COMMONLY

CONFUSED WORDS
English 212
Accept, Except

• Accept (verb). Means to take or agree to something

offered.
They accepted our proposal for the conference.
• Except (conjunction). Means only or but.
We could fly there except the tickets cost too much.
Affect, Effect

• Affect (verb). Means to create a change.

Hurricane winds affect the amount of rainfall.
• Effect (noun). Means an outcome or result.
The heavy rains will have an effect on the crop
growth.
Its, It’s

• Its (pronoun). A form of it that shows possession.

The butterfly flapped its wings.
• It’s (contraction). Joins the words it and is.
It’s the most beautiful butterfly I have ever seen.
Loose, Lose

• Loose (adjective). Describes something that is not tight or is

detached.
Without a belt, her pants are loose on her waist.
• Lose (verb). Means to forget, to give up, or to fail to earn
something.
She will lose even more weight after finishing the marathon
training.
Quite, Quiet, Quit

• Quite (adverb). Means really or truly.

My work will require quite a lot of concentration.
• Quiet (adjective). Means not loud.
I need a quiet room to complete the assignments.
• Quit (verb). Means to stop or to end.
I will quit when I am hungry for dinner.
Than, Then

• Than (conjunction). Used to connect two or more items

when comparing
Registered nurses require less schooling than doctors.
• Then (adverb). Means next or at a specific time.
Doctors first complete medical school and then obtain a
residency.
Their, They’re, There
• Their (pronoun). A form of they that shows possession.
The dog walker feeds their dogs everyday at two o’clock.
• They’re (contraction). Joins the words they and are.
They’re the sweetest dogs in the neighborhood.
• There (adverb). Indicates a particular place.
The dogs’ bowls are over there, next to the pantry.
• There (pronoun). Indicates the presence of something
There are more treats if the dogs behave.
Who’s, Whose

• Who’s (contraction). Joins the words who and either is or has.

Who’s the new student? Who’s met him?
• Whose (pronoun). A form of who that shows possession.
Whose schedule allows them to take the new student on a
campus
tour?
Your, You’re

• Your (pronoun). A form of you that shows

possession.
Your book bag is unzipped.
• You’re (contraction). Joins the words you and are.
You’re the girl with the unzipped book bag.
VERB TENSE
English 212
Verb Tense

Verb tense identifies the time of action described in a

sentence. Verbs take different forms to indicate different
tenses. Verb tenses indicate:
• an action or state of being in the present,
• an action or state of being in the past,
• an action or state of being in the future.
Regular Forms of Verbs

Regular verbs follow regular patterns when shifting

from the present to past tense.
For example, to form a past-tense or past-participle
verb form, add -ed or -d to the end of a verb.
Irregular Forms of Verbs

The past tense of irregular verbs is not formed using

the patterns that regular verbs follow.
https://www.wallstreetenglish.com/blog/regular-and-irr
egular-english-verbs/

https://www.englishclub.com/esl-quizzes/vocabulary/ir
regular-verbs-quiz-1.htm
Maintaining Consistent Verb Tense

Consistent verb tense means the same verb tense is

used throughout a sentence or a paragraph. As you
write and revise, it is important to use the same verb
tense consistently and to avoid shifting from one
tense to another unless there is a good reason for the
tense shift.
 If the time frame for each action or state is different, a
tense shift is appropriate.
PRONOUNS
English 212
Pronouns

A pronoun is a word that takes the place of (or refers

back to) a noun or another pronoun. The word or
words a pronoun refers to is called the antecedent of
the pronoun.
Antecedents and Referents

1. Lani complained that she was exhausted.

◦ She refers to Lani.
◦ Lani is the antecedent of she.

2. Jeremy left the party early, so I did not see him until Monday at work.
◦ Him refers to Jeremy.
◦ Jeremy is the antecedent of him.
Pronoun Agreement

Pronoun agreement errors occur when the pronoun

and the antecedent do not match or agree with each
other. There are several types of pronoun agreement.
If the pronoun takes the place of or refers to a
singular noun, the pronoun must also be singular.
Cases of Pronouns

1. Nominative/ Subjective Case

2. Objective Case
3. Possessive Case
https://www.grammarly.com/blog/pronoun-cases/
Other Types

https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/parts_of
_speech_pronouns.en.html
Practice Exercises

https://www.grammarbook.com/grammar_quiz/prono
uns_1.asp