Commonly Misused Words

Accept / except: accept is to willingly receive and is a verb, and except is to exclude and is used as a preposition

Affect / effect: affect is a verb that means to cause a change, while effect is a noun that means result

Allusion / illusion: allusion is an inderect reference to another work, while an illusion is a false appearance that is a deception

Among / between: among is for 3+ items, while between is with two things

Bad / badly: bad is an adjective that follows a linking verb that means of poor quality, while badly is an adverb that means unsatisfactory or unsuccessful

Cite / sight / site: cite is to give information from a source by quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing, while a sight is the act of seeing or something that is seen. A “site” is a place

Everyday / every day: everyday is an adjective that means “ordinary,” while every day, an adverb, is something that happens on a daily basis

Fewer / less: fewer is used for things or peoplethat can be counted, while less refers to something that cannot be counted

Its / it’s: it’s is a contraction for “it is,” while its is anything except for it is, including the possessive form of “it”

Loose / lose: loose is an adjective for something that is not securely fastened, while lose is a verb that means to misplace or be missing something

Than / then: that is a a conjunction that is used for contrast or comparing, while then is an adverb used to indicate a sequence, as in something to do next or refers to a time (“see you then!”

That / who: use “that” as a pronoun when referring to a specific thing; use “who” as a pronoun when referring to a specific person

Their / there / they’re: their signifies possession, there is a place, they’re is a contraction for they are

Weather / whether: weather recers to the atmospheric conditions, while whether is a choice between two different options

Who / whom: use who where you would use “he” or “she” or “whoever,” and use whom where you would use “him” or “her”

Who’s / whose: who’s is a contraction a for who is, while whose is a possessive pronoun

Your / you’re: your is a possessive pronoun, while you’re is a contraction for “you are”