#homophones

[devinepunishment]

[thatsbelievable]

[the-little-moment]

A Hopefully Helpful List of Common Mistakes in Writing

These are just some examples that I see pop up fairly often, in fanfiction and in regular conversation, so I decided to compile them here in case it could be helpful to someone.

You have a bias. You are biased. You are not "bias".

2. Crying loudly is bawling, not balling.

3. The singular of barracks is still barracks. Barrack is a verb. For example, "They decided to barrack there." "He knocked on the door of their barracks."

4. Canon, not cannon, unless you are talking about a big gun. "That work is still canon." "He was a loose cannon." "She fired the cannon."

5. Lightning comes before thunder. Lightening is the act of making something lighter.

6. Planes are kept in a hangar. Clothes are stored on hangers.

7. Slang for kilometer is klick, not clik, or click.

8. Callous means insensitive or cruel. A callus is a thickened or rough patch of skin.

9. You are a part of something, not "apart of".

10. Your interest is piqued. He peeked around the corner. The roof was peaked. After days without sleep, she looked peaked (pronounced pee-kid).

11. Honey is viscous. Wolverines are vicious.

If anyone has anything to add, please leave a comment and I can make updates. 🙂

Edit: I don't seem to be able to make the 1. line up when I hit post, so just ignore that I guess.

[chrisssiren]

commonly confused homophones and similar-sounding words:

YOU’RE & YOUR

you’re = is a contraction for "you are".

example: "you’re funny."

your = indicates ownership and is the possessive form of you.

example: "this is your drink."

THEY’RE, THEIR & THERE

they’re = is a contraction for "they are".

example: "they’re triplets."

their = indicates ownership and is the possessive form of they.

example: "it’s their car."

there = is used to refer to a specific place or location.

example: "can’t you see the rat? it’s right there."

AN & A

an = is used before a vowel sound.

example: "you’re an idiot."

a = is used before a consonant sound.

example: "that’s a turtle."

BARELY & BARLEY

barely = is used to indicate scarcity or limitation.

example: "i can barely see with these glasses on."

barley = is a type of cereal grain used for food, animal feed, tea, and brewing beer/whisky.

example: "do you want some barley tea?"

LAY & LIE

lay = means to place something down.

example: "can you lay your phone down and eat?"

lie = means to recline or rest.

example: "i really want to lie down right now."

THEN & THAN

then = is used to indicate time, sequence, or consequence.

example: "wash your hair first, and then your body."

than = is used to compare two or more things.

example: "this cookie is better than the one i had yesterday."

LOSE & LOOSE

lose = means to misplace, fail to retain, be deprived of, or fail to win.

example: "don’t lose your keys."

loose = means not tight, not firmly attached, free, or unrestrained.

example: "this knot is too loose."

AFFECT & EFFECT

affect = means "to influence".

example: "your attitude will affect your career in the long run."

effect = means "the result".

example: "can’t you see the effect you have on others?"

TO & TOO

to = shows direction/purpose or precedes a verb.

example: "i need to finish writing my wip."

too = means also or very/excessively.

example: "you’re consuming too much caffeine."

IT’S & ITS

it’s = is a contraction for "it is".

example: "it’s too much of a hassle."

its = indicates ownership and is the possessive form of it.

example: "be careful when you pet that cat! don’t touch its tail."

WHOSE & WHO’S

whose = indicates ownership and is the possessive form of who.

example: "whose bracelet is this?"

who’s = is a contraction for "who is".

example: "who’s your friend?"

QUIET & QUITE

quiet = means silent/making little or no sound.

example: "are you okay? you’re being awfully quiet today."

quite = means very, to a certain extent, or completely.

example: "it’s quite clear to see. peanut butter on a fucking rice cake."

isa’s rambling ۶ৎ i hated grammar during middle&high school but i think these are easy to memorize!! i tried my best to explain but i’m not sure if i did a good job. i hope this helps :)

[facts-i-just-made-up]

Why do homophones exist?

Eye halve know clew.

Its A reel gambol too chews witch whirred two yews.

[russenoire]

homophones in japanese, #1: はなꜜす

these all have the same standard tōkyō pitch accent, and conjugate in exactly the same way. the only way to distinguish between them in speech is... context.

i'll be posting a series of these over the next few weeks. stay tuned!

話す　to talk, converse, explain, speak a language, etc.

漢字　tale/story, talk (2nd grade, JLPT N4)

話してくださってありがとうございます。 thank you for talking with me. そんなことを話していると、チャイムが鳴った。 as we were talking, the doorbell rang.

離す　to separate, keep apart, divide

漢字　detach, separation (JLPT N1)

肌身離さず持っていてください。 please keep it close to you at all times. 「震えないで 生き足りないね　この夜だけ離れないでいて」 don't tremble; our lives aren't over yet. just for tonight, don't leave me (a lyric from this song, timestamped)

放す　to release, let go, set free, to drop into (cooking liquid)

漢字　set free, banish, liberate, release (3rd grade, JLPT N2)

言いたいことだけ言って、手を放す。 just say what you want to say and let me go (lit. 'release [my] hand'). ちょっと目を離した隙に消えていた。 as soon as i took my eyes off it, it had vanished.

additional vocabulary

チャイム　bell, chime, doorbell.

鳴く（なく）to make a sound, esp. an animal noise.

肌身離さず（はだみはなさず）lit. without separation from body or skin. close to the body. 肌身 == body, skin.

震える（ふるえる）tremble, shiver, shake.

〜隙に（すきに）while 〜 is occurring, to take advantage of the opportunity and do something else.

またね～

[lurker-no-more]

Bless.

[vampirekittykat13]

I noticed that a lot of people don't really know the difference between these common homophones. And the people who do know the difference correct them but don't ever explain why. So I made this quick little chart to help.

They're = they are, ex: "They're really nice."

Their = something someone owns, ex: "That's their pencil."

There = location, ex: "have you ever been there?"

Your = ownership, ex: "Is this your bike?"

You're = you are, ex: "You're so pretty!"

To = shows direction or movement, ex: "I'm going to work."

Too = meaning in addition/also or overly

Ex of in addition/also: "I went to the store too."

Ex of overly: "It is too hot outside!"

Two: the number 2, ex: "We ordered two drinks."

I hope this helps some people out!