COLEGIO SAN AGUSTIN Already is an adverb meaning “by or before this time” or

High School Department “even now.”

Academic-Year 2023-2024
Adjective: I am all ready to listen to your report.
English 10 Adverb: I have already made a decision.
8. all together, altogether All together means “all at
Selected Common Usage Problems once.” Altogether means “completely” or “in all.”

Name: __________________________ Examples: We will march all together in the rally.

Date: ________________ 10 - ____ You are altogether mistaken about this
motive.
1. accuse, allege Accuse means “to blame” or “to
bring a charge against.” Allege means “to claim 9. among, between Among and between are both
something that has not been proved.” prepositions. Among always implies three or more.
Between is generally used with just two things.
Examples: We mistakenly accused an innocent
bystander. Examples: There is a feeling of discontent among the
They allege that their employer ignored citizens.
regulations. Juan got between Carlos and me.

2. adapt, adopt Adapt, a verb, means “to 10. amount, numberUse amount with quantities that
change.” Adopt, a verb, means “to take as one’s own.” cannot be counted. Use number with things that can be
counted.
Examples: We adapted our sleeping habits to the
short Arctic days. Examples: a small amount of cream, a large amount of
They adopted the homeless waif. profit
A number of empty bottles, a number of
3. advice, advise Advice is a noun meaning “an books
opinion.” Advise is a verb meaning “to give an opinion.”
11. anxious Anxious means “worried,” “uneasy,” or
Noun: I need your advice. “fearful.” Do not use it as a substitute for eager.
Verb: Hikers are advised to take along a canteen of
water. Ambiguous: I am always anxious to meet new people.
Clear: I am always eager to meet new people.
4. affect, effect Affect is almost always a verb I am always anxious about meeting new
meaning “to influence.” Effect, usually a noun, means people for the first time.
“result.” Occasionally, effect is a verb meaning “to bring
about” or “to cause.” 12. anyone, any one, everyone, every one
Anyone and everyone mean “any person” and
Verb: The years spent in the mines affected his lungs. “every person.” Any one means “any single person (or
Noun: One effect of her travels was a new open- thing),” and every one means “every single person (or
mindedness. thing).”
Verb: His administration effected changes in foreign
policy. Examples: Anyone may come to the meeting.
Any one of these students could be elected.
5. aggravate Aggravate means “to make Everyone complained about the service.
worse.” Avoid using this word to mean “to annoy.” Every one of the dishes was broken.

Less acceptable: He was aggravated by their rude 13. as Do not use this conjunction to mean
manners. “because” or “since.”
Preferred: Scratching will only aggravate the mosquito
bite. Less acceptable: We stayed home, as our mother was
sick, and prepared dinner.
6. allot, a lot, alot Allot, a verb, means “to divide in Preferred: We stayed home, since our mother was
parts” or “to give out in shares.” A lot is an informal sick, and prepared dinner.
expression meaning “a great many” or “a great
amount.” Avoid using it in formal writing. Alot is a non- 14. as to As to is awkward. Replace it with about.
standard spelling and should never be used.
Non-standard: Scientists have several theories as to
Verb: The funds were allotted equally among the how the continents were formed.
researchers. Correct: Scientists have several theories about how the
Non-standard: She has alot of relatives. continents were formed.
Informal: She has a lot of relatives.
Formal: She has many relatives. 15. at about Avoid using at with about. Simply
eliminate at or about.
7. all ready, already All ready is an expression Less acceptable: We arrived at about lunch time.
functioning as an adjective and meaning “ready.” Preferred: We arrived about lunch time.
16. awhile, a while Awhile is an adverb, which in Non-standard: I can’t help but wonder why you did
itself means “for a while.” A while is an article and a not call this morning.
noun and is usually used after a preposition. Correct: I can’t help wondering why you did not call
this morning.
Adverb: Rest awhile before you leave.
Noun: Stay for a while and keep me company. 25. clipped words Avoid using clipped or shortened
words, such as gym, phone, and photo, in formal
17. beat, win Beat means “to overcome (an writing.
opponent).” Win means “to achieve victory in.” Do not
use win in place of beat. Informal: The plans for a new gym were approved.
The phone has been out of order all day.
Non-standard: The Dodgers won the Yankees in the Formal: The plans for a new gymnasium were
World Series. approved.
Correct: The Dodgers beat the Yankees in the World The telephone has been out of order all day.
Series.
26. condemn, condone Condemn means “to
18. because Do not use because after the reason. express strong disapproval of.” Condone means “to
Say “the reason is … that” or reword the sentence. pardon or overlook.”

Non-standard: The reason we left is because we got Examples: They condemned him for his neglect of the
tired. baby.
Correct: The reason we left is that we got tired. I cannot condone such cruelty.
We left because we got tired.
27. continual, continuous Continual means
19. beside, besides As prepositions, these two words “occurring again and again in succession.” Continuous
have different meanings and cannot be interchanged. means “occurring without interruption.”
Beside means “at the side of” or “close to.” Besides
means “in addition to.” Examples: His continual coffee breaks caused his
dismissal.
Examples: The athletic field is beside the school. His continuous absence caused his
Who besides you will come to the play? dismissal.

