Confusing Words in English

Confusing Words: Ad (noun) and Add (verb)
Meaning:
Ad (informal for an advertisement)
Add (
join (something) to something else so as to increase the size, number, or amount.)
Ad vs Add Clarification: Ad and add are commonly known as homonyms.

Ad vs Add – What is the Difference, Definition & Meanings

Have you ever heard about the word advertisement? The answer will be ‘yes’ because this is the word that you use almost daily. Ad is the short form of the word advertisement.

Ad is taken as informal or colloquial. Now in modern age, this informal word ‘ad’ is more commonly used than advertisement. Nobody bothers to say the whole word advertisement’. But in formal writing, try to avoid writing ad.

Ad

It is used as a noun. It is known as ‘a notice or an announcement’. It is a mode of promoting any product or services.

1. I want to place an ad for the promotion of my business.

2. He put an ad in the paper to sell his home. Reference –(gingersoftware.com)

3. Zong has been released the most expensive ad in television for the advancement of their services.

Add

Unlike ad, add is used as a verb. It is an action of calculating or increasing something. You have heard about the word ‘addition’, add has the same function as in addition.

For instance, if you add 2+2, the answer will be 4. This shows that add means to expand anything whether it is related to numbers, products or anything.

Let us know how to use add in sentences.

1. I asked the shopkeeper to add more rice in my bag.

2. Salt was added to the bowl of soup to make it more delicious.

3. Add 4 to 2 to get 6.

Hence, it is clear that ad and add are two different words with different spellings but having same pronunciation. It is so easy to remember the difference between these two words because the difference is obvious.

Add seems to be a full word whereas ad, that has only a ‘d’ in it, seems to be very short. Add can be derived from addition. So, don’t get confused again as these words are just homophones.

Check Out: The Difference Between Averse and Adverse.

What Did You Learn?

Writers must be very alert in choosing a correct word in their writings. Do not get confused in picking the right word. Ad is just a short form of advertisement whereas add means ‘to expand or to increase the amount of anything’.

Confusing Words: Apologise (verb) and Apologize (verb)
Meaning: express regret for something that one has done wrong.
Clarification: We can say that apologise and apologize are the same words with same meanings and functions within sentences.

Apologise vs Apologize – What is the Difference, Definition & Meaning?

The pronunciation of the above two words are exactly the same. In terms of spelling, they are just one-letter apart. Actually, apologise and apologize are same words. They are interchangeable. The restriction is because of the versions of English language i.e. British English and American English. One word is the British variant and the other one is the American variant.

Let us find out which word is related to the British English and which word could be the American variant. I will define the terms and come up with the examples to show you the usage of these words within sentences.

Apologise

This particular word is used as a verb within sentences. Apologise means to say sorry; make excuses by giving reasons or as forgiveness from someone.

This word, with an –ise at the end, is used in British English. It means that if you are writing any British text, then your choice should be apologise.

1. I want to apologise for my bad attitude.

2. Every time you make mistakes and come here to apologise.

3. We apologise for the fault in the subtitles. Those responsible have been sacked. (Monty Python)

Apologize

This particular word has the same meaning and function like apologise. To apologize means ‘to say sorry’.

This word, with an –ize at the end, is the form of American English. It means that if you are writing any American text, then your choice should be apologize instead of apologise.

Here is an example of an American text using apologize,

• The fine is to be even higher if Chevron doesn’t publicly apologize.

Check Out: The Difference Between Are and Our.

Which one is more preferable?

According to the history of English language, the word with the suffix –ize is more preferable to use. As, apologize came first in English vocabulary so, the use of apologize is greater than apologise. This new term with the suffix –ise recently get the chance to be the preferable word for British publications.

Apologize = American English

Apologise = British English

What Did You Learn?

We can say that apologise and apologize are the same words with same meanings and functions within sentences. The difference is that apologize is the preferable spelling for American English whereas, apologise is standard for British English. The fact is that apologize came first in history so, considered to be a standard term for all publications.

To apologise/apologize means to say sorry.

Confusing Words: Ensure and Insure and Assure (verbs)
Meaning:
Ensure (make certain that (something) will occur or be the case.)
Insure (arrange for compensation in the event of damage to or loss of (property), or injury to or the death of (someone), in exchange for regular payments to a company or to the state.)
Assure (tell someone something positively to dispel any doubts.)
Ensure vs Insure vs Assure Clarification: The three words ensure, insure and assure are easy to be mixed up because of slightly same usage and meanings.

Ensure vs Insure vs Assure – What is the Difference, Definition and Meaning?

The reason behind the confusion between ensure, insure and assure is that these words are very similar in meanings. All these words are very similar in pronunciation and they are just two-letters apart.

That is why, people get confused between these words i.e. ensure, insure and assure. You cannot use these words interchangeably because they have different situations to use in. I will point out the differences in meanings with examples. Continue reading to clear your ideas!

Check Out: The Difference Between Amount and Number.

Ensure

This particular word is used as a verb within sentences. To ensure is to give an event or condition a guarantee or certainty to be happened or not. For example,

1. This medicine ensures that I will be perfectly fine by tomorrow.

2. The banker’s job ensures him that he will get a better lifestyle.

3. The only way to ensure equality for women is to clearly declare it in our constitution. (Carolyn Maloney)

Insure

Like ensure, insure is also used as a verb within a sentence. This particular term is related to financial responsibility that someone will give to protect something. So, the meaning of insure is to protect something with an insurance policy. For example,

1. Did you insure your house against any disaster?

2. His car is already insured by the company.

3. I got insured when I was two years old.

Assure

Like ensure and insure, assure is used as a verb too. To assure means to make promise or to convince someone in a positive way. This assure is meant to remove doubts or to satisfy someone. For example,

1. You always assure me that you will be fine living alone.

2. I want to assure you that there is going to be a big party at my place.

3. Do not worry about your difficulties in Mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater. (Albert Einstein)

Got the difference?

