Homophones

Is it the summer heat that creates more and more bad word usage?  I have been noticing a lot of homophone confusion lately – more than usual, it seems.  Between the extreme heat here in the Northeast and poor word usage by those who should know better, I’m becoming what my grandson calls a “Crankasaurus.”  These words are tough, of course, because spell checkers can only advise us on spelling, not usage.  We still have to read what we’ve written!

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Advice, Advise – Recently I saw a sign at a garden center that read, “Let us know if you need any advise.”  Hmmm.  I’m sure someone meant well.  Advice means “information” or “recommendation”; advise means “to recommend, to give counsel.”

Alot, A lot, Allot – Even my spell checker knows the first one doesn’t exist!  A lot, two words, means “a great deal,” and allot means “to assign or distribute a share of something.”  You can link a lot with its opposite, a little, to help you remember the phrase is always two words.

Assure, Ensure, Insure – Assure means “to make someone confident” (I assure you I’m right), ensure means “to make certain something happens” (Pat will ensure the shipment goes out on time), and insure means “to protect against loss of value, as with an insurance policy.” Of course, as a friend reminded me, in some dictionaries insure does have the secondary meaning of "to make sure of."  I think the original definitions are still the better choice for clarity.

Every Day, Everyday – Why is it so tough to get these two expressions right?  Perhaps it’s because we see them misused so often we forget which is which.  (Check out MSN, Household, and Wal-Mart – their advertising needs some serious revision!)  Every day, meaning “each day,” is always two words (we go to work every day).  Everyday, meaning “ordinary,” is always one word (work is an everyday event).  “MSN.  Everyday” just doesn’t work!

Its, It’s, Its’ – Small words, huge confusion.  Its is the possessive pronoun, it’s means “it is,” and its’ does not exist.

Lose, Loose – While not strictly homonyms (they do sound somewhat different), these two words are often misused.  Lose is the opposite of find, and loose means “not secured.” 

Pair, Pare, Pear – To write “We will need to pear down expenses” is to open yourself to some ridicule.  Pair means “two of a kind,” pare means “to peel or trim” or ”to reduce or diminish costs,” and pear is the fruit.

Their, There, They’re – Their is the possessive pronoun, there means “in that place,” and they’re means “they are.”

To, Too, Two – To means “toward” (go to school), too means “more than enough” (too hot) or “also” (I’d like some ice cream too), and two is one plus one.

Who’s, Whose – Who’s is short for “who is”; whose is the pronoun (whose book is that?).

Your, You’re – Your is the possessive pronoun (your book), and you’re is short for “you are.”

While there are hundreds more, this should be enough to remind each of us to read what we’ve written very carefully.  It’s easy to make mistakes, especially when we’re in a hurry and depend on tools such as spell check.