Confusing words - part 1

Contents

1. ACCEPT / EXCEPT ___________________________________________________ 2 2. ADVICE / ADVISE

___________________________________________________ 2 3. AFFECT / EFFECT
___________________________________________________ 2 4. ANYONE / ANY ONE / ANYWAY / ANY
WAY _______________________________ 2 5. ANYTHING / EVERYTHING / ANYWHERE /
EVERYWHERE _____________________ 2 6. BESIDE / BESIDES
__________________________________________________ 2 7. BRING / TAKE / FETCH
_______________________________________________ 2 8. DESERT / DESSERT
_________________________________________________ 3 9. DRIVE / RIDE
______________________________________________________ 3 10. ECONOMIC / ECONOMICAL
____________________________________________ 3 11. IN / INTO
_________________________________________________________ 3 12. IT’S / ITS
_________________________________________________________ 3 13. LEARN / TEACH / STUDY
_____________________________________________ 3 14. LEND / BORROW
____________________________________________________ 3 15. LEND / LOAN
_______________________________________________________ 4 16. LAY / LIE / LIE
_____________________________________________________ 4 17. LIVE / LIFE
________________________________________________________ 4 18. LOOK / WATCH / SEE
________________________________________________ 4 19. LOSE / LOOSE
______________________________________________________ 4 20. OF / OFF
__________________________________________________________ 4 21. ONCE / ONE’S / ONES
_______________________________________________ 4 22. OVER / ABOVE
_____________________________________________________ 5 23. PAST / PASSED
_____________________________________________________ 5 24. PERSONAL / PERSONNEL
_____________________________________________ 5 25. PIECE / PEACE
_____________________________________________________ 5 26. PRIZE / PRICE / PRISE
_______________________________________________ 5 27. QUIT / QUITE / QUIET
_______________________________________________ 5 28. RAISE / RISE
______________________________________________________ 5 29. SAFE / SAVE
_______________________________________________________ 6 30. SAY / TELL
________________________________________________________ 6 31. STATIONARY / STATIONERY
___________________________________________ 6 32. STEAL / STEEL
_____________________________________________________ 6 33. THEN / THAN
______________________________________________________ 6 34. THERE / THEIR / THEY’RE
_____________________________________________ 6 35. THIS / THESE
______________________________________________________ 6 36. TO / TOO / TWO
 ____________________________________________________ 7 37. UNDER / BELOW
____________________________________________________ 7 38. WEATHER / WHETHER
_______________________________________________ 7 39. WHEREVER / WHERE EVER
____________________________________________ 7 40. WHO’S / WHOSE
____________________________________________________ 7
Choose the correct word from the following pairs:

1. ACCEPT / EXCEPT 1. I offered her an apology, but she wouldn’t __________ it. 2. The
museum is open daily __________ Mondays. 3. Everyone was there ___________ for
Sally. 4. The new telephones will ___________ coins of any denomination.

2. ADVICE / ADVISE 1. I ___________ you to see a doctor. 2.

She didn’t listen to her father’s __________. 3. I’m very grateful
to you for your __________. 4. I really don’t know what to
____________.

3. AFFECT / EFFECT 1. The punishment had no ________ on him. As soon as he left the prison he
began to steal again. 2. The new taxes will __________ the rich. They’ll have to pay
more. 3. The higher bus fares won’t ___________ me. I have a car. 4. The medicine had an
immediate _________ . I felt better at once.

4. ANYONE / ANY ONE / ANYWAY / ANY WAY 1. I love him

___________. 2. Is there ____________ of these books you didn’t like? 3. Is
there _____________ I can help you? 4. ____________ can see that this is
not right.

5. ANYTHING / EVERYTHING / ANYWHERE / EVERYWHERE 1. He has done

____________ in his life. 2. You can use this card _____________. 3. Have you seen
my glasses ______________ ? 4. He never does ____________ for me.

6. BESIDE / BESIDES 1. There is not much to do ___________ setting the table. 2. There was a
small table _____________ the bed. 3. __________ Peter and me, who else is coming to your
party tonight ? 4. Sarah was ___________ herself with joy, when Tom proposed to her. 5. It was
too late to go to the cinema. ___________, I was too busy.

7. BRING / TAKE / FETCH 1. Can you ________ me to the station, please ? 2. You
can ________ your wife to our party. 3. This glass has been used - please _________
me a clean one. 4. Can you ________ some milk when you come home ?
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5. She ________ the dogs for a walk every morning. 6. He _________
another chair from the dining room. (s.p.)

