© 2006 Cynthia Valleley
General note: The intent of this list is to give a brief description of word usage to assist court reporters in avoiding the most common mistakes. It is neither an absolute authority, nor is it comprehensive. Please remember that this page deals with homonyms and not all variants of pronunciation for each word.
Many of these words have more than one meaning. Some are both nouns and verbs. I have elected to choose simple examples for quick reference based on my experience with the most typical errors. Please refer to your dictionary for additional definitions and clarification.
Most definitions were found in Merriam-Webster’s (MW) 10th and 11th Editions. Some are direct quotes.
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adj. |
adjective |
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adv. |
adverb |
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aux. |
auxiliary |
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conj. |
conjunction |
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interj. |
interjection |
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n. |
noun |
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pl. |
plural |
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prep. |
preposition |
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v. |
verb |
| accept, v. | to willingly receive |
I accept your apology.
We accept your proposal.
| except, v. | to exclude |
I work every day except on Tuesdays.
| exception, n. | one that is excepted |
The law does not apply because this case is an exception.
| advice, n. | recommendation pertaining to a decision or course of action |
She decided to take her sister's advice.
| advise, v. | to offer advice; to counsel |
I advised her to heed the officer’s advice.
| affect, v. | to act upon or produce a material influence upon |
The accident affected his mobility.
How did the assault affect her mental state?
| affect, n. | observable manifestation of what another is feeling |
He had a generally sad affect.
| effect, v. | to bring about; to accomplish |
The legislature is effecting a change to that law as we speak.
| effect, n. | something that is the result of an occurrence or statement |
| effects, n., pl. | belongings |
He collected his personal effects and left the building.
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aide, n. |
short for aide-de-camp; chiefly refers to the military |
|
aid, n. |
one who assists another, those who are assistants of business executives in the civilian world |
| airy, adj. | describes a room that has a generous circulation of air |
| aerie, n. | a bird’s nest found high on a mountain or cliff |
| aisle, n. | a passageway; e.g., the walkway between the pews in a church |
| isle, n. | another way to say island (Gilligan was stranded on a surprisingly busy deserted one) |
| all, adj. | the whole quantity |
| awl, n. | a tool used to make holes in leather, wood |
| alter, v. | to make a change to something |
| altar, n. | a table or raised portion of a church that is the focus of worship and/or sacrifice |
| anymore, adv. | any longer; often used to reflect something negative |
I don’t trust her anymore.
You don’t bring me flowers anymore.
| any more | (I’m calling this an adjective; please challenge if you like) |
I don’t have any more questions.
She won’t give me any more money because I don’t work for her anymore.
| anyplace, adv. | anywhere; often referring to a general sense of place rather than a specific geographical point |
I can’t find my socks anyplace.
| any place, adv. | speaking of a specific place or location |
Isn’t there any place for me at this table?
| anytime, adv. | at any time whatever |
Did you invest in real estate anytime in 2002?
| any time, adv. | when speaking of a specific point in time; generally as a clue, I watch for a preposition to precede the phrase |
Will you be ready for a break at any time?
| arc, n. | a curved line |
| ark, n. | a very large boat |
| ascent, n. | the act of climbing |
| assent, n. | agreement |
| auger, n. | a tool used to bore holes in the ground, wood, or ice |
| augur, v. | to predict the future, especially something ominous (happens a lot in scary movies) |
| aught, n. | zero |
Grandpa said he was born in aught seven.
| ought, aux. v. | should |
We ought to pay our taxes.
| aural, adj. | relating to hearing |
| oral, adj. | relating to the mouth |
| away, adv. | gone |
| aweigh, adj. | raised from the bottom of a body of water such as with an anchor |
| bait, n. | substance or material placed on the end of a hook to lure fish |
| bait, v. | to lure or tempt; often used in a tormenting manner |
He was bitten because he baited the dog.
| bate, v. | to decrease, hold back; often used sarcastically |
I’ll wait with bated breath.
