Most Common Usage Problems

1) A - “a” is used before consonant sounds,

AN - “an” is used before vowel sounds.
Words beginning with “h”, “o”, “u” may have either a consonant sound or a vowel sound.
a. a history class (h-sound)
b. a one-way path (w-sound)
c. a uniform look (y-sound)

2) ACCEPT - Accept, a verb, means to receive. Accept is an action word.

EXCEPT - Except, a preposition, means leaving out or other than.
a. VERB - She did not accept the job offer for flimsy reasons.
b. PREPOSITION - We were all excited about the reunion, except Maggie.

3) ADVICE - Advice is a noun meaning an opinion.

ADVISE - Advise is a verb meaning to give an opinion to.
a. I miss the pieces of advice that mother used to bombard me with.
b. She has always advised me to remain strong and independent.

4) AFFECT - Affect is almost always a verb meaning to influence. Affect is an action word.
EFFECT - Effect, usually a noun, means result. Occasionally, effect is a verb meaning to bring
about or to cause.
a. I would not let my personal problems affect the quality of my work.
b. The effect of the earthquake on Beijing was disastrous.
c. She effected policies that benefited the entire organization.

5) AIN’T - Ain’t, originally a contraction of AM NOT or ARE NOT, is not considered acceptable in
standard English. Avoid using it in all writing and speaking.
a. NONSTANDARD: I ain’t going to the party tonight.
b. CORRECT: I am not going to the party tonight.
c. CORRECT: You are not going either.

6) A LOT – A lot is an informal expression meaning a great many or a great amount. Avoid using it in formal
writing.
ALLOT - Allot, a verb, means to divide in parts or to give out in shares.
a. VERB: My husband allotted a portion of his monthly pay for his sister’s matriculation.
b. INFORMAL: He has a lot of relatives in the suburbs to support.
c. FORMAL: He has many relatives in the suburbs to support.

7) ALL READY - All ready is an expression functioning as an adjective and meaning ready.
ALREADY - Already is an adverb meaning by or before this time or even now.
a. ADJECTIVE: We are all ready to listen to the proposition.
b. ADVERB: We have already arrived at a decision.

8) ALRIGHT / ALL RIGHT - Alright is nonstandard spelling. Always use the two-word form in your
writing.
a. NONSTANDARD: It is alright with the group that you take your share in advance.
b. CORRECT: It is all right with the group that you take your share in advance.

9) ALL TOGETHER - All together means all at once.

ALTOGETHER - Altogether means completely or in all.
 a. CORRECT: All together, the members of the Parliament moved that the motion be
reconsidered.
b. CORRECT: They did not agree altogether that the bill was worth passing.

10) AMONG - Among and between are both prepositions. Among always implies three or more.
BETWEEN - Between is generally used with just two things.
a. John was certainly among the most talented students in his class.
b. John always comes between Frank and myself.

11) AMOUNT - Use amount with quantities that cannot be counted.

NUMBER - Use number with things that can be counted.
a. a small amount of lotion, a large amount of profit
b. a number of books, a number of delegates

12) ANXIOUS / EAGER - Anxious means worried, uneasy, or fearful. Do not use it as a substitute for
eager.
a. We are always eager to meet new friends.
b. AMBIGUOUS: We are always anxious to meet new friends.
c. CLEAR: We are always anxious about meeting new friends.

13) ANYONE - Anyone and everyone mean any person and every person, respectively. Any one
means any single person (or thing).
EVERYONE - Every one means every single person (or thing).
a. Anyone may try out the new dish.
b. Any one of these dishes may be tried out.
c. Everyone did not like the dish.
d. Every one of the dishes was horrible.

14) ADVERBS - The following adverbs should never end in “s”: anyway, anywhere, everywhere,
nowhere, somewhere.
a. NONSTANDARD: It does not matter if the host refuses because the group will still go
anyways.
b. CORRECT: It does not matter if the host refuses because the group will still go anyway.

15) AS - Do not use the conjunction as to mean because or since.

a. LESS ACCEPTABLE: As she was terribly sick, she was not able to join the competition.
b. PREFERRED: Because she was terribly sick, she was not able to join the competition.