8. DESERT / DESSERT 1. He _______ed his wife and family for another woman. 2.
If you make the main course, I’ll make a __________. 3. Banyuls is an excellent
_____________ wine. 4. They were lost in the Sahara ___________ for several
days.

9. DRIVE / RIDE 1. Can I _______ with you ? I don’t have a car. 2. The
_______ to my parents’ house takes 20 minutes. 3. Most children like to
_______ on trains. 4. Can you _______ ? I’m too tired.

10. ECONOMIC / ECONOMICAL 1. It’s not very __________ to leave the lights on when you’re not in
the room. 2. Because of the recent strikes, the _____________ situation of the country
is very bad. 3. She’s an economist. She’s an expert in _____________ matters. 4. It’s
a very _____________ car. It uses very little petrol.

11. IN / INTO 1. The dog is ______ the house somewhere. 2. The frog changed_______ a handsome
prince. 3. She put the basket ________ the boot and set off for Central Park. 4. Her books have been
translated _________ more than twenty languages.

12. IT’S / ITS 1. Look at this tree. ______ leaves are so pretty ! 2.
“______ a very friendly dog” said ______ owner. 3. My pain was
gone, but now ______ back. 4. ______ been raining, the pavement is
wet. 5. Look to the dog ! ______ wagging _______ tail.

13. LEARN / TEACH / STUDY 1. His mother ________ at the university in

Oxford. 2. You have to ________ to listen to your inner voice. 3. Your English
will improve a lot, if you ________ every day. 4. Can you please ________ me
how to make a cake ? 5. She wants to ________ how to swim.

14. LEND / BORROW 1. I can _________ you my car for the weekend. 2. She used
to _________ money and not bother to pay it back. 3. He _________ a novel from the
library. 4. He doesn’t like _________ing his books.

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15. LEND / LOAN 1. If you need a coat, I can ________ you one. 2. Thank you
very much for the ________ of your umbrella. 3. The bank refuses to ________
to students. 4. She’s trying to get a ________ to start her own business.

16. LAY / LIE / LIE (fill in simple

past forms only)

1. The snow ________ thick on the hills. 2. Trudy ________ five

eggs last week. 3. The theft ________ heavy on his conscience.
4. I suspect he ________about his age. 5. He ________his hand
on my shoulder.

17. LIVE / LIFE 1. The concert was broadcast ________ on the Internet. 2.
Ocean ________ is being threatened by global warming. 3. I ________ with
my parents in London. 4. He touched a ________ wire and got an electric
shock.

18. LOOK / WATCH / SEE 1. There is a scary man outside ________ing my house. 2. I can’t
________ any fruit juice in the fridge. 3. He ________ed at his daughter with pride in his eyes.
4. She was ________ out of the window. 5. Football is very popular and many people go and
_______ matches on
Sunday. 6. Did you ________ the advert in the newspaper ?

19. LOSE / LOOSE 1. Look after that money, or you’ll _______ it. 2. That
screw is a bit _______. You’d better tighten it. 3. The opposite of ‘to find’ is to
_______. 4. I tied the dog to a tree but it got _______ and ran away.

20. OF / OFF 1. The boys jump _______ the bridge into the river. 2. I’m very
proud _______ my son, he worked very hard. 3. Keep _______ the grass ! You
mustn’t walk there ! 4. You’ll find more exercises on the back _______ the
page.

21. ONCE / ONE’S / ONES 1. _______ again I was left with all the washing up. 2. Why don’t you
throw those gloves away and get some new _______. 3. One ought to respect _______ parents. 4. He
keeps his stamps - he’s got some very rare _______ - in a fireproof safe. 5. This house _______
belonged to my grandfather.

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6. I go swimming _______ a week.

22. OVER / ABOVE 1. The car was going _______ a hundred miles an
hour. 2. He broke his arm _______ the elbow. 3. The thaw is setting in
_______ zero degrees Celsius. 4. He must be _______ seventy by now.
23. PAST / PASSED 1. I’ve ________ the exam! 2. She _______ the post office on her way home,
but forgot to go in. 3. The thief hid in a doorway and the policeman ran _______ him. 4. It was
_______ midnight when I finally got to bed. 5. The truck driver _______ a couple of cyclists
before driving _______ a
parked RV.

24. PERSONAL / PERSONNEL 1. The new director is likely to make major changes in
__________ . 2. Her uncle takes a __________ interest in her progress. 3. I will give the
matter my ___________ attention. 4. The __________ department will help you find a flat
to rent.