I hope that from the above discussion, the difference between ensure, insure and assure is now clear. All three words are used as a verb within sentences. You have to remember that you can ensure any condition or event but not things. On the other hand, insure is only for the things like insurance policies. Assure can be easy to differentiate because of its slightly different pronunciation. You can assure to remove any doubts of someone.

What Did You Learn?

The three words ensure, insure and assure are easy to be mixed up because of slightly same usage and meanings. Ensure is to give certainty or guarantee to a condition or an event.

Like ensure, insure is also a verb with different meaning. Insure means to protect something with an insurance policy. Last but not the least, assure means to make promise positively.

Confusing Words: Aural (adjective) and Oral (adjective)
Meaning:
Aural (relating to the ear or the sense of hearing.)
Oral (The word oral means having to do with the mouth or speaking.)
Clarification: Aural and oral are not interchangeable.

Aural vs Oral – What is the Difference, Definition & Meaning?

If you say out both aural and oral together, you will feel that these words sound exactly same. However, there is a very slight difference in pronunciation between aural and oral. Apart from their pronunciations, the meanings of both of these words are totally different from each other. Both of these words are related to the human senses.

Continue reading the post to find out the actual differences between aural and oral.

Aural

This particular word is used as an adjective within sentences. Aural means the sense of hearing. This word is referring to the ears. It means that it refers to the things that are heard by you or anyone else.

1. I have to listen each and every point carefully because the examiner will test my aural skills at the end of the session.

2. Every music’s aim is to give an aural delight to everyone.

3. I came to love silence, because it’s so rare, and it’s now my favorite aural condition. (Mike Nichols)

You will remember this word if you have an idea about auditory. It is also related to the sense of hearing. Both aural and auditory have –au in them. So, you can recall the word aural by saying auditory.

Oral

This particular word is also used as an adjective within sentences. Unlike aural, oral is related to the mouth. If you are to say oral, you should think about the speech instead of writing.

1. The teacher will take an oral test by tomorrow.

2. My appointment for an oral surgery is about to come.

3. All history was at first oral. (Samuel Johnson)

Got the Difference?

From the above discussion, it has been clear that aural and oral are both different words in term of meaning.

Aural is related to the ear. (Hearing)

Oral is related to the mouth. (Speech)

The following example is best suited for both of these words.

• Aural learners learn most effectively by listening to information delivered orally in lectures, speeches, and oral sessions. (unknown)

What Did You Learn?

Aural and oral are not interchangeable. Both of these words are used as adjectives within sentences. Though, their pronunciations are slightly similar but they do not share same meanings. Aural is used, only, to refer the ears because it is related to the sense of hearing. Oral, on the other hand, is always related to the mouth i.e. speech.

Confusing Words: Apart (adverb) and A Part (phrase)
Meaning:
Apart ((of two or more people or things) separated by a specified distance in time or space.)
A part (an amount or section which, when combined with others, makes up the whole of something.)
Clarification: Apart and a part are two separate terms and cannot be used interchangeably

Apart vs A Part – What is the Difference, Definition & Meaning?

If you observe the above words, you will come to know that the first word is a complete word (apart) while the second one has two words (a and part). The pronunciation of apart and a part is exactly the same. This is the reason for the confusion between apart vs. a apart.

Let us discuss each word to clear up this case. I will define each term with proper explanation and I will come up with some examples to show you the function of each term.

Apart

As you can see that there is no space in between ‘a’ and ‘part’. It means that this is a complete word to use within a sentence. This particular word is used as an adverb. As an adverb, apart means not together or divided by a distance (in terms of space or time).

• It will take time to reach because that place is 100 miles apart.

• These words are just two-letters apart.

Apart can be used as an adjective as well. In this case, it means divided or different from others. In this way, it modifies a noun.

• Though Betty is weak in studies, but her aesthetic sense set her apart.

Apart can also be used as a preposition. In this case, apart should be joined with the word ‘from’. In this way, the meaning would be ‘aside from’.

• Apart from this corner, I have cleaned the whole house.

• You can have the whole cake apart from the big slice.

A Part

As I mentioned before, a part are two separate words. They have nothing to do with the word apart. In these words, ‘a’ is an article whereas, ‘part’ is a noun. So, a part means a segment, slice or a piece of something.

• As we all are a part of this college, we should be responsible of discipline.

• Please cut a part of this giant cake.

Got it?

I hope that from the above discussion, it is clear that the word ‘apart’ and the two-words phrase ‘a part’ are not interchangeable. They are just similar in terms of pronunciation but the meanings and the appearances are totally different. A part is a noun phrase whereas apart is usually used as an adverb, adjevtive or a preposition.

Apart = One word

A part = Two-word noun phrase

What Did You Learn?

Apart and a part are two separate terms and cannot be used interchangeably. Apart is mostly used as an adverb that usually joined with ‘from’, meaning not together or separated. A part, on the other hand, is a noun phrase that mean a segment, slice or a piece of something. A part is usullay joined with ‘of’.