20. bring, take Bring means “to carry from a 28. different from, different than Different from is
distant place to a nearer one.” Take means the preferred.
opposite: “to carry from a near place to a more distant Less acceptable: Your concept of fun is different than
place.” mine.
Preferred: Your concept of fun is different from mine.
Examples: Please bring your paper to me.
Will you take the dog to the veterinarian? 29. due to Due to means “caused by” and should
be used only when the words caused by can logically be
21. bunch Bunch means “a number of things of the substituted.
same kind.” Avoid using this word to mean “group.”
Non-standard: She became blind due to a freak
Less acceptable: A bunch of us went downtown. accident.
Preferred: A group of us went downtown. Correct: Her blindness was due to a freak accident.
She bought a bunch of grapes.
30. due to the fact that Replace this wordy
22. burst, bust, busted Burst is the expression with since or because.
standard present, past, and past participle of the verb
burst. Bust and busted are non-standard forms. Less acceptable: Due to the fact that he was
undernourished, he easily became
Non-standard: I will bust if I take one more bite. sick.
He shouldn’t have busted the blister. Preferred: Since he was undernourished, he easily
became sick.
Correct: I will burst if I take one more bite.
He shouldn’t have burst the blister. 31. emigrate, immigrate Emigrate means “to
leave a country for a new residency.” Immigrate means
23. can, may Use can to mean “to have the “to enter a country to establish a residency.”
ability to.” Use may to mean “to have permission to” or
“to be possible or likely to.” Examples: During the Potato Famine, many Irish
people emigrated from Ireland.
Ability: This scale can register up to five hundred Many Irish people immigrated to the United
pounds. States.
Permission: Yes, you may leave.
Possibility: It may rain today. 32. farther, further Farther refers to distance.
Further means “additional” or “to a greater degree or
24. can’t help but This is a non-standard extent.”
expression. Use can’t help plus a gerund instead.
Examples: The sun is much farther from us than the Non-standard: You look kind of pale.
moon. Correct: You look somewhat pale.
We want further information from the
committee about the new proposals. 42. lay, lie Lay means “to put or set
(something)down.” Its principal parts – lay, laying, laid,
33. fewer, less Use fewer with things that can and laid – are usually followed by a direct object. Lie
be counted. Use less with qualities and quantities that means “to recline.” Its principal parts – lie, lying, lay,
cannot be counted. and lain – are never followed by a direct object.

Examples: fewer complaints, fewer problems, fewer Lay: Lay your books on the desk.
diseases They are laying the carpet tomorrow morning.
Less coffee, less incentive, less trouble He gently laid the eggs in the basket.
She had laid forty slate slabs to form the
foundation of the walkway.
34. former, latter Former refers to the first of two
previously mentioned items. Latter refers to the second Lie: Lie down for an hour and rest.
of the two. The children are lying on the floor.
After I became tired, I lay down and rested.
Examples: The box contained hollyhocks and sweet The dog has lain there all afternoon.
williams. The former we planted along the
wall; the latter we thought would be more 43. leave, let Leave means “to allow to remain.” Let
suited for the rock garden. means “to permit.”

35. good, lovely, nice Whenever possible, replace Non-standard: Leave me do this myself.
these weak and overused words with a more specific Let the parakeet alone.
adjective. Correct: Let me do this by myself.
Leave the parakeet alone.
Weak: good description, lovely vacation, nice taste
Better: clear description, exotic vacation, refined taste 44. like Like is a preposition and should not be used
in place of the conjunction as.
36. hanged, hung Use hanged to mean “executed.”
Use hung to mean “suspended.” Non-standard: He is crafty like a fox is crafty.
Correct: He is crafty as a fox is crafty.
Examples: The revolutionary council hanged the He is crafty like a fox.
ministers of the former government.
Two beautiful spider plants hung from the 45. loose, lose Loose is usually an adjective or part of
high ceiling in the kitchen. such idioms as cut loose, turn loose, or break loose.
Lose is always a verb, generally meaning “to miss from
37. in, into In refers to position. Into suggests one’s possession.”
motion.
Examples: The door hinge was loose.
Position: Each piece of silverware is in the correct The goal broke loose from the pen.
place. Don’t lose this telephone number.
Motion: Put all the silverware into the drawer.
46. mad In formal usage, the adjective mad
38. irregardless Avoid this word. Use regardless. means “insane.” Used informally, mad means “angry.”

Non-standard: Irregardless of your advice, I voted for Informal: I am mad at you for ignoring me.
Bob. Formal: Jane Eyre learned that Rochester’s wife was
Correct: Regardless of your advice, I voted for Bob. mad.