25. PIECE / PEACE 1. After a busy day, all I want is _______ and quiet. 2. This jigsaw puzzle has
two ________ missing. 3. The _______ conference was organized by the UN. 4. The vase lay on
the floor in _______. 5. The beauty queen said her favourite food was a _______ of pie and that
she’d like to see world _______.

26. PRIZE / PRICE / PRISE 1. He robbed a bank. Now he has to pay the
_______. 2. Sally almost won the first _______ in the beauty contest. 3. The
burglar _______ the window and climbed through. 4. Can you guess the asking
_______ of this house ?

27. QUIT / QUITE / QUIET 1. Would you _______ your job if you inherited lots of
money? 2. She’s got _______ a bit of money. 3. Press Q to _______ the program. 4. He’s
_______ attractive but not what I’d call gorgeous. 5. Could you keep _______ while I’m
on the phone, please ? 6. It was a _______ wedding, with just a few friends and
relations.

28. RAISE / RISE 1. He _______ed his voice in anger. 2. The sun _______ in
the East. 3. The host was very friendly. He _______ to welcome us.

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4. We were born and _______ in New York.

29. SAFE / SAVE 1. Swim lessons can _______ your children’s lives.
2. Better to be _______ than sorry. 3. It is necessary to _______ for
your future. 4. I hope you have a _______ and pleasant journey.

30. SAY / TELL 1. My boss _______ me to work harder. (past s.) 2. Lisa _______ that she works in an
office. 3. _______ your brother why you lied to him. 4. She _______ she probably lost her purse in
the department store. (past s.) 5. How do I know ? I can’t _______ the future.
31. STATIONARY / STATIONERY 1. A __________ can print more than just wedding
invitations. 2. The traffic got slower and slower until it was __________. 3. The __________
supplies are kept in that cupboard over there. 4. The motorcyclist collided with a __________ van.
5. You'll be able to get a tube of glue at the __________'s down the road. 6. The car full of
__________ was __________.

32. STEAL / STEEL 1. He always _______ the show. 2. They were so poor they had to _______ in
order to eat. 3. The ________ workers are on strike. 4. These _______ plates are mainly used in the
automotive industry. 5. The thieves tried to _______ some _______ cables to sell as scrap metal.

33. THEN / THAN 1. We sold more products _______ we did last year. 2. This
project is more challenging _______ I thought. 3. If he is sick, _______ you
will have to go to the meeting. 4. Do your homework, _______ you can play.

34. THERE / THEIR / THEY’RE 1. The students are happy. They've finished _________
homework. 2. I’ve got an LCD TV. _________ much better than regular TVs. 3. ________ are
many foreign students in my classroom. 4. Tom and Peter left _________ books over _________.
5. “Where are the cyclists?” asked Tom. “They’re over there on their bikes”
replied Joe.

35. THIS / THESE 1. Where were you _______ day last

year ? 2. Life is expensive _______ days. 3. Are _______
your keys ?
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4. ________ is the best news I’ve heard all week !

36. TO / TOO / TWO 1. We chose for the lesser of _______ evils. 2. The parents had only just had a
baby, so they decided that it was _______
early _______ try for another. 3. You can walk from here _______ the station in under 10
minutes. 4. I’ll probably rent that motorhome next year _______. 5. That son of hers should learn
to stand on his own _______ feet. 6. I had my back ________ them, so I couldn’t see what they
were doing.

37. UNDER / BELOW 1. He collapsed 200 metres _________ the summit. 2. The photo
was hidden _________ the mattress. 3. The moon disappeared _________ the horizon. 4.
This car can go from nought to sixty in _________ five seconds.

38. WEATHER / WHETHER 1. I don’t know __________ the __________ is meant to be good or
bad
 today. 2. Their holiday was spoilt by bad __________. 3. She can’t
decide __________ she ought to marry him. 4. What’s the __________ like?
Is it sunny?.

39. WHEREVER / WHERE EVER 1. _____________ have you been. I’ve been looking for you
everywhere ! 2. You always lose your keys ! _____________ did you put them now ? 3. I’ll find
him, ______________ he has gone. 4. _____________ have you put my briefcase ? I can’t find it
anywhere.

40. WHO’S / WHOSE 1. There was a picture in the paper of a man _______ house had been flooded. 2.
_______ been using my computer ? 3. _______ your new business partner ? 4. _______ wallet is lying
there on the floor ? 5. _______ that person over there? Is he the guy _______ wallet was stolen?

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