Writing mini lesson confused words (2)

Word Usage- Easily Confused word review

Writing Mini Lesson

Class Today

There are many words that are commonly misused or easily confused.

It may be because they sound alike or are spelled alike.

There, their, they’re, accept/except, your/you’re, its/it’s, etc.

We will review and practice some commonly confused and misused words.

Common Word Mistakes

Do you mix up there, their and they’re? Do you use your when you should be

using you’re? These are common word mistakes! It is important to use these common

words correctly because they are used often in writing.

There, their and they're The longest of these (they're) is the easiest

not to get wrong. The apostrophe indicates that a letter is missing, in this case a:

They're = they are e.g. They're going to the club.

Their is a possessive word that shows ownership of something. e.g. Their house isn't as big as ours.

There is a word with many uses, indicating a place or position. e.g. My new Honda Insight is over there. There is a cat on its roof.

In this example the word there takes two subtly different meanings.

http://www.gcse.com/english/possession.htm

Your and you're This is one of the most common confusions. The

problem here is similar to that of there and they're, in that you're is also a contraction.

You're is really you are, the apostrophe showing the a is missing: e.g. "You're really tall and your spiky hair makes you seem taller!"

Your is a possessive pronoun (used with hair above) e.g. your car, your phone, etc.

One common misuse of the word your is in questions such as: "Hope your okay."

It should, of course, be "Hope you're okay."

http://www.gcse.com/english/possession.htm

http://www.gcse.com/english/pronouns.htm

To, too and two To is a preposition, meaning that it's used with

a noun or pronoun. Most people use it all the time. e.g. "Kylie danced to the music". To has a massive range of uses and meanings, too many to go into here! [Ed. Did you see what we did there?]

Too has a number of meanings. As well: e.g. "Gemma wanted to go on holiday too,

but dogs weren't allowed on the plane." In excess: e.g. "Vic had added too much flour to

the cake mixture." More (of something) than ideal: e.g. "Mercury was

too close to the Sun to be habitable." Two is the number 2 Eg. I have 2 favorite

teachers.

Threw, Through & Thorough

The first two of these words are pronounced the same way. They have a very different meaning:

Threw = past tense of "throw" e.g. Jimmy threw the ring at Emiko.

Through has a number of related meanings, but mostly it's all about completing something. e.g. Elvis walked through the door. e.g. John was through with work for the day.

And how about this one: e.g. Gareth was through with mosquitoes coming through the window!

Thorough is completed work with no mistakes. Here it is in its adverb form: e.g. Keith cleaned his car thoroughly at least once a week.

1. Switch your text chat to me.2. I’ll read each sentence and you will pick the word that you think is used correctly. 3. Put the correct word in the text chat.

1. _____ up to you. ItsIt's

Yes, that is correct!

It’s up to you.

It's means It is! (and sometimes it has). The apostrophe -s creates the contraction for the verb is (or has).

Which sentence is correct?

2. I couldn't tell _______________ she was serious or not.

•whether•weather


I couldn't tell whether she was serious or not.

The word weather refers to climatological conditions.


3. ____________ are too many possible answers to this question.

•There•Their•They’re


There are too many possible answers to this question.

The correct response is there. They're means they are, and their is the possessive form of they.


4. _________ going to help me with this?

•Whose•Who's


Who’s going to help me with this?

Whose is the possessive form of who.


5. Reading that book had a peculiar _______________ on Evelyn.

•effect•affect


Reading that book had a peculiar effect on Evelyn.

Remember affect is usually a verb, effect is a noun

6. I'm afraid she's going to _____________ her grandmother's wedding band.

• loose• lose

•


Remember lose has one “o” you don’t want to “lose” more than one thing

I'm afraid she's going to lose her grandmother's wedding band.

7. She has apparently found it difficult to ___________ the circumstances.

•accept•except

•


Remember Accept is the verb. Except is usually a preposition meaning not including.

She has apparently found it difficult to accept the circumstances.

8. My mother has been _______________ in bed all morning.

• lieing• laying• lying

•


Remember “laying” is used for objects, “laying” carpet

My mother has been lying in bed all morning.

9. She apparently doesn't care about ___________ origins in antiquity. it'sits


It's means It is! (and sometimes it has). The apostrophe -s creates the contraction for the verb is (or has). This is perhaps the most often misused word in English.

She apparently doesn't care about its origins in antiquity.

10. It's usually hotter __________ this in July.

•than•then


Use than to make comparisons.

It's usually hotter than this in July.

11. The politicians can't seem to find an appropriate ___________ for the new community college.

•cite•sight•site


Site means a geographical spotSight is related to visionCite as in “cite” your sources

The politicians can't seem to find an appropriate site for the new community college.

12. I am completely _________________ in this course.

•uninterested•disinterested


Site means a geographical spotSight is related to visionCite as in “cite” your sources

The politicians can't seem to find an appropriate site for the new community college.

13. I'll be back in ______.

•a while•awhile


A while is a noun. Can you wait awhile? (Awhile [one word] is an adverb that can modify a verb.)

I'll be back in a while.

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/notorious.htm

14. When you are finished, _________ to the next part of the exam. •proceed•precede


Proceed is to go forward. Precede means to go before.

When you are finished, proceed to the next part of the exam.

15. We need some new _______________ for our office. •stationary•stationery


Remember “E” for envelope for stationery with an “e”. Stationary means to stand still, like a stationary bike.

We need some new stationery for our office.

16. I like to have ice cream for _________.•desert•dessert


Remember you always want 2 desserts- the one with the 2 “s”

I like to have ice cream for dessert.

17. Thanks. ________ welcome. •Your•You’re


Remember your belongs to you, you’re is you are.It should always be you’re welcome.

Thanks. You’re welcome.

Tips for Common Mistakes Read your work aloud to see if it makes

sense Use a common word chart, bookmark or

checklist. These mistakes aren’t often picked up in

spell check so you really need to check your work.

Practice! Make sure you use them the right way in your writing assignments.

Say it in your head before you write it down, ask yourself if you are using the right one!

Class Reminders

Don’t forget to complete Assign #14 Online Scavenger Hunt. It is worth 20 points.

Please review your notes from Monday before our review class on Friday.

If you didn’t turn in Assign#13 or post on the Graphic Organizer blog try to get that in tomorrow.

Questions?

Thanks for Coming!See you in class on Friday!

Education

Writing mini lesson confused words (2)