Thursday, September 11, 2014

Easy to Confuse

As I am rather time-crunched right now and want to do something easy, here are more words that are easy to confuse.

Wander/wonder
I can’t remember where I saw these confused, but I know I did stop to yell at the whatever I was reading (I want to say something on the internet, so maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised). To whoever it was who erred: wander is to meander, to drift. Wonder is thinking, marveling at how someone could mistake the two words (like I should be one to judge :P).

Board/bored/boarder/border
Darn homophones. It took years for me to remember how to distinguish the two. Bored can be shortened to bore, but board can’t be shortened to boar. Well, it can, but I’m pretty sure boars and boards aren’t related. The boarder/border thing is even more confusing! I wonder why board- plus -er equals a renter? I’m sure there’s some weird explanation for it. I’ll have to etymologize it sometime. As to how to tell them apart…okay, I admit, I have to double check to make sure I’m using them right.

Wring/ring
The w is important! Remember, wring is always a verb. Ring only sometimes is. If you want to talk to someone, you ring them on the phone. Add that w and you’ll end up choking them, and you might not want to do that.

Hay/hey (suggested by Hillary)
I’ve only seen these confused a couple of times, usually people using “hey” as something horses eat. I only wish I was talented enough to draw a horse eating a greeting, because that would be a hilarious way to end this. Anyway, just remember, “hay” goes into the mouth, and “hey” comes out of it.

Heel/heal
The ee and ea digraphs are the worst. Different letters should not sound the same! No wonder it’s easy to try to heel a person of their illness or be unable to walk due to a pain in your heal. I have no good way to keep these separate in my mind. I guess I’m lucky I don’t have to use them much. Any ideas?

PS. This post is number 777, plus I have 77 followers. But Im still putting up another on Saturday. I hope you appreciate what I do for you.

9 comments:

  1. Is seven your lucky number?
    I used to struggle with farther/further.

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  2. I always have to be careful with then and than, but not as much lately.

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  3. I once read a really great book published by a very small company with a REALLY terrible copy-editor. Lose and loose were confused in every single instance they appeared. Mistakes can be made, but how do you get a job as an editor if you don't know the difference between those two words??

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  4. Then and than always get me. Horde/hoard also confuse me occasionally. Homophones are a pain in the rump sometimes.

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  5. How is it that you've done more posts than me?
    >:[

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  6. Room and board. I think that's where boarder comes from. Although, I thought in that instance board meant food. I'm probably wrong about this.

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  7. Hi Jeanne - thanks for linking across to me .. and I love the selections you've given us here ..

    The wring and ring too .. homophones in general can cause a few challenges .. and when I see them .. they freak me out - yet it's so easy to make mistakes and not realise ...

    Cheers Hilary

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  8. I love the number 7.

    Sometimes I look at what I typed and can't believe I mixed up homophones.

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Please validate me.