There are many words that are confusing. Here are a few examples.
The English language is a beautiful yet confusing thing. It’s so complex with rules that are relevant in one situation but not another. English is one of the hardest languages to learn. One of the many things people have a problem with is words that sound similar, but have different meanings. We will be taking a look at some of these confusing words.
Effect or Affect?
These two words, effect and affect, are a confusing case. They not only sound alike, but are close in definition. Yet, these two words are different and are not interchangeable. Many people are guilty of using effect when they should have used affect and vice versa.
The definition of effect, from dictionary.com, is, “something that is produced by an agency or cause; result; consequence.” To use it correctly in a sentence would look something like this –
Second hand smoke had an effect on Josh’s breathing.
Affect, on the other hand is defined by dictionary .com as “to act on; produce an effect or change in.” If used correctly it would look like this –
Second hand smoke did affect Josh’s breathing.
Usually affect will be a verb and effect will be a noun. One way to remember that is this sentence –
If it affects you, it will have an effect on you.
Your or You’re?
The confusion of your and you’re happens a lot. It’s pretty simple, if people slow down just a little and think about it.
You’re is a conjunction of the two words you and are. You’re can be used to replace you are. The following sentence is an example of this –
You’re going to be healthier now that you quit smoking.
Your is the possessive form of you. It shows ownership of you. Used in a sentence it looks like this –
This is your seat.
Yes this is very simplistic, but it is amazing how many times this is mixed up. It just takes a few seconds to get it right.
They’re, Their, There
This is another group of words that sound similar and are many times confused. Once again, if time is taken to pay attention, it’s really not that hard.
They’re is a conjunction of they and are. It is used to replace they are in a sentence. Here is what it looks like in a sentence –
They’re going to the movies.
Their is the possessive form of they. It shows ownership for the word they. When correctly used in a sentence it looks like this –
That is their car.
That brings us to there. Unlike the first two, there has nothing to with they. It is a location, as in the following example –
You can find the books on the shelf over there
Confusing Words
There are many words that are confusing and makes mastering English a hard chore. That is also what makes English fun. Who doesn’t like to twist the rules now and again?