| basal, adj. | relating to a foundation forming a base |
| basil, n. | an aromatic herb |
| bat, n. | stick, club; winged nocturnal mammal |
| batt, n. | quilt-lining material; a layer of insulation (often referred to in construction cases) |
| beaut, n. | beauty |
Ain’t she a beaut?
| butte, n. | mountain, hill, especially with steep sides |
| bell, n. | a metallic instrument that rings when it’s struck |
| belle, n. | woman or girl who is beautiful and popular |
She’s the belle of the ball.
| berth, n. | a place to sleep on a train; a distance that is safe |
Be cautious and give him a wide berth.
| birth, n. | the act of being born |
| bite, n. | a snack |
| byte, n. | a unit containing eight binary digits that is processed by a computer |
| block, n. | a solid, generally cubical piece of material |
| bloc, n. | a group of people or countries who form an alliance based on common interests |
| boar, n. | a noncastrated male swine |
| boor, n. | a rude person who is insensitive to others’ feelings regarding his/her behavior |
| bore, n. | a situation or person who is boring |
| boarder, n. | one who rents a room in a home, often supplied with meals as well as lodging |
| border, n. | the outer edge of an object; the boundary line between cities, counties, countries |
| bode, v. | to foretell; often used in the negative |
Losing our key player doesn’t bode well for our team.
| bowed, adj. | shaped like a bow |
| bolder, adj. | more courageous, daring; darker text than regular |
| boulder, n. | a very large rock (under which we often find Wile E. Coyote) |
| born, adj. | brought forth by birth |
| borne, adj. | describes something that was moved somewhere; usually used in combination form |
This is an airborne disease.
| borne (past participle of bear) |
He has borne this burden his entire life.
| bourn, n. | stream |
| borough, n. | a political division of New York City, a division of Alaska much like a county |
| burrow, n. | a hole in the ground such as a rabbit might dig for shelter |
| bough, n. | branch of a tree |
| bow, n. | front part of a ship |
| buoy, n. | a marker floating in a channel |
| boy, n. | young male |
| breach, n. | to break a contract |
| breech, n. | hindquarters; often used as an adjective in childbirth standing for breech presentation |
| bridle, n. | a horse’s headgear |
| bridle, v. | to display offense by moving back the chin and head such as a horse might do |
| bridal, adj. | relating to a bride or aspects of a wedding |
| buss, n. | a kiss |
| bus, n. | a large vehicle for many passengers |
| cache, n. | can refer to a hiding place or whatever’s stashed in it |
| cash, n. | money |
| cannon, n. | a heavy, large gun |
| canon, n. | a rule pronounced by the church |
| canter, n. | a gait slower than a gallop |
| cantor, n. | an official who sings in a synagogue |
| capital, n. | a business’s accumulated goods; a city acting as the seat of government |
| capitol, n. | the building wherein state or US legislators meet |
| carat, n. | weight unit for precious stones |
| carrot, n. | the Wascally Wabbit’s favorite food |
| caret, n. | an insertion mark commonly used by proofreaders (^) |
| karat, n. | (quoting MW): "a unit of fineness for gold equal to 1/24 part of pure gold in an alloy" |
| cay, n. | a low island or reef |
| key, n. | if you don’t know what this is, you will spend your life on the porch waiting for someone to let you into the house |
| quay, n. | a landing place for watercraft situated parallel to the bank of the waterway |
| cede, v. | to give, assign, transfer; often done by treaty |
| seed, v. | to plant seeds |
| censer, n. | an incense burner; often swung on a chain |
| censor, n. | one who deletes potentially sensitive material from communications, often in wartime |
| censure, n. | an official reprimand |
| sensor, n. | (quoting from MW) "a device that responds to a physical stimulus…and transmits a resulting impulse (as for measurement or operating a control)" |
| census, n. | a population count |
| senses, n. | faculties of perception (sight, taste, et al.) |
| chute, n. | an inclined passage through which something may pass |
| shoot, n. | a new growth on a plant |
| cite, v. | to quote or refer |
| sight, n. | one of the senses |
| site, n. | a location |
| click, n. | a sharp, slight noise |
| clique, n. | an exclusive group of people bonded by common interests or priorities |
| coarse, adj. | rough, crude |
| course, n. | direction of travel, a school class |
| coffer, n. | strongbox; used in plural for treasury |
| cougher, n. | one who coughs |
| colonel, n. | a commissioned officer |
| kernel, n. | the softer, inner part of a seed |
| complacence, n. | unconcern, self-satisfaction |
| complaisance, n. | tendency to want to please or comply |
| complement, n. | (quoting MW) "something that fills up, completes or makes perfect" |
That tie really complements your suit.