16) AT - Do not use at after where. Simply eliminate it.

a. NONSTANDARD: Do the visitors know where the train station is at?
b. CORRECT: Do the visitors know where the train station is?
c. Avoid using at with about. Simply eliminate at or about.
i. LESS ACCEPTABLE: The delegates arrived at about noon.
ii. PREFERRED: The delegates arrived at noon.

17) AWFUL - Awful is used informally to mean extremely bad.

AWFULLY - Awfully is used informally to mean very.
Both modifiers are overused and should be replaced with more descriptive words.
In formal writing, awful should be used only to mean inspiring fear.
a. INFORMAL: Mary looked awful when she was hospitalized.
b. BETTER: Mary looked pale and weak when she was hospitalized.
c. INFORMAL: Mary was awfully weak.
 d. BETTER: Mary was very weak.

18) AWHILE - Awhile is an adverb, which in itself means for a while.

A WHILE - A while is an article and a noun, and is usually used after the preposition for.
a. Rest awhile if the driver is not yet around.
b. Stay for a while and keep me company while you wait for the driver.

19) BAD - Bad is an adjective. It modifies nouns and pronouns.

BADLY – Badly is an adverb. It modifies verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.
a. ADJECTIVE - The milk smelled bad.
b. ADVERB – Before, I took lessons, I played the piano badly.

20) BECAUSE - Do not use because after the reason. Say The reason is that or reword the sentence.
a. NONSTANDARD: The reason I resigned is because I was not prepared for the job.
b. CORRECT: The reason I resigned is that I was not prepared for the job. I resigned
because I was not prepared for the job.

21) BESIDE - Beside means at the side of or close to.

BESIDES - Besides means in addition to and except for or apart from, but should not be confused
with the conjunction.
a. Linda was beside me during the entire course of the interview.
b. Besides my educational background, I was asked about my job experiences.

22) BESIDES / EXCEPT - Do not use this expression to mean “besides” or “except.”
a. NONSTANDARD: Outside of Terry, there was no other eligible applicant.
b. CORRECT: Except Terry, there was no other eligible applicant.

23) BRING - Bring means to carry from a distant place to a nearer one.
TAKE - Take means the opposite: to carry from a near place to a more distant one.
a. It is lunch time so please bring the lunch boxes here.
b. It is lunch time so please take the lunch boxes to the kids.

24) BUNCH - Bunch means a number of things of the same kind. Avoid using this word to mean
group.
a. PREFERRED: A group of professionals formed their own labor union. They brought a
bunch of fruits with them.

25) BUST / BUSTED - Burst is the standard present, past, and past participle of the verb burst. Bust
and busted are nonstandard forms.
a. NONSTANDARD: Marco will bust if he takes one more bite!
b. CORRECT: Marco will burst if he takes one more bite!

26) CAN - Use can to mean to have the ability to.

MAY - Use may to mean to have permission to or to be possible or likely to.
a. ABILITY: You can certainly carry that load.
b. PERMISSION: Yes, you may use it.
c. POSSIBILITY: You may overcome that challenge.

27) CONTINUAL - Continual means occurring again and again in succession.

CONTINUOUS - Continuous means occurring without interruption.
a. His continual tardiness caused his dismissal from his post.
b. His continuous absence from his post caused his dismissal.
28) DIFFERENT THAN / DIFFERENT FROM - Between different than and different from, the latter is
preferred.
a. LESS ACCEPTABLE: Her idea of marriage is different than mine.
b. PREFERRED: Her idea of marriage is different from mine.

29) DON’T / DOESN’T - Do not use don’t with third-person singular subjects. Use doesn’t instead.
a. NONSTANDARD: She don’t know where she is heading to.
b. STANDARD: She does not know where she is going to.
c. MOST FREQUENTLY USED: She doesn’t know where she is going.

30) DONE - Done is the past participle of the verb do. It should always follow a helping verb.
a. NONSTANDARD: Mr. Jones children always done well in school.
b. CORRECT: Mr. Jones children have always done well in school.