39. judicial, judicious Judicial means “relating 47. maybe, may be Maybe is an adverb meaning
to the administration of justice.” Judicious means “perhaps.” May be is a helping verb and a verb.
“showing wisdom.”
Adverb: Maybe, I can investigate this matter myself.
Examples: The Supreme Court is our highest judicial Verb: You may be right.
tribunal.
Her judicious decision was applauded by all. 48. only Only should be placed in front of the
word it logically modifies.
40. just When just is used as an adverb meaning
“no more than,” it should be placed right before the Informal: Only Steve bought a balloon. (No one else
word it modifies. bought a balloon.)
Formal: Steve bought only a balloon. (Steve bought
Less acceptable: Just mow the backyard, not the nothing else.)
front.
Mow just the back yard, not the front. 49. outside of Do not use this expression to
mean “besides” or “except.”
41. kind of, sort of Do not use kind of and sort of to
mean “ rather” or “somewhat.”
Non-standard: No one came to the party outside of set – are usually followed by a direct object. Sit means
Dinah. “to be seated.” Its principal parts – sit, sitting, sat, and
Correct: No one came to the party except Dinah. sat – are never followed by a direct object.

50. parameter This word is correctly used only Examples: Set the chair in this corner.
in mathematical contexts, in which it designates a Sit in a chair before you buy it.
variable. Do not use parameter to mean “boundary,”
“limit,” “scope,” “detail,” and so on. 58. shape The meaning of shape is “spatial form.”
In formal writing, avoid using shape to mean
Less acceptable: These are the parameters of the “condition.”
problem.
Preferred: These are the limits of the problem. Informal: The driver of the car is in serious shape.
Formal: The driver of the car is in serious condition.
51. persecute, prosecute Persecute means “to
subject to ill treatment.” Prosecute means “to bring a 59. slow, slowly Although slow can now be used
lawsuit against.” as either an adjective or an adverb, careful writers use it
as an adjective. Slowly is preferred as the adverb.
Examples: He was persecuted for his religious beliefs.
Jack is being prosecuted for libel. Less acceptable: Crawl slow along this ledge.
Preferred: Crawl slowly along this ledge.
52. plurals that do not end in –s The plurals of
certain nouns from Greek and Latin are formed as they 60. so So is a coordinating conjunction. It should be
were in their original languages. Words such as criteria, avoided when you mean “so that.”
media, and phenomena are plural and should not be Less acceptable: Move over so I can sit down.
treated as if they were singular (criterion, medium, Preferred: Move over so that I can sit down.
phenomenon).
61. that, which, who That refers to people or things;
which refers only to things; who refers only to people.
Incorrect: That criteria for selecting a winner is unfair.
The mass media is responsible for the last
Examples: I forgot the key that (or which) opens this
and accurate distribution of information.
door.
She is an actress that (or who) will do very
Correct: Those criteria for selecting a winner are well in the role of Lady Macbeth.
unfair.
The mass media are responsible for the fast 62. till, until These words are interchangeable. Be
and accurate distribution of information. careful, however, of spelling. Till should not be spelled til
or ‘til; until always ends in one l.
53. precede, proceed Precede means “to go
before.” Proceed means “to move or go forward.” Example: The children played till (or until) it was dark.

Examples: The preceding paragraph introduced the 63. unique Unique means “one of a kind.” It should
topic. not be used to mean “odd,” “interesting,” or “unusual.”
Proceed to the next step. Since the word means “one of a kind,” such expressions as
most unique, very unique, and extremely unique are
54. principal, principle As an adjective, principal illogical.
means “most important” or “chief”; as a noun, it means
“a person who has controlling authority.” Principle, Illogical: He enjoys a most unique life style.
always a noun, means “a fundamental law.” Correct: He enjoys a unique life style.

64. when, where Do not use when or where directly

Adjective: His principal goal is to make money.
after a linking verb. Do not use where as a substitute for
Noun: Mr. Clark is the school’s principal.
that.
Noun: “Thou shall not kill” is a principle of many
religions. Non-standard: A good memory was when my dad gave
me a pony.
55. raise, rise Raise usually takes a direct An automat is where food is dispensed by machines.
object. Rise never takes a direct object. I read where old coins are good investment.

Examples: Raise the flag at dawn. Correct: A good memory is of being given a pony by my
Smoke rises from the chimneys every dad.
morning. An automat is a cafeteria where food is
dispensed by machines.
56. real Real means “authentic.” The use of real I read that old coins are a good investment.
to mean “very” or “really” should be avoided in formal
writing. 65. –wise Avoid using this suffix to create new words
for a particular situation.
Informal: Dwight was real discouraged.
Formal: Dwight was very discouraged. Less acceptable: Energywise, this freezer is very
efficient.
57. set, sit Set means “to put (something) in a Preferred: This freezer is very energy-efficient.
certain place.” Its principal parts – set, setting, set, and
 Taken from Prentice Hall Grammar and
Composition 4 pp.259276