| compliment, n. | an admiring remark |
| compliment, v. | to make an admiring remark |
| coo, v. | to make a similar sound to a dove’s low cry |
| coup, n. | a highly successful, sudden act; often used in terms of overthrowing a government or taking over a corporation |
| core, n. | the central part of something: an apple, an argument |
| corps, n. | a military subdivision (Marine Corps, Army Corps of Engineers) |
| cosign, v. | to jointly sign a promissory note |
| cosine, n. | a trigonometry term; please see the dictionary for full definition |
| council, n. | a group of people who advise, legislate, direct operations |
| counsel, n. | advice, advisor, attorney |
| counsel, v. | to advise |
| discreet, adj. | prudent, unobtrusive, unnoticeable; often used to mean confidential |
You can trust her to keep your confidence as she is discreet in all matters.
| discrete, adj. | a separate entity |
This is a discrete issue; therefore it is not part of any other investigation.
| elicit, v. | to bring out |
His pointed questions elicited her truthful testimony.
| illicit, adj. | unlawful |
| elude, v. | to escape, evade |
| allude, v. | to refer to |
| ere prep./conj. | before; often used in poetry |
I’ll rise ere the break of day.
| err, v. | to make a mistake |
| heir, n. | a person who inherits property |
| everyday, adj. | ordinary, routine |
|
every day |
(I’m going to call it an adverb; feel free to challenge.) |
Her everyday routine is to drive to work every day.
| feint, n. | a distracting, mock blow to draw attention away from one’s actual target |
| faint, v. | to pass out |
| fair, adj. | describes something that is impartial, honest |
| fare, n. | food, price charged for transportation, person being transported |
| fare, v. | to get along |
How did you fare in the game?
| flair, n. | talent |
He has a flair for landscape design.
| flare, n. | a steady light, a spreading outward; in deposition transcripts often used in terms of sporadic pain, especially with "up" |
When does the pain flare up?
Do the flare-ups of pain occur often?
| gait, n. | how one moves by foot |
| gate, n. | a fence opening |
| gorilla, n. | ape |
| guerrilla, n. | one who participates in irregular warfare |
| guise, n. | pretext; external appearance |
The wolf appeared in the guise of a sheep.
| guys, n., pl. | males |
| hail, n. | rain that has frozen in clumps (and once beat the holy heck out of my car) |
| hail, v. | to greet, to salute |
| hale, adj. | hearty, in good health |
He’s a hale and hearty old sea captain.
| hangar, n. | a shelter; commonly referencing aircraft |
| hanger, n. | something on which another thing is hung; one who hangs things |
| humerus, n. | a bone in the arm |
| humorous, adj. | characterized by humor |
| idle, adj. | inactive |
| idle, v. | to operate an engine at low power |
I was at the stoplight, and my engine was idling.
| idol, n. | symbol of worship, whether person or object |
| idyll, n. | term often used in poetry: peaceful, bucolic scene; commonly used in adjectival form |
When he exited the forest, he encountered an idyllic scene.
| incite, v. | to spur to action |
He incited a riot.
| insight, n. | to see into a situation; the result of seeing into a situation |
His insight into her problem helped her.
