accept/except.

 

 

Sometimes these words are mixed up because they are nearly homonyms. (Homonyms are words that sound alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings.) To accept is to receive; to except is to leave out or to exclude. accepted all of the gifts except the necklace.

adverbs, correct use of.

We make most adverbs by adding -ly to adjectives, but some are irregular, and resemble their adjectival forms. Some can be used interchangeably with their -ly form while others can't be: bad, badly ; loud, loudly ;slow,slowly ;hard, hardly; fair, fairly.

Both "go slow" and "go slowly" are correct. However, "bad and badly" can not be used as synonyms. Reading standard English and listening to educated speakers can help students learn what's appropriate.

already/all ready.

Already is an adverb meaning previously. All ready is modern slang meaning everything's set, or everything's prepared.

all together/altogether.

All together is an adverb meaning everything as a whole or everyone as part of a group. Altogether is an adverb meaning throughly.

This is altogether correct!

and/or.

"And" is a conjunction that means " in addition to," as inBread and butter. "Or" is a contrasting conjunction that presents options: Either apples or oranges. "And/Or" is the writer's way of saying, "I'm not sure if there was a choice or if both things existed at the same time." The reader often becomes confused upon seeing this device, and/or becomes frustrated and ignores the sentence completely.

 any way/anyway.

Any way / Anyway are similar to all together / altogether, that is, when the two words are separate, the meaning relies on each of the individual words every body = every or each corporal body

When the words come together to form one word, the meaning changes: everybody = a group of people considered as a whole unit.

between.

This word has roots in the words "bi," meaning two. Therefore, "between" should not be used when more than two elements are involved. It's best to use the word "among" when referring to more than two elements.

 can/may

Can is a helping verb indicating the ability to do something; however, may is a request for permission. Can I shut off my computer now? (Well, are you capable of doing so?)

Conjunctions, beginning sentences with.

This practice can be dangerous business. Sentence fragments and confusion often result: Because of the sunshine. Notice that there's no verb in the above example. Therefore, it's a sentence fragment, and sentence fragments do not represent complete thoughts. So we could ask, What happened "Because of the sunshine."? To avoid such confusion, remember that conjunctions link words, clauses, and phrases together and usually prefer to be sandwiched in between other words..

  either / or.

Either should only be used only two items are being chosen from. Yes: We can either jog or bikeride today. No: We were allowed to have either cake, cookies, or pie.  

ellipsis.

We now know that those three little dots (...) have a better name. The word ellipsis is a noun. Unlike some nouns which have verb-counterparts, there is no way to make "ellipsis" into a verb. Ergo, you can not "ellipsize" anything. Try using "omitted" instead. No: You've ellipsized the most important part of that sentence. Yes: You've omitted the most important part of that sentence.

etcetera.

Most people are familiar with this Latin term in its abbreviated form, "etc." Often used in lists to say that more follows, many people use the abbreviation loosely and inaccurately.Be aware that "etc." implies that others of the same or similar kind follow. Also, it should NOT be used with reference to people: No: Everyone came to the party including Laura, Ann, Carol, etc...

formally/formerly.

Formally means done in a formal manner. Formerly means previously or in the past.

forth/fourth

Forth is an adverb meaning forward. We went forth fearlessly into the dark night.

Fourth is a numeral adjective following third. He's in the fourth chair on the right.

good/well.

Good is an adjective. Well is an adverb. She writes well. "Well" is an adverb because it modifies the verb "writes" in this sentence. So, she writes good is incorrect.

hopefully.

Contemporary usage standards vary about whether hopefully means "full of hope" or "it is to be hoped." Until recently, the latter definition was not acceptable in formal writing. Nowadays, both meanings are acceptable. However, the dictionary entry for "hopefully" claims that this adverb means "in a hopeful manner". We'll let that stand as our guide to this word usage for now. Hopefully, grammarians will come to a decision on this issue someday.

lie/lay

The book (lie, lay) on the table. These two have befuddled the best writers. Lie, along with its past tense - lay, and its perfect tense - lain, usually indicate a direction. In other words, the subject requires point or direction in space. Lie, lay, and laid are usually seen in conjunction with the word down.

Lay, laid (past tense), and laid (perfect tense) all mean place or put. Lay the book on the table.

She laid the book on the table.

 most/almost.

Most is mistakenly used for almost. Most means the hightest degree of an amount. Almost means nearly.

non-comparable things.

Her idea could have been more unique. How can something be more unique? Some adjectives, including "unique," have no comparative form. Therefore one thing can not be more: perfect, fatal, final, unique, solitary, equal, supreme, flawless, ultimate, absolute, or whole. Either the idea is unique, or it isn't. "More unique" is just extra silly.

 one.

This neuter pronoun is very helpful when the gender of the individual is unknown: One might be able to answer that question. However, trouble arises: ...and no matter how many times one tries, one tends to get repetitious when one writes using the aforementioned word.

Where you can, use gender-specific pronouns. When the gender of the individual (and it must be an individual when using one; one is singular) is uncertain, try using "he or she" or other third person forms instead.

One note of caution is required: "you" can get just as redundant as "one." Try not to overuse either pronoun.

site/cite/sight.

A site refers to a location. To cite a work is to quote that text. Sight refers to the sense you're using to read this right now.

 there/their.

This gremlin shows up more often than you think it would appear! 
In other words, these two are commonly confused.

Their is used to show ownership. It indicates more than one owner. Those are their hats. There demonstrates location. Put the books over there.

to/too/two.

To is a part of infinitive verbs and also functions as a preposition indicating direction . Too is an adverb meaning also. Two is the numeral following one:. I was too tired to go to two parties after work.

very.

Often writers make the mistake of using "very" wherever a comparable form is needed. In other words, when something requires emphasis, the word "very" suddenly appears (very strange, indeed!) For variety, use the comparative or superlative form of the adjective or adverb instead, for example, hot, hotter, hottest.

who's/whose

Who's is a contraction meaning who is. Whose is the possessive interrogative of who: Whose books are these?
Whose is also a possesive pronoun: The author, whose style was similar to Faulkner's...

you're/your

You're is a contraction for you are. Your is a possessive adjective Is this your book?