aLone. Ex.: There are fewer apples in the basket. There is less fruit in the basket.

Amount and Number: Amount is singular; Number is plural. Ex.: This amount of money can buy a number of tickets.

Stationary and Stationery: StationAry is anchored; StationERy is papER. Ex.: The computer terminal is stationary. Please order more stationery for our office.

Emigrate and Immigrate: Emigrate is to Exit; Immigrate is to come In. Ex.: My grandparents emigrated from Spain and immigrated to the United States.

Good and Well: Good is an adjective (describes a noun); Well is an adverb (describes a verb). Even though he was not feeling well, he did a good job on his report.

As you can see, using the wrong word can sometimes give the opposite meaning of what we intend, and always makes us sound ignorant. When you are not sure which word to use, especially if you think one other similar word might be correct instead, look them up in the dictionary. See if there isn't a little hint you can use to remind yourself of when to use each word. Make a game of it and enjoy yourself!

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