Recently Added Articles Page #65

pore, pour, poor

To pore means “to read” or “to ponder.”To pour means "to cause a liquid or granular solid to flow."Poor means to be "of bad quality or low economic status."Example: If you pore through enough books instead of pouring pitchers of beer, you can...

pray, prey

To pray means "to meditate or communicate with God."As a verb, prey means “to hunt.” As a noun, prey is the object of the hunt.Example: Once he realized that he was the prey, he started praying for help....

precedent, precedence

The meaning of the word precedent in law—a judicial decision that sets a rule—is very close to the common usage of the word: an “example” or “custom resulting from long practice.” A lawyer might find several precedents, that is, a number ...

predominant, predominate

As an adjective, predominant describes something with the greatest influence or authority.As a verb, predominate means “to gain controlling power.”Careful writers do not use predominate as an adjective.Example: The predominant ingredient in the n...

premier, premiere

Premier is both a noun and an adjective associated with the highest status or rank.Premiere can be used as a noun or a verb, both having to do with the first public performance of a movie or a play.Example: The premiere of the political play was atte...

principal, principle

Note: The differences between principal and principle are discussed in depth in the Common Grammatical Mistakes section of Grammar.com. Click here for that discussion.The principal (who should be your pal) is the head of a school. As a noun, principa...

prior to, subsequent to

The expression prior to means nothing more than before. Yet many professionals insist on using prior to because it sounds intelligent. It isn’t. All it does is stuff up your style with hot air.The same goes for subsequent to. It means after, nothin...

prioritize

The word prioritize gums up the styles of many people lacking an ear for good writing. Delete it from your vocabulary. Instead, use set priorities or establish priorities....

proceed, precede

To proceed means “to go forward,” “to carry on,” or “to originate from a source.” The verb proceed is distinctly intransitive. That is, you may not proceed something. Instead, you proceed with something.To precede means “to occur or exi...

prostrate, prostate

As a verb, to prostrate means "to throw oneself on the floor or lie facedown."The word prostrate also serves as an adjective, as in he was prostrate with grief.The prostate gland is a part of the anatomy of a male mammal that produces the fluid in se...

quality

The writers of advertisements love to use quality as an adjective: quality auto parts. Good writers, however, avoid this use and stick to fine, good, superior, or other suitable adjective....

quite, quiet, quit

These words would probably never be confused if not for their similar spellings. Their meanings are not similar at all.Quite means “to an extreme or intense degree.”Quiet is the lack of noise.Quit means "to stop or cease an activity."Example: The...

quote, quotation

As a verb, to quote means “to repeat or copy the words of another.”The word quotation is the noun form.Many writers use the short word quote as a noun. Though improper, the usage is gaining ground.Example: Shakespeare is often quoted, but perhaps...

really, real

Real is an adjective meaning “genuine” or “authentic,” or having a “verifiable existence.”Really is an adverb used to add emphasis and means “in fact,” “genuinely,” or “indeed.”Careful writers do not use real as an adverb: He ...

reek, wreak

Reek means “to smell” or “to smoke.”Wreak means “to bring about,” “to cause,” or “to inflict.”The past tense and past participle of wreak is wreaked. It is not wrought, which is an archaic past tense and past participle of work. E...

reign, rein, rain

To reign means “to rule.”A rein keeps your horse attached to the hitching post.Raindrops keep falling on your head.Example: He tugged on the reins of his horse as the rain began to fall and galloped back to the castle where he reigned over his sm...

right, write, rite

To be right means to be “correct” or “appropriate.”To write means “to form letters or words on a surface with an instrument such as a pen, pencil, or computer screen.”A rite is a ritual ceremony usually associated with a religious group.E...

rise, raise, rear

All these words can be used to describe the movement of something from a lower to a higher level. The key to choosing one is: who is doing the movement and what is being moved.Rise is used when you are lifting yourself or something is lifting itself....

salacious, salutary

Woe to the person who confuses these two in the wrong situation.Salutary means “wholesome” or “designed to create a healthy improvement.”Salacious means “appealing to sexual desire.”Example: A poorly timed salacious comment instead of a s...

sanguine, sanguinary

Sanguine might be one of the most misused words in the English language, and that is partly because it has two meanings that seem almost the opposite of each other.Sanguine means “reddish,” “bloody,” or “healthy,” as in a sanguine complex...

seen, scene

Seen is the past participle of see. Note that it is not the simple past tense of see. I saw is often replaced by I seen in some regions of the country, but that usage is never correct.A scene might be a segment of a play or movie, the setting of an a...

sense, since

A sense can be any one of the faculties: taste, touch, hearing, smell, sight, or equilibrium. It can also mean “understanding” or “perception.”Since means “from a certain point in time up until now.” The word since can act as a prepositio...

sensuous, sensual

Both words mean “of or appealing to the senses.” The difference in usage is that sensual is more closely associated with physical senses and sexual desires. Sensuous is used to describe things that appeal more to the five senses, such as music an...

set, sit

Generally, sit is something you do yourself, while set is something you do to something else.The verb sit is intransitive, another of those “body-location” verbs like run and mosey. It can also have transitive definitions, as in sit yourself at t...

shall, will

In American English, the auxiliary verb will universally shows futurity for all persons: first, second, and third. Thus: I will go to the movie tomorrow. In British English, the auxiliary verb shall often appears in the first person to show the futur...