The ManicaPost
Guy Kawasaki even has publicly admitted that no matter how many times you read your book or how many editors review it, chances are there will be a few errors that you miss.
It’s one thing to have a few errors here and there; it’s a completely different one to have a book trifled with obvious grammatical errors.
One of the biggest challenges for people who are writing books and who didn’t go to writing or journalism school are words that sound alike, but have very different meaning.
The reality is that if you want to use a book as a way to boost your authority, credibility and influence, you’ll want to be careful of grammatical errors because they could turn off your audience.
Hiring an editor and a proofreader is essential if you want to publish a quality book as a self-published author. It’s true that if you get a book deal, your publisher will take care of getting your book professionally edited, but I still firmly believe that as authors, we need to master the basics of good written English.
As I was writing my books, I realized that there are words that sound alike but have different meanings and if you spend enough time on social media, you’ll notice that a lot of people aren’t aware they’re misusing or misspelling words.
In order to help more self-published authors become better at editing their own books, I’ve compiled a list of 37 common misspelled or misused English words and added the correct spelling and a short explanation so as to give you more control on the quality of your writing!
Accept and Except
To “accept” is a verb. It has several meanings:
- To hold something as true. Here’s an example: “I accept she may have been tired, but that’s still no excuse.”
- To receive something willingly. Here’s an example: “I accept this award on behalf of the whole cast.”
The word “except” is most commonly seen as a preposition. However, it can also be used a conjunction and very occasionally as a verb. Here’s a great quote that clearly shows how to properly use the word “except”: “I can resist everything except temptation. (Oscar Wilde)
- Affect vs. Effect
Affect is a verb that means, “to influence”. A good example is: “your ability to deeply relate to your clients will affect your authority”
Effect has a completely different meaning. Effect is a noun and refers to “result” or “the result of.” A good example is: “the effect of junk foods on our youth is devastating”
Effect can also be a verb and in that case, it means “to bring about”, “to cause”, or “to achieve”. A good example is: “You will effect these changes on Monday.”
Here’s another example that puts both words in the same sentence: “A situation may AFFECT you, while someone might have a huge EFFECT on you”.
- All Right vs. Alright
I’ll be honest and admit I didn’t realize people misspelled “all right” and used “alright” instead. As I was doing this research, I found out that people use “alright” in their day-to-day conversations like so many people write on email as if they were texting. Alright is incorrect.
Alright is the lazy man’s all right. You should do your best to refrain from using “alright” in your day-to-day life in terms of writing. It’s and not widely accepted in the grammar world (even though it isn’t even corrected anymore with spell check). However, say it aloud however you like. It doesn’t really make much difference in that regard.
Easy way to remember: “Alright” is not all right.
- A Lot or Alot
It’s simple, if you’re writing “alot” in a text, then you’re automatically making a mistake. It’s pretty much black & white.
The phrase “a lot” (when used as a noun) means “a large extent, a large amount, or a large number.” Even as an adverb, it means “to a great extent.”
This is a simple rule to remember, a lot is ALWAYS spelled in two words!
- Anyway vs. Anyways
This is an easy one, there isn’t a “s” at the end of “anyway”.
- Assume vs. Presume
To “assume” something means that you suppose it to be true, especially without proof. When you “presume”, however, you are taking something for granted as being true because there is no evidence to the contrary.
Basically, you are smarter to “presume” than “assume”.
- Appose vs. Oppose
These two spellings originally meant the same thing, but now they have different meanings:
- “appose” means to place side by side or in close proximity
- “oppose” means the following:
* be against; express opposition to
* fight against or resist strongly
* contrast with equal weight or force
* set into opposition or rivalry
- Blond vs. Blonde
This word derives from French, which means it has masculine and feminine forms. Quite simply, “blond” refers to a man, and “blonde”refers to a woman.
- Breath vs. Breathe
“Breath” is a noun referring to the air coming in or going out of the lungs.“Breathe” is a verb referring to “the act of inhaling and exhaling.” It’s not complicated, yet the two words are often confused with one another when written.
- Capital vs. Capitol
“Capital” refers to money and “capitol” represents the buildings and monuments that represent the country.
- Compliment vs. Complement
“Compliment” is something nice someone one says about you to which you’d normally respond “thanks”.
“Complement” is something that adds to or supplements something else. A good example is: “this scarf complements the colour of this dress”.
- Could of vs. Could have
This is another tricky word combination because we usually pronounce “could of” as opposed to “could of” when we speak.
The problem is that when you’re writing, you need to use “could have” instead of “could of”, as the latter is grammatically incorrect.
The same applies to should have (NOT should of) and would have (NOT would of), which are the correct ways of writing.
That said, you can legitimately contract these words. You can use could’ve, would’ve or should’ve!
- Disinterested vs. Uninterested
If someone is disinterested, it means that they are “impartial or unbiased about something”. However, if they are uninterested, it means that they simply “have no interest in it.”
Here’s a good example: “A judge need be disinterested, but never uninterested”.
- Definitely or Definately
Definitely doesn’t have an “a”. You might pronounce it with an “a” when you speak, but when you write it there should be only two vowels: “e” and “i”!
- e.g. vs. i.e.
Although neither of these are words, they are both used incorrectly quite often. “e.g.” stands for the Latin exempli gratia, or “for example”.“i.e.” is Latin for id est, meaning “that is.” Therefore, you only use it if you are giving the only example(s) to qualify your statement.
Here’s a good example: “The photo was signed by the last surviving ‘Golden Girl,’ i.e., Betty White”.
- Elicit and Illicit
The verb “elicit” means to call forth or bring out. The adjective “illicit” means unlawful or not permitted.
Here’s a good example to understand the meaning of each word: “the song elicited deep emotions, but the illicit lyrics kept it from pop stardom.” – (Adrienne Robins, The Analytical Writer: A College Rhetoric, 2nd ed. Collegiate Press, 1996)