31) EACH OTHER / ONE ANOTHER - Each other and one another are usually interchangeable. At
times, however, each other is more logically used in reference to only two, and one another, in
reference to more than two.
a. Jesus taught us to love one another.
b. The couple held each other’s hand as they walked down the aisle.

32) EMIGRATE - Emigrate means to leave a country for a new residency.

IMMIGRATE - Immigrate means to enter (to come in) a country to establish residency.
a. During the war, many Vietnamese emigrated from the country.
b. Many Vietnamese immigrated to the United States.

33) FARTHER - Farther refers to distance.

FURTHER - Further means additional or to a greater degree of extent.
a. Grandmothers place is farther than what we expected.
b. Grandmother asked us further how we were able to get to her place.

34) FEWER - Use fewer with things that can be counted.

LESS - Use less with qualities and quantities that cannot be counted.
a. Fewer books, fewer complaints
b. Less trouble, less milk

35) FORMER - Former refers to the first of two previously mentioned items.
LATTER - Latter refers to the second of the two.
a. We bought some food and new toys for the orphanage.
b. The former we gave to the orphanage employees; the latter we gave to the kids.

36) GET / GOT / GOTTEN - Get, got, and gotten are forms of the verb get and are acceptable in
standard English, but whenever possible, it is best to find a more specific word.
a. INFORMAL: get a permit, got a job, have gotten wealthier
b. BETTER: obtain a permit, hired for a job, have acquired wealth

37) GONE - Gone is the past participle of go and should be used as a verb only with a helping word.
WENT - Went is the past form of go and is never used with a helping verb.
a. NONSTANDARD: Joe gone to see his family in Miami.
b. CORRECT: Joe went to see his family in Miami.
c. CORRECT: Joe could have gone to see his family in Miami.
38) GOOD / LOVELY / NICE - Whenever possible, replace the weak and overused words such as
good, lovely, and nice with a more specific adjective.
a. WEAK: good explanation, lovely weather, nice clothes
b. BETTER: elaborate explanation, warm weather, fashionable clothes

39) GOOD - Good is an adjective. Do not use good to modify a verb

WELL – use well, which can be used as an adverb. Although is is usually and adverb, well is also
used as an adjective to mean
“healthy.”
a. NONSTANDARD: Heather sings good.
b. STANDARD: Heather sings well.
c. She doesn’t feel well.

40) HARDLY / SCARCELY – Hardly and scarcely are negative words. They should not be sued with
other negative words to express negative ideas, or it will be a double negative.

41) HISSELF / THEIRSELF / THEIRSELVES – Do not use these words. All of these words are
NONSTANDARD English. STANDARD English uses himself or themselves.

42) HOW COME / WHY – In informal English, how come is often used instead of why. In formal
English, why is preferred.
a. INFORMAL: How come she can leave early?
b. FORMAL: Why can she leave early?

43) IF / WHETHER - If and whether are two subordinate conjunctions that are interchangeable. When
using whether, it is not necessary to include or not after it.
a. The diplomats were wondering whether (or if) they made the right proposition.

44) IN - In refers to position.

INTO - Into suggests motion.
a. Position: Each piece of accessory was placed in the cabinet.
b. Motion: Please put all of your things into the drawer.

45) IRREGARDLESS / REGARDLESS - Avoid the word irregardless. Use regardless.

a. NONSTANDARD: Irregardless of the election results, you are still our choice.
b. CORRECT: Regardless of the election results, you are still our choice.

46) ITS - Its is the possessive form of the personal pronoun it. Its is used to show ownership.
IT’S – It’s is a contraction of it is or it has.
a. The dog chased its tail.
b. It’s tail is long.

47) JUST - When just is used as an adverb meaning no more than, it should be placed right before
the word it modifies.
a. LESS ACCEPTABLE: Just clean the porch, not the garage.
b. PREFERRED: Clean just the porch, not the garage.

