Words that sound the same

This exercise will help you to handle situations which need grammatical knowledge. Some of the words are pronounced in the same way, but have a totally different meaning. Be careful when you use these words and use them in the correct context so that the words will convey the correct meaning.

Accept vs except

Accept is a verb, which means to agree to take something .For example: “I always accept good advice.” Except is a preposition or conjunction, which means not including.

For example: “I teach everyday except Sunday(s).”

advice vs advise

Advice is a noun, which means an opinion that someone offers you about what you should do or how you should act in a particular situation.For example: “I need someone to give me some advice.” Advise is a verb, which means to give information and suggest types of action.For example: “I advise everybody to be nice to their teacher.” Often in English the noun form ends in ...ice and the verb form ends in ..ise.

affect vs effect

Affect and effect are two words that are commonly confused.affect is usually a verb (action) - effect is usually a noun (thing).Hint: If it’s something you’re going to do, use “affect.” If it’s something you’ve already done, use “effect.”To affect something or someone.Meaning: to influence, act upon, or change something or someone.For example: The noise outside affected my performance.To have an effect on something or someone

Note: effect is followed by the preposition on and preceded by an article (an, the)Meaning: to have an impact on something or someone.

For example: His smile had a strange effect on me. !Effect can also mean “the end result”.

For example: The drug has many adverse side effects.

alone / lonely

Alone, can be used as an adjective or adverb. Either use means without other people or on your own.For example: “He likes living alone.”“I think we’re alone now.” There are just the two of us here.Lonely is an adjective which means you are unhappy because you are not with other people.For example: “The house feels lonely now that all the children have left home.”
a lot / alot / allot A lot, meaning a large amount or number of people or things, can be used to modify a noun.For example:-“I need a lot of time to develop this web site.” It can also be used as an adverb, meaning very much or very often.

For example:-“I look a lot like my sister.”It has become a common term in speech; and is increasingly used in writing.Alot does not exist! There is no such word in the English language. If you write it this way - imagine me shouting at you - “No Such Word!”Allot is a verb, which means to give (especially a share of something) for a particular purpose:-For example: “We were allotted a desk each.”

all ready vs already

All ready means “completely ready”.For example: “Are you all ready for the test?” Already is an adverb that means before the present time or earlier than the time expected.
For example: “I asked him to come to the cinema but he’d already seen the film.”Or“Are you buying Christmas cards already? It’s only September!”
altogether vs all togetherAll together (adv) means “together in a single group.”For example: The waiter asked if we were all together. Altogether (adv) means “completely” or “in total “.

For example: She wrote less and less often, and eventually she stopped altogether.!To be in the altogether is an old-fashioned term for being naked!

any vs some

Any and some are both determiners. They are used to talk about indefinite quantities or numbers, when the exact quantity or number is not important. As a general rule we use some for positive statements, and any for questions and negative statements,

For example:- I asked the barman if he could get me some sparkling water. I said, “Excuse me, have you got any sparkling water?” Unfortunately they didn’t have any. Note - You will sometimes see some in questions and any in positive statements. When making an offer, or a request, in order to encourage the person we are speaking to to, say “ yes”, you can use some in a question:

For example: Would you mind fetching some gummy bears while you’re at the shops? You can also use any in a positive statement if it comes after a word whose meaning is negative or limiting:


For example:-A. She gave me some bad advice.B. Really? She rarely gives any bad advice.
apart vs a partApart (adv) separated by distance or time. For example: I always feel so lonely when we’re apart. A part (noun) a piece of something that forms the whole of something.
For example: They made me feel like I was a part of the family.
been vs goneBeen is the past participle of be, gone is the past participle of go Been is used to describe completed visits. So if you have been to England twice, you have travelled there and back twice. If you have gone to England, you have not yet returned. Now you’ve been and gone and done it!

bored vs boring

Bored is an adjective that describes when someone feels tired and unhappy because something is not interesting or because they have nothing to do.

For example: She was so bored that she fell asleep. Boring is an adjective that means something is not interesting or exciting. For example: The lesson was so boring that she fell asleep.

Note: Most verbs which express emotions, such as to bore , may use either the present or the past participle as an adjective, but the meaning of the participles is often different.