Confusing Words

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

Improve your vocabulary
قم بتحسين المفردات التى لديك فى اللغة الانجليزية
Confusing Words
الكلمات المربكة فى اللغة الانجليزية

from Kenneth Beare
كتبها كينيث بيير
English vocabulary can cause a lot of confusion. One of the first problems is words that many sound the same i.e. 'to, too, two' or 'band, banned'. Next, there are words that sound similar i.e. 'sick, seek' or 'hit, heat'. There are also a number of false friends such as 'actual - attualmente' in Italian. There are a number of words that have similar spellings but different meanings. Finally, there are many words that have similar meanings and can be easily exchanged. This lesson focuses on some of the most important confusing vocabulary.
Commonly Confused Word Pairs for ESL Learners
Here are some of the most commonly confused English word
pairs. They have been chosen especially for ESL learners. The
list is not complete, if you have any commonly confused words
that you feel should be included. Send me an
beside / besides
beside: preposition meaning 'next to', 'at the side of'
Examples:
I sit beside John in class.
Could you get me that book? It's beside the lamp.
besides: adverb meaning 'also', 'as well'; preposition meaning 'in addition to'
Examples:
(adverb) He's responsible for sales, and a lot more besides.
(preposition) Besides tennis, I play soccer
and basketball.
clothes / cloths
clothes: something you wear - jeans, shirts, blouses, etc.
Examples:
Just a moment, let me change my clothes.
Tommy, get your clothes on!
cloths: pieces of material used for cleaning or other purposes.
Examples:
There are some cloths in the closet. Use those to clean the kitchen.
I have a few pieces of cloth that I use.
dead / died
dead: adjective meaning 'not alive'
Examples:
Unfortunately, our dog has been dead for a few months.
Don't touch that bird. It's dead.
died: past tense and past participle of the verb 'to die'
Examples:
His grandfather died two years ago.
A number of people have died in the accident.
experience / experiment
experience: noun meaning something that a person lives through, i.e. something that someone experiences. - also used as an uncountable noun meaning 'knowledge gained by doing something'
Examples:
(first meaning)His experiences in Germany were rather depressing
(second meaning) I'm afraid I don't have much sales experience.
experiment: noun meaning something that you do to see the result. Often used when speaking about scientists and their studies.
Examples:
They did a number of experiments last week.
Don't worry it's just an experiment. I'm not going to keep my beard.
felt / fell
felt: past tense and past participle of the verb 'to feel'
Examples:
I felt better after I had a good dinner.
He hasn't felt this well for a long time.
fell: past tense of the verb 'to fall'
Examples:
He fell from a tree and broke his leg.
Unfortunately, I fell down and hurt myself.
female / feminine
female: the sex of a woman or animal
Examples:
The female of the species is very aggressive.
The question 'female or male' means 'are you a woman or a man'.
feminine: adjective describing a quality or type of behaviour that is considered typical for a woman
Examples:
He's an excellent boss with a feminine intuition.
The house was decorated in a very feminine manner.
its / it's
its: possessive determiner similar to 'my' or 'your'
Examples:
Its color is red.
The dog didn't eat all of its food.
it's: Short form of 'it is' or 'it has'
Examples:
(it is) It's difficult to understand him.
(it has) It's been a long time since I had a beer.
last / latest
last: adjective usually meaning 'final'
Examples:
I took the last train to Memphis.
This is the last test of the semester!
latest: adjective meaning 'most recent' or 'new'
Examples:
His latest book is excellent.
Have you seen his latest painting?
lay / lie
lay: verb meaning 'to put down flat' - past tense - laid, past participle - laid
Examples:
He laid his pencil down and listened to the teacher.
I usually lay my pies on the shelf to cool.
lie: verb meaning 'to be down' - past tense -lay (be careful!), past participle - lain
Examples:
The girl lay on the bed asleep.
At the moment, he's lying on the bed.
lose / loose
lose: verb meaning 'to misplace'
Examples:
I lost my watch!
Have you ever lost anything valuable?
loose: adjective meaning the opposite of 'tight'
Examples:
Your trousers are very loose!
I need to tighten this screw. It's loose.
male / masculine
male: the sex of a man or animal
Examples:
The male of the species is very lazy.
The question 'female or male' means 'are you a woman or a man'.
masculine: adjective describing a quality or type of behaviour that is considered typical for a man
Examples:

She's a very masculine woman.
His opinions are just too masculine for me.
price / prize
price: noun - what you pay for something.
Examples:
The price was very cheap.
What's the price of this book?
prize: noun - an award
Examples:
He won a prize as best actor.
Have you ever won a prize in a competition?
principal / principle
principal: adjective meaning 'the most important'
Examples:
The principal reason for my decision was the money.
What are the principal irregular verbs?
principle: a rule (usually in science but also concerning morals)
Examples:
It's the first principle of aerodynamics.
He has very loose principles.
quite / quiet
quite: adverb of degree meaning 'very' or 'rather'
Examples:
This test is quite difficult.
He was quite exhausted after the long journey.
quiet: adjective meaning the opposite of loud or noisy
Examples:
Could you please be quiet?!
She's a very quiet girl.
sensible / sensitive
sensible: adjective meaning 'having common sense' i.e. 'not stupid'
Examples:
I wish you would be more sensible about things.
I'm afraid you aren't being very sensible.
sensitive: adjective meaning 'to feel very deeply' or 'to hurt easily'
Examples:
You should be careful with David. He's very sensitive.
Mary is a very sensitive woman.
shade / shadow
shade: protection from the sun, a dark area outside on a sunny day.
Examples:
You should sit in the shade for a while.
It's too hot. I'm going to find some shade.
shadow: the dark area created by something else on a sunny day.
Examples:
That tree casts a large shadow.
Have you every noticed your shadow getting longer as it gets later in the day?
some time / sometimes
some time: refers to an indefinite time in the future
Examples:
Let's meet for coffee some time.
I don't know when I'll do it - but I will do it some time.
sometimes: adverb of frequency meaning 'occasionally'
Examples:
He sometimes works late.
Sometimes, I like eating Chinese food.



للمزيد من اختبارت حول الكلمات المربكة فى اللغة الانجليزية
اضغط على الروابط التالية
http://esl.about.com/library/vocabulary/blconfusing2.htm
http://esl.about.com/library/vocabulary/blconfusing2.htm
http://esl.about.com/library/vocabulary/blconfusing3.htm
http://esl.about.com/library/vocabulary/blconfusing4.htm
http://esl.about.com/library/vocabulary/blconfusing5.htm
These five quizzes focuses on word pairs that are often confused. Some of the words sound familiar, some are words that are very different but often confused.
Confusing Words - 2
Confusing Words - 2
Confusing Words - 3
Confusing Words - 4
Confusing Words - 5

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