48) KIND OF / SORT OF - Do not use kind of and sort of to mean rather or somewhat.
a. NONSTANDARD: Anne was sort of disappointed with her colleague’s performance.
b. CORRECT: Anne was somewhat disappointed with her colleague’s performance.
49) LAY - Lay means to put or set (something) down. Its tenses are lay, laying, laid, and laid and are
usually followed by a direct object.
LIE - Lie means to recline. Its principal parts lie, lying, and lay never followed by a direct object.
a. LAY: Lay the vase on the desk. They are laying the carpet tomorrow afternoon. Jack
gently laid the eggs in the container.
b. LIE: Lie down and rest for a few minutes. The children are lying on the carpet. They were
so tired that they lay down to rest.

50) LEARN - Learn means to acquire knowledge.

TEACH - Teach means to impart knowledge to.
a. I learned so much from my elementary English teacher.
b. My elementary English teacher used to teach me so much.

51) LEAVE - Leave means to allow to remain.

LET - Let means to permit.
a. NONSTANDARD: Leave me to do this on my own.
b. CORRECT: Let me do this on my own.

52) LIKE / AS - Like is a preposition and should not be used in place of the conjunction as.
a. NONSTANDARD: He is wise like a monkey is wise.
b. CORRECT: He is wise as a monkey is wise.

53) LOOSE - Loose is usually an adjective or part of such idioms as cut loose, turn loose, or break
loose.
LOSE - Lose is always a verb, generally meaning to miss from ones possession.
a. Grandma loves to wear loose clothes.
b. Lose this game, and you are out of the entire tournament.

54) MAYBE / PERHAPS - Maybe is an adverb meaning perhaps. May be is a helping verb and a
verb.
a. ADVERB: Maybe we will make it to the meeting on time.

55) OF - Do not use OF after a helping verb such as should, would, could, and must. Use have
instead. Do not use of after outside, inside, off, and atop. Simply eliminate it.
a. NONSTANDARD: She must of remembered she had an appointment
b. CORRECT: She must have remembered she had an appointment.
c. LESS ACCEPTABLE: The kid fell off of the high chair.
d. PREFERRED: The kid fell off the high chair.

56) K, O.K., okay In informal writing, OK, O.K., and okay are acceptably used to mean “all right.”
However, do not use either the abbreviations or okay in formal writing.
a. INFORMAL: It is okay to bring your kids with you to the annual company outing.
b. FORMAL: It is all right to bring your kids with you to the annual company outing.

57) ONLY - Only should be placed in front of the word it logically modifies. Example: We brought with
us only the most important items.
a. Only the employees were allowed access to the conference room.

58) OUGHT - Never use ought with have or had. Simply eliminate have or had.
a. NONSTANDARD: The photocopy machine had ought to work now.
b. CORRECT: The photocopy machine ought to work now.
59) POORLY - Poorly is used informally to mean “ill.” Avoid this use in formal situations.
a. INFORMAL: She missed her class because she was feeling poorly.
b. FORMAL: She missed her class because she was feeling ill.

60) PRECEDE - Precede means “to go before.”

PROCEDE - Proceed means “to move or go forward.”
a. The board meeting preceded the election of officers.
b. The board proceeded with the deliberation.

61) PRINCIPAL - As an adjective, principal, means “most important” or “chief;” as a noun, it means “a
person who has controlling authority.”
PRINCIPLE - Principle, always a noun, means “a fundamental law.”
a. ADJECTIVE: Our principal plan is to make an investment.
b. NOUN: Mrs. Gallagher is the school principal. NOUN: She follows her guiding principle
wholeheartedly.

62) RAISE - Raise usually takes a direct object.

RISE - Rise never takes a direct object.
a. Raise your complaints before the board.
b. Rise to a new day.

63) REAL - Real means “authentic.” The use of real to mean “very” or “really” should be avoided in
formal writing.
a. INFORMAL: This job is one real challenge.
b. FORMAL: This job is very challenging.

64) SAYS / SAID - Says should not be substituted for said.

a. NONSTANDARD: Then the teacher says to us, “Keep quiet!”
b. CORRECT: Then the teacher said to us, “Keep quiet!”

65) SEEN / HAVE SEEN - Seen is a past participle and can be used as a verb only with a helping
verb.
a. NONSTANDARD: We seen this movie a couple of times already.
b. CORRECT: We have seen this movie a couple of times already.