| innocence, n. | the state of being free of guilt (everyone's situation in prison) |
| innocents, n., pl. | people who are free from guilt (everyone in prison) |
| jamb, n. | the vertical piece that forms the side of an operation for a door (or fireplace or window) |
| jam, n. | a dense mass that impedes passage (traffic, people) |
| jam, v. | to pack |
His fans jammed the movie theater.
| knell, n. | sound of a slowly ringing bell; often used in reference to death |
The market’s closing index sounded the death knell of the IPO.
| Nell, proper n. | Jodie Foster’s character in a widely panned film |
| lacks, v. | to be deficient in something |
She lacks the strength to stand trial.
| lax, adj. | slack, loose, negligent |
The building collapsed due to lax construction supervision.
| lead, n. | a metallic element often found in solder, batteries; a marking substance found in some writing instruments |
| led, v. | past tense of the verb lead (the lead pronounced with a long ē) |
Moses led his people through the wilderness.
| leak, n. | a deficiency which allows a substance to escape, the act of leaking |
| leak, v. | to allow a substance to escape; to escape through an opening, usually by mistake |
| leek, n. | a garden herb often used in soups |
| lean, v. | to rest against something for support, to incline toward something in taste or opinion |
He is leaning against the tree, pondering his leaning toward gourmet cooking.
| lien, n. | a claim upon real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt or duty |
| lightening, v. | relieving or lessening of a burden |
| lightning, n. | a flash of light produced by atmospheric electricity |
| lightning, adj. | referring to speed |
His horse ran with lightning speed.
| lo, interj. | an expression of wonder used to call others’ attention |
Lo and behold…
Lo these many years…
| low, adj. | something not as high as something else |
| low, n. | a cow’s moo |
| load, n. | a quantity of something that can be carried at one time |
| lode, n. | an ore deposit, an abundant amount |
The miners hit a mother lode of gold in the 1840s.
| loch, n. | a lake |
| lock, n. | a door fastening used to secure from entry; a canal gated at each end which is used for raising and lowering watercraft from one level to another |
| lumber, n. | timber |
| lumber, v. | to saw and log timber; to move as with a very great weight |
They watched him lumbering by.
| lumbar, adj. | relating to the vertebrae between the sacrum and the thoracic vertebrae |
| marshal, n. | administrator of a fire department or city police department |
| marshal, v. | to place in proper position |
He will marshal the troops for battle.
| martial, adj. | relating to the military, war |
| meat, n. | food specifically from animals; the core of something such as the heart of an argument |
| meet, n. | a competition |
| meet, v. | to encounter someone |
| mete, n. | boundary (metes and bounds) |
| mete, v. | to measure, to dole out |
The king will mete out punishment as he sees fit.
| medal, n. | a piece of metal stamped with a design awarded to someone for excellent performance/bravery |
| meddle, v. | to interfere in others’ affairs without the right to do so |
| might, n. | power, resources, authority, strength |
| mite, n. | a small arachnid, a small coin |
| naval, adj. | relating to the Navy, shipping vessels |
| navel, n. | belly button |
| navel orange, n. | seedless orange |
| oracle, n. | a person or shrine through which a divine being speaks |
| auricle, n. | an atrium of the heart, the external ear |
| ordinance, n. | a law, decree |
| ordnance, n. | military items such as weapons and artillery |
| overdo, v. | to exaggerate, to cook too long, to do something to excess |
| overdue, adj. | past time when due |
| pedal, n. | a foot lever such as a gas pedal |
| pedal, v. | to work the pedals such as on a bike |
| pedal, adj. | relating to the foot |
| peddle, v. | to sell |
| plain, n. | large portion of level country |
| plain, adj. | ordinary, clear, plain films (medical term) |
| plane, n. | airplane, a tool used for smoothing wood surfaces, a flat surface |
| plane, v. | to make a surface level, to make smooth |
| pleural, adj. | generally relating to the lungs; please see a medical dictionary for a finer definition |
| plural, adj. | more than one |
| plum, n. | a fruit |
| plumb, n. | lead weight attached to a line indicating vertical direction |
| plumb, v. | to adjust using a plumb line |
| plumb, adj. | precisely vertical |
| precedents, n., pl. | things done in the past that serve as examples to justify taking the same or a similar action in the present |
There are several precedents on which the Court may rely for this decision.
