accept: to receive
except: with the exclusion of
advice: recommendation (noun)
advise: to recommend (verb)
adverse: unfavorable
averse: opposed to
affect: to influence (verb); emotional response (noun)
effect: result (noun); to cause (verb)
aisle: space between rows
isle: island
allude: to make indirect reference to
elude: to avoid
allusion: indirect reference
illusion: false idea, misleading appearance
already: by this time
all ready: fully prepared
altar: sacred platform or place
alter: to change
altogether: thoroughly
all together: everyone/everything in one place
a lot: a quantity; many of something
allot: to divide or portion out
angel: supernatural being, good person
angle: shape made by joining two straight lines
are: plural form of "to be"
our: plural form of "my"
accent: pronunciation common to a region
ascent: the act of rising or climbing
assent: consent, agreement
assistance: help
assistants: helpers
bare: nude, unadorned
bear: to carry; an animal
beside: close to; next to
besides: except for; in addition
boar: a wild male pig
bore: to drill a hole through
board: piece of wood
bored: uninterested
born: brought into life
borne: past participle of "to bear" (carry)
breath: air taken in (noun)
breathe: to take in air (verb)
brake: device for stopping
break: destroy; make into pieces
buy: to purchase
by: next to; through the agency of
canvas: heavy cloth
canvass: to take a survey; a survey
capital: major city
capitol: government building
choose: to pick
chose: past tense of "to choose"
clothes: garments
close: to shut; near
cloths: pieces of fabric
coarse: rough
course: path; series of lectures
complement: something that completes
compliment: praise, flattery
conscience: sense of morality
conscious: awake, aware
corps: regulated group
corpse: dead body
council: governing body
counsel: advice; to give advice
dairy: place where milk products are processed
diary: personal journal
descent: downward movement
dissent: disagreement
dessert: final, sweet course in a meal
desert: to abandon; dry, sandy area
device: a plan; a tool or utensil
devise: to create
discreet: modest, prudent behavior
discrete: a separate thing, distinct
do: a verb indicating performance or execution of a task
dew: water droplets condensed from air
due: as a result of
dominant: commanding, controlling
dominate: to control
die: to lose life; one of a pair of dice
dye: to change or add color
dyeing: changing or adding color
dying: losing life
elicit: to draw out
illicit: illegal, forbidden
eminent: prominent
imminent: about to happen
envelop: to surround (verb)
envelope: container for a letter (noun)
everyday: routine, commonplace, ordinary (adj.)
every day: each day, succession (adj. + noun)
fair: just, honest; a carnival; light skinned
fare: money for transportation; food
farther: at a greater (measurable) distance
further: in greater (non-measurable) depth
formally: conventionally, with ceremony
formerly: previously
forth: forward
fourth: number four in a list
gorilla: animal in ape family
guerrilla: soldier specializing in surprise attacks
hear: to sense sound by ear
here: in this place
heard: past tense of "to hear"
herd: group of animals
hoard: a hidden fund or supply, a cache
horde: a large group or crowd, swarm
hole: opening
whole: complete; an entire thing
human: relating to the species homo sapiens
humane: compassionate
its: possessive form of "it"
it's: contraction for "it is"
knew: past tense of "know"
new: fresh, not yet old
know: to comprehend
no: negative
later: after a time
latter: second one of two things
lead: heavy metal substance; to guide
led: past tense of "to lead"
lessen: to decrease
lesson: something learned and/or taught
lightning: storm-related electricity
lightening: making lighter
loose: unbound, not tightly fastened
lose: to misplace
maybe: perhaps (adv.)
may be: might be (verb)
meat: animal flesh
meet: to encounter
mete: to measure; to distribute
medal: a flat disk stamped with a design
meddle: to interfere, intrude
metal: a hard organic substance
mettle: courage, spirit, energy
miner: a worker in a mine
minor: underage person (noun); less important (adj.)
moral: distinguishing right from wrong; lesson of a fable or story
morale: attitude or outlook usually of a group
passed: past tense of "to pass"
past: at a previous time
patience: putting up with annoyances
patients: people under medical care
peace: absence of war
piece: part of a whole; musical arrangement
peak: point, pinnacle, maximum
peek: to peer through or look furtively
pique: fit of resentment, feeling of wounded vanity
pedal: the foot lever of a bicycle or car
petal: a flower segment
peddle: to sell
personal: intimate; owned by a person
personnel: employees
plain: simple, unadorned
plane: to shave wood; aircraft (noun)
precede: to come before
proceed: to continue
presence: attendance; being at hand
presents: gifts
principal: foremost (adj.); administrator of a school (noun)
principle: moral conviction, basic truth
quiet: silent, calm
quite: very
rain: water drops falling; to fall like rain
reign: to rule
rein: strap to control an animal (noun); to guide or control (verb)
raise: to lift up
raze: to tear down
rational: having reason or understanding
rationale: principles of opinion, beliefs
respectfully: with respect
respectively: in that order
reverend: title given to clergy; deserving respect
reverent: worshipful
right: correct; opposite of left
rite: ritual or ceremony
write: to put words on paper
road: path
rode: past tense of "to ride"
scene: place of an action; segment of a play
seen: viewed; past participle of "to see"
sense: perception, understanding
since: measurement of past time; because
sight: scene, view, picture
site: place, location
cite: to document or quote (verb)
stationary: standing still
stationery: writing paper
straight: unbending
strait: narrow or confining; a waterway
taught: past tense of "to teach"
taut: tight
than: used to introduce second element; compared to
then: at that time; next
their: possessive form of "they"
there: in that place
they’re: contraction for "they are"
through: finished; into and out of
threw: past tense of "to throw"
thorough: complete
to: toward
too: also; very (used to show emphasis)
two: number following one
track: course, road
tract: pamphlet; plot of ground
waist: midsection of the body
waste: discarded material; to squander
waive: forgo, renounce
wave: flutter, move back and forth
weak: not strong
week: seven days
weather: climatic condition
whether: if
wether: a neutered male sheep
where: in which place
were: past tense of "to be"
which: one of a group
witch: female sorcerer
whose: possessive for "of who"
who’s: contraction for "who is"
your: possessive for "of you"
you’re: contraction for "you are"
yore: time long past
commonly confused words part 2
jacobvanloon