66) SET / SIT - Set means “to put (something) in a certain place.” Its principal parts–set, setting, set,
and set–are usually followed by a direct object. Sit means “to be seated.” Its principal parts–sit,
sitting, sat, and sat–are never followed by a direct object.
a. Set the dining area in this corner.
b. Sit in the chair and get a feel of it before your buy it.

67) SLOW / SLOWLY - Although slow can now be used as either an adjective or an adverb, careful
writers use it as an adjective. Slowly is preferred as the adverb.
a. LESS ACCEPTABLE: Walk slow because the path is slippery.
b. PREFERRED: Walk slowly because the path is slippery.

68) SO - So is a coordinating conjunction. It should be avoided when you mean “so that.
a. LESS ACCEPTABLE: Can you please move over so the other passengers can sit down?
b. PREFERRED: Can you please move over so that the other passengers can sit down?

69) SUPPOSE TO / SUPPOSED TO – Do not leave the “d” off supposed when you write supposed
to.
70) THAN / THEN - Than is used in comparisons. Do not confuse it with the adverb then, which
usually refers to time.
a. The applicant who came in today is smarter than that who came yesterday.
b. Put the vegetables first, and then allow it to simmer for a few minutes.

71) THAT / WHICH / WHO - That refers to people or things; which refers only to things; who refers
only to people.
a. This is the resort that (or which) I have been telling you about.
b. She is the teacher who (or that) received the Employee of the Year award.

72) THEIR / THERE / THEY’RE - Their, a possessive pronoun, always modifies a noun. There can be
used either as an expletive at the beginning of the sentence or as an adverb. They’re is a
contraction of they are. PRONOUN: Their presentation is the best I have seen in years.
a. EXPLETIVE: There must be no complaints, or else the plan will fail.
b. ADVERB: Jane placed all her things there.
c. CONTRACTION: I fervently hope they are all in high spirits.

73) THEM / THESE / THIS / THAT - Them is always a personal pronoun, never an adjective. When a
sentence calls for an adjective, use these or those in place of either them or them there. To correct a
sentence containing this here, these here, and that there, simply leave here and there.
a. NONSTANDARD: Them essays are written very well.
b. CORRECT: These essays are written very well.

74) TILL / UNTIL - These words are interchangeable. Be careful, however, of spelling. Till should not
be spelled “til” or ‘til; until always ends in one l.
a. We played by the seashore until we were all tired.

75) TO / TOO / TWO - To, a preposition, begins a prepositional phrase or an infinitive. Too, an
adverb, modifies an adjective and other adverbs. Too has an extra “o” for extra emphasis. Two is
a number.
a. PREPOSITION: We went to a concert last night.

76) WAYS / WAY – Use way, not ways, when referring to a distance. Ways is plural. Do not use it
after the article a. Use instead the singular form of way.
a. We traveled a long way today.
b. NONSTANDARD: The chauffeur has a considerable ways to drive yet.
c. CORRECT: The chauffeur has a considerable way to drive yet.

77) WHEN / WHERE – Do not use when or where directly after a linking verb. Do not use where as a
substitute for that.
a. NONSTANDARD: My best memory of Mom was when we went by the beach, and we
walked hand in hand. An automat is where food is dispensed by machines.
b. CORRECT: My best memory of Mom is of going to the beach and walking hand in hand
with her. An automat is a cafeteria where food is dispensed by machines.

78) WHO - Who is a subject pronoun and serves as the subject of a clause.
WHOM – Whom is an object pronoun and serves as an indirect or direct object following an
action verb or as an object of a preposition in a prepositional phrase.
a. SUBJECT PRONOUN: Who is going to college?
b. PREDICATE NOMINATIVE:

79) WHOSE - Whose is a possessive form of who. It shows ownership.

 WHO’S – Who’s is a contraction of who is or who has.
a. POSSESSIVE PRONOUN - Whose dog is that?
b. CONTRACTION – Who’s the bravest person you know?

80) YOUR - Your is the possessive for of you.

YOU’RE – You’re is the contraction of you are.
a. POSSESSIVE PRONOUN – Bring your book to class.
b. CONTRACTION – You’re not going to pass if you don’t.