| precedence, n. | priority of importance |
Her safety took precedence over her looks.
| principal, adj. | chief, most important |
| principal, n. | a person in charge (corporation, educational institution); a capital sum that earns interest |
| principle, n. | a fundamental doctrine or assumption |
Principal Skinner’s principles drive him to focus on his principal concerns: enforcing the rules and obeying his mother.
Tip for remembering the difference: Principle can only be a noun, never an adjective.
Suggestions welcome.
| raucous, adj. | loud, harsh, disorderly |
| ruckus, n. | a disturbance; often used with the word raise |
They raised quite a ruckus with their raucous behavior.
The first two are straightforward terms.
| rite, n. | a ceremonial ritual, often referring to one who is in extremis |
The priest administered his last rites.
| wright, n. | one skilled in making wooden objects; commonly used in combination form (shipwright) |
| role, n. | an actor’s part; a specific function performed |
Are you acting in the role of his attorney, Counsel?
| roll, n. | a list of items or people, something that is rolled into a ball, a bakery product |
| roll, v. | to cause something to move forward by turning over and over |
| rot, v. | to decompose, to deteriorate, to become morally corrupt |
| wrought, v. | past tense of the verb work; often used with the word "iron" to describe a particular type of substance – please see dictionary for full definition |
| rote, adj. | mechanically memorized |
She can recite the statutes by rote memory.
| rote, n. | mechanical repetition |
| wrote, v. | past tense of write |
| rude, adj. | crude, uncouth (Homer Simpson in any situation) |
| rued, v. | past tense of rue, to feel regret (what Marge Simpson does at least once every 30 minutes) |
| shear, v. | to cut hair from |
| shear, n. | one blade of a pair of shears |
| sheer, adj. | transparent texture, pure, unqualified |
It was sheer folly on her part to wear a sheer blouse to court.
| sign, n. | a motion or gesture, a signal |
| sign, v. | to attest by signature |
| sine, n. | a trigonometric function; please see dictionary for full definition |
| stationery, n. | those things we need for writing such as paper and pens |
| stationary, adj. | describes any person or object that is not going to move from its spot |
I exercise on my stationary bike.
Tip: Stationary, A for always there.
| torte, n. | a cake |
| tort, n. | a wrongful act |
Suggestions welcome.
| vain, adj. | worthless, conceited, silly, foolish |
| vane, n. | a movable device attached to the top of a spire for showing the direction of wind |
| vein, n. | a narrow water channel in ice, rock, or earth; blood vessel |
| veracity, n. | truthfulness |
| voracity, n. | the state of being insatiably hungry or excessively eager |
| vice, n. | wickedness |
| vise, n. | a tool that holds something tightly in its grip; often used metaphorically |
Her gaze held him like a vise.
| waist, n. | the area between the thorax and the hips |
| waste, n. | a barren region; unwanted by-product (e.g., toxic waste); sewage |
| waste, v. | to damage or destroy, to squander |
| waive, v. | to give up, to forgo |
I’ll waive signature.
| wave, v. | to motion with the hand in signal or salute |
| want, n. | deficiency, lack, desire |
| wont, n. | habitual manner of doing |
| wont, adj. | accustomed |
He vehemently objected as he is wont to do.
| warrantee, n. | one to whom a warranty is made |
| warranty, n. | a manufacturer’s written guarantee pertaining to the quality of its product and its responsibility to repair same |
Suggestions welcome.
Suggestions welcome.
Suggestions welcome.
Please direct questions, comments, and suggestions to Cindy at: yourscopist@aol.com
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