Posts tagged commonly confused words

This is a quick one. Ready?

“Click” is a sound.

“Clique” is a group.

Write that down.

Passed and Past can be awfully tricky, particularly because, unlike most other commonly confused words, they are forms of the same root. So, how do we tell them apart? Excellent question.

Step 1. Define both forms of “pass”

Passed:

• (v.) moved through, ahead, by or past. To be communicated. To cease to exist. Happened. Weathered or achieved. Surpassed or went beyond. Went by without noticing or stopping. Transferred or handed off.

Past:

• (adj.) bygone, no longer current, just elapsed, having served in a official capacity
• (n.) the time before the present, a history or previous background
• (adv.) on or onwards, by, ago, along 

Step 2. Show both versions in action

Examples: Her past was in the past, she thought as the train passed through the station. It was a quarter past four. A man who had just missed a different train hustled past. The stranger resembled a past president, though she couldn’t place which one. The man turned to ask her the time. She glanced at her watch, then passed him the information.

Step 3. Profit

Bears are bare because they bear no pants. Also, it’s not really smart to arm an arm-baring bear. I mean, he doesn’t have a shirt—I doubt he has a concealed weapons permit.

The confusing thing about bare and bear isn’t really bare and bear—bear and bear is where the trouble starts. Am I right? Let’s break this down:

Bare: (adj.) naked, stark, unconcealed, unadorned (verb) to reveal, divulge or expose

Examples:

The cupboard was bare.

In the summer, we like to bare our arms and legs.

Bear: (noun) the animal (verb) to hold, carry, transmit, bring forth, press or push against, be fit or worthy, exhibit, endure OR you can use it to express a direction or course OR it can mean to weigh down on OR it can be used to talk about concentrating on a specific thing… and don’t even get me started on all the nautical uses for it.

Examples:

Hey, watch out for that bear!

You really bore the brunt of that outburst. Why was he so upset about bearing children anyway? Here, bear down on this. Bear right at the fork. Bear with me on this, that tree usually bears fruit.

So on and so forth. So basically, if you’re not talking about being naked or having a lack of stuff, you’re going to need to use a form of bear instead of bare. And those, my friends, are the bare essentials.

Even the nerdiest English nerds get this one wrong from time to time, so don’t feel bad if you need a little brush-up. You are not alone.

If you’re not telling the truth or vegging out on the couch, there are some similarities when it comes to which form you need to choose; and there’s even some overlap between being prone on something and placing something. No wonder “lay” and “lie” can end up such a mess… But have no fear, I’m here to break it down for you.

To tell an untruth: lie, lying, lied, has/have/had lied

Examples:

• You shouldn’t lie under oath.
• She was lying about where she went. 
• I lied about not liking that awful movie.
• Everyone has lied about something.

To recline: lie, lying, lay, has/have/had lain

Examples:

• I need to go lie down.
• The dog was lying on the bed.
• Last night I lay down to go to sleep around midnight.
• The cat has lain in the same spot all day.

To put or place a thing or object: lay, laying, laid, has/have/had laid

Examples:

• Can you please lay this book on the table?
• He was laying sheets of pasta out to dry.
• She laid her outfit out on the bed.
• They had laid the place settings for the dinner party.

Despite my English-nerd nature, I love saying this. Why? Because I’m from Massachusetts and thus am a smartass. Basically, as much as I am irked by the use of of words that are not words*, it is equally in my nature to fly in the face of good grammar and proper English when faced with something that is, well, just really fun to say with a Boston accent.

Go ahead. Try it.

Fun, right?

So why is this a bad thing? Two reasons. Either A) people know “irregardless” is not a word* and think I’m an idiot or B) people think it IS a word and I’m encouraging bad behavior. I simply can’t have either of these things and-while I refuse to abandon the occasional well-placed, r-deficient “irregardless, nonetheless”-today I clear the air. 

Consider this post my penance.

“Irregardless” (despite what my spellcheck seems to believe) is not exactly a word*. It should be locked in the attic eating fish heads along with its brethren “Alot” and “Conversate”. Anytime you are tempted to use it in all seriousness, odds are you would be better served by either “regardless” or “irrespective”.

Good Example: Regardless of (or Irrespective of) its terrible reviews, I’m going to watch that movie for myself.

Smartass Example: Irregardless, nonetheless. I’m gonna watch that movie for myself.

*Webster’s Dictionary dubs “irregardless” a “nonstandard word” since it is used mostly in spoken language. “Regardless” or “irrespective” are preferable.

So, what’s the deal with it’s and its? This is another one a lot of people get confused about. Have no fear, Imma break it down for you:

It’s is only used as a contraction of It and Is. If you’re tempted to use it’s in your sentence, check to see if you could substitute it with it is. If you can, then you’re on the right track.

Example: “Oh, it’s just a little rabbit, eh?”

Its is used to show possession. I know it’s a little counter-intuitive, since apostrophes are used to show possession when your subject is a proper noun, but trust me. When you’re dealing with its, the possessive form is sans apostrophe. (Remember, it’s is always interchangeable with it is.)

Example: “Bones of full fifty men lie strewn about its lair.”

This one is more of a quick reminder than anything. Ready? Let’s do this thing.

A lot: two separate words used together to mean many

Example: Editors have a lot of headaches because of people who insist that “alot” is a word.

Allot: to assign as a share or portion; to parcel out

Example: Beatings will be allotted based on how often a person types “alot” instead of “a lot”.

Alot: a mistake a lot of people make when they are trying to express an amount or degree of something

Example: “Alot” is not a word; I believe you meant “a lot” meaning “many”.

Confusing “effect” and “affect” is a tough habit to kick, but I believe in you. So where to begin? Okay, well, both words can be used as either a noun or a verb, which doesn’t help our cause… Both words refer to the state of things, in one way or another… also not helpful. What we really need to look at are the differences and, more importantly, how we can remember said differences.

“Effect” is all about cause and, well, effect. You use “effect” when you’re talking about directly or literally making something happen. As a verb, “effect” is proactive. An easy way to check whether you’re using it correctly is to ask yourself if you can plug “cause” in its place. Yes? Then you are correct!

Example: She effected (caused) a change in the room when she screamed.

“Effect” can also be used as a noun to talk about results. “Effect”, in noun form, will always be hitched up with: a, an, any, the, take, into or no. And if you’re using it right, you should be able to replace it with “result” (take effect & into effect are a little wonky with this memory trick, but those two are common enough to remember, right?).

Example: The effect (result) of her scream was catastrophic.

“Affect” is gentler. Here’s what I mean: while “effect” is about hands-on tinkering in events to get certain results, “affect” is all about influence. “Affect” is full of finesse as a verb. Can you substitute “influence” for “affect” in your sentence? Then you’re doing it right!

Example: The construction on 6th Avenue negatively affects (influences) local shops’ sales.

As a noun, “affect” is talking about the expression of emotion. Think of the related word affectation.

Example: The poker player showed absolutely no affect (emotional expression) during game play.