Common Misused Words

Allen (2010) stated that diction also

includes both vocabulary (individual words)
and syntax (the order or arrangement of
words. It is then important to know the
different words which are commonly
mistaken in usage. This can be a guide for
one to have an enriched and
grammatically correct well-written pieces.
Some words which are often misused (Rico-Lopez et.al)
1. Acquire, obtain, procure.
We acquire something that is retained
more or less permanently. Anything enjoyed
temporarily is obtained or procured.
Examples:
1. Khian acquired his assets through business.
2. Is it easy obtain a loan in times of pandemic?
3. We need to procure materials for building construction.
2. Adapt, adept, adopt.
- To adapt is “to change or adjust in order to deal
with a new condition or to make more suitable.”
-Adept means “good at something”; handy; skillful.
-To adopt is “to take or use one’s own: to endorse.”
Examples:
1. The transferee adapts to his new environment
easily.
2. Jed Madela is adept in singing.
3. The researcher adopted the instrument of Howard
Gardner in Multiple Intelligence test.
3. Advice, advise.
-Advice is a noun
-advise is a verb.

Examples:
1. I followed her advice to enroll in a public
school.
2.He advised me to enroll in public school.
4. Affect, effect.
-Affect (v.) means “to have an influence on,
to effect a change.”
-Effect, as a noun means “result”; as a verb, it
means “to bring about, accomplish, and
produce”.
Examples:
1.COVID-19 pandemic affects people’s lives worldwide.
2.Being positive in times of pandemic has an effect in
one’s life. (used as noun)
5. All ready, already.
-all ready means “all set, all prepared”;
-already, means “previously or by the
designated time.”
Examples:
1.All activities for this year’s gathering were all ready
few weeks before the schedule of the event.
2.The president has already approved the date of
opening of classes.
6. Almost, nearly.
These two adverbs suggest different
meanings. Use almost to suggest the
ending of an act, nearly for its beginning.
Examples:
1.We have almost finished everything when
the rain came.
2.The driver nearly hit the fence.
7. Also, too.
Do not use also or too in a
negative sentence. Instead, use
‘either’.
Examples:
1.Jane has not delivered the piece well also (or
too). (wrong)
2.Jane has not delivered the piece well either.
8. Among, between.
-Use among for more than two,
between for two.

Examples:
1. Among the provinces in Panay, Iloilo has the
highest number of business establishments.
2. Between the two brothers, Frits is smarter.
9. Anticipate, expect.
-Anticipate is stronger than expect or foresee. It
means “to take beforehand, to forestall, or to get ahead
of.” The second meaning of anticipate is “to look forward
to,” usually implying approval or enjoyment.
-Use expect to mean a simple expectation.

Examples:
1. They anticipated to rain.
2. She expected her classmate to greet her.
10. Ashamed, shy, embarrassed.
It is improper to use “ashamed of” in the
meaning of “shy.” Use ashamed of, not
ashamed from.
Examples.
1.She is shy of (or embarrassed of) her friend.
(correct)
2.She is ashamed of her friend. (wrong)
3. He is now ashamed of his action. (correct)
11. Assure, ensure, insure.
-To assure is to guarantee or to state
something confidently to convince somebody
that you are saying the truth, or something will
happen or to provide for a certainty.
Ensure implies a more impersonal process of
cause and effect.
To insure means to guard against possibility,
such as risk or loss, usually by paying money to an
insurance company.
Examples:
1.Our graduates are assured of getting a degree
upon graduation.
2.To ensure success, you need to be diligent and
patient.
3.Stop worrying; have your college education insured.
12. Beside, besides.
-Beside means “alongside of”; it can also
mean “other than” or “aside from.”
-Besides means “in addition to” or
“moreover”.
Examples:
1.Ishmael posed beside his newly-built apartment.
2.Your idea is beside the point.
3.I realize that I need something besides intelligence in order
to succeed.
13. Cite, site, quote.
-Cite, a verb, means “to mention.”
-Site, a noun, means “location.”
-Use quote only when the exact
language of the source is given.
Examples:
1. Atty. Marcoleta cited many examples to prove his
argument.
2. The site of the new SM Mall looks small.
3. Did you quote the mayor’s inaugural speech?
14. Complement, compliment.
A complement “completes or brings to
perfection.” It also means “the full amount.” Use it
as a noun or a verb.
Compliment (v. or n.) means “praise.”

Examples:
1. Eggs and ham complement each other. (used as
verb)
2. I do appreciate sincere compliments. (noun)
15. Cope with, cope up.
-Cope is an intransitive verb used with with. In
formal writing, one does not “cope,” one “copes
with” something or somebody.
-Cope up is incorrect.

Examples:
1. I knew Jessie would cope with the situation.
2.The teacher made a way for students to cope
with the online mode of classes.
16. Emigrant, immigrant.
Emigrants are individuals going out
the country, and immigrants are
individuals coming into it.
Examples:
1.Filipino emigrants help a lot in improving our
economy.
2.Filipino immigrants in the States are
hardworking.
17. Former, latter.
-Former means “the first of two”.
-Latter means “the second of two”.

Examples:
1. Jayvee and John Frances were student
journalists. The former was qualified for NSPC.
2. Jayvie and Jomel are the only remaining
cartoonists in the school. The latter is the older.
18. Imply, infer.
-To imply means to suggest or to hint
something without stating it directly.
-To infer means to draw a conclusion.

Examples:
1. The teacher implied that the she is going to give an
exam tomorrow.
2. The students inferred that the teacher will give the
exam.
19. Oral, verbal.
-Oral means “uttered by the mouth or
spoken; verbal means in words either spoken
or written.
Examples:
1.She told the story orally.
2.The president will inform the officers about the
intervention verbally. She will either announce it
during Flag Ceremony or she will send a memo.
 20. Their, they’re, there.
- The word their is the possessive form of
the pronoun they.
- they’re is a contraction that means “they are.”
-The simplest definition of there is “in or at that
place.”

Examples:
1.We will meet there after work and head to the concert
together.
2.Someone left their purse on the subway.
3.They’re two of my favorite books.
21. A, an

An is used in place of “a” when it precedes a

vowel sound, not just a vowel.

Examples:
It’s an honor to meet you.
The (“h” is silent,) but not with UFO, because it’s
pronounced “yoo eff oh.” Remember, it’s the
sound, not the actual letter.
22. Desert and Dessert

Desert means to abandon.

Example: Please don’t desert me at the beach
again.
It can also be a noun. Example: Please don’t
leave me in the Sahara desert, for I shall die of
thirst.

Dessert is the sweet course at the end of the

meal.
23. Isle and Aisle

Isle refers to an island.

Aisle is a passage between two rows.