Blogging Tips

Homonyms can be confusing for everyone, but when you write your blog you need to be extra careful which words you choose.

This installment of common errors will go over more mix ups. If you missed the previous post which had homonyms and mix ups from the letters “A, B, and C” you can find it here: Part 1.

Dam: a barrier for liquid. “The dam will break after the next storm.”
Damn: a swear word. “Damn you Kyle.”

Dammed: blocked from flowing. “We dammed up the pipe.”
Damned: doomed. “Humanity is not damned.”

Days: period of time. “There are 30 days in April.”
Daze: to stun or overwhelm. “She was in a daze after she heard the news.”

Dear: affectionate term. “Dear, can you get the soap?”
Deer: an animal. “Bambi is a deer.”

Desert: a desolate area or to abandon. “The desert is hot.” or “We have to desert the empty water bottles.”
Dessert: sugary treat. “I want ice cream for dessert.”

Dew: condensation in the morning. “There is a lot of dew on the tree.”
Do: to take action. “When are you going to do what you said you were going to?”
Due: owed by a certain date. “The project is due on February 17th.”

Die: to cease to live or singular of dice. “I am going to die of boredom.” or “I can only find one die in the box.”
Dye: to stain or color. “We will dye your hair blue.”

Discussed: talked over. “We discussed the problem and it is fixed now.”
Disgust: repulsion. “He disgusts me.”

Dual: two-fold. “Our plan has a dual concentration.”
Duel: fight. “I challenge you to a duel!”

E.G.: for example. “The price of everything has gone up, e.g., gas, cigarettes, and even food.”
I.E.: in other words. “We have the same face, i.e. we are twins.”

Elicit: to draw out or extract. “I will elicit an answer from the criminal.”
Illicit: illegal. “His illicit acts landed him in jail.”

Elusive: difficult to describe. “The point of psychophysics is elusive to me.”
Illusive: plausible or possible. “She has an illusive dream of becoming a fighter pilot.”

Emigrate: to exit one country to live in another. “We will emigrate from Mexico to California.”
Immigrate: to enter a new country to live. “She will immigrate to the United States.”

Facts: data. “Put the facts in alphabetical order.”
Fax: technology that sends images by phone. “Don’t forget to fax that to the main office.”

Fair: an exhibition. “I want to see pigs at the fair.”
Fare: payment for travel. “The fare to cross the street is twelve pennies.”

Fairy: imaginary being with magical powers. “A blue fairy landed on my thumb.”
Ferry: a boat. “Let’s take the ferry across the river.”

Farther: physical distance only. “We have to walk farther than that to get there.”
Further: physical distance, moreover, in addition. “We will talk further about this later.”

Feat: an extraordinary accomplishment. “Climbing the mountain was a great feat.”
Feet: twelve inches or appendages at the end of legs. “A yard stick is three feet.” or “Your feet smell.”

Find: to discover. “I can find anything even at night.”
Fined: penalized. “I was fined 100 dollars.”

Fir: type of tree. “Look at the leaves on that Fir tree.”
Fur: coat of an animal. “I pet the dogs fur.”

Flair: style. “She has a lot of flair.”
Flare: to erupt. “His psoriasis will flare up again.”

Flea: an insect. “Our cat only has one flea, but that’s still too many.”
Flee: to run away. “We must flee in terror.”

Flew: past tense of fly. “The bird flew past the window.”
Flu: a virus. “Stay away from him, he has the flu.”
Flue: part of a chimney. “Open the flue so that the air can help the fire.”

Flour: grain. “Don’t put too much flour in the cake mix.”
Flower: bloom of a plant. “Will you pick me a flower?”

For: a preposition. “I will get it for you.”
Fore: ahead. “Don’t forget to yell ‘fore’ when you hit the ball.”
Four: the number after three. “I have four apples.”

Forth: forward. “We will go forth and explore new places.”
Fourth: the number after third. “He received fourth place.”

Foul: offensive. “Don’t use foul language around me.”
Fowl: birds. “Make sure you pluck the fowl before you bring it in.”

Gone: used with has or have. “I have gone to the Alps before.”
Went: past tense of go. “She went to the store.”

Grate: crossed bars or a cover. “Don’t walk over the grate barefoot.”
Great: wonderful. “You are a great friend of mine.”

Groan: mournful sound of pain. “Her groan filled the funeral parlor.”
Grown: increased in size. “He’s grown about five inches.”

Guessed: offered an opinion. “She guessed that he was just being a jerk to look cool.”
Guest: company. “Our guest tonight is Shirley Temple.”

Hopefully these explanations have helped you with your blog and any errors you previously made. The next installment of homonyms and confusing words, which will cover “H, I, K, and L”, will be posted within the next few weeks.