常用错的英文单词

中文不咋样，英文也马马虎虎，说实在的，没什么资格提语言上的话题。不过，咱的口号是“发牢骚”，发发牢骚，没资格也说，说错话，也行啊。

生活在美国，评论中文是轮不到了，说英文，只能简单的。常常用错的单词，大家见到的多了，还废什么话？而且说的不好，像我这样的老头，没长进，无所谓了。但主要是联想到下一代的教育，说说。

很多人，包括基本上大多数美国人，都犯这些错，也不在乎，对青少年的教育，也注重“尊重他们的自尊、独立性”之类，强调不能强迫。像中国那样僵化，不是办法，不过如此放纵，又是另一个极端，这是美国教育一团糟的主要原因（之一）。

不过对中国人的子女来说，这个问题较小，因为传统教育观念重，父母不至于过分放纵。然而虽然华裔子弟水平相对价高，理科尤其，但是小到每一个细节，尤其是文章、语言、表达方面，做到一丝不苟那样，大都觉得是小节，不必过于计较，孩子就更不愿意为这种鸡毛蒜皮之类的事儿下功夫了。

实际上，这是失策，尤其是父母失策。第一，语言很重要，基本说对但满篇瑕疵，让人觉得你缺那么点儿什么来着，最终未必把你当作一回事儿。第二，既然华裔子弟都是力所能及的，却因为“忙不过来”之类的种种原因而不加以重视，要么说你太懒，要么说你实际上属于平平庸庸那种。

归根结底，孩子有责任，但大部分责任在父母【注】，父母不知道什么是关键的，从而觉得无关大局而加以忽视。


Adverse and averse
Adverse means harmful or unfavorable: "Adverse market conditions caused the IPO to be poorly subscribed." Averse refers to feelings of dislike or opposition: "I was averse to paying $18 a share for a company that generates no revenue."
But you can feel free to have an aversion to adverse conditions.

Affect and effect
Verbs first. Affect means to influence: "Impatient investors affected our roll-out date." Effect means to accomplish something: "The board effected a sweeping policy change." How you use effect or affect can be tricky. For example, a board can affect changes by influencing them, or can effect changes by implementing them. Use effect if you're making it happen, and affect if you're having an impact on something someone else is trying to make happen.
As for nouns, effect is almost always correct: "Once he was fired he was given 20 minutes to gather his personal effects." Affect refers to an emotional state, so unless you're a psychologist, you probably should not be using it.

Compliment and complement
Compliment is to say something nice. Complement is to add to, enhance, improve, complete, or bring close to perfection. So, I can compliment your staff and their service, but if you have no current openings you have a full complement of staff. And your new app may complement your website.
For which I may decide to compliment you.

Criteria and criterion
"We made the decision based on one overriding criteria" sounds pretty impressive but is wrong.
Remember: one criterion, two or more criteria, although you could always use "reason" or "factors" and not worry about getting it wrong.

Discreet and discrete
Discreet means careful, cautious, showing good judgment: "We made discreet inquiries to determine whether the founder was interested in selling her company."
Discrete means individual, separate, or distinct: "We analyzed data from a number of discrete market segments to determine overall pricing levels." And if you get confused, remember you don't use discreetion to work through sensitive issues; you exercise discretion.

Elicit and illicit
Elicit means to draw out or coax. Think of elicit as the mildest form of extract or, even worse, extort. So if one lucky survey respondent will win a trip to the Bahamas, the prize is designed to elicit responses.
Illicit means illegal or unlawful. I suppose you could "illicit" a response at gunpoint ... but you best not.

Farther and further
Farther involves a physical distance: "Florida is farther from New York than Tennessee." Further involves a figurative distance: "We can take our business plan no further." So, as we say in the South, "I don't trust you any farther than I can throw you." Or, "I ain't gonna trust you no further."
(Seriously. I've uttered both of those sentences. More than once.)

Imply and infer
The speaker or writer implies. The listener or reader infers. Imply means to suggest, while infer means to deduce (whether correctly or not). So, I might imply you're going to receive a raise. You might infer that a pay increase is imminent. (But not eminent, unless the raise will be prominent and distinguished.)

Insure and ensure
This one's easy. Insure refers to insurance. Ensure means to make sure. So if you promise an order will ship on time, ensure it actually happens. Unless, of course, you plan to arrange for compensation if the package is damaged or lost--then feel free to insure away.

Number and amount
I goof these up all the time. Use number when you can count what you refer to: "The number of subscribers who opted out increased last month." Amount refers to a quantity of something that can't be counted: "The amount of alcohol consumed at our last company picnic was staggering."
Of course it can still be confusing: "I can't believe the number of beers I drank" is correct, but so is "I can't believe the amount of beer I drank." The difference is I can count beers, but beer, especially if I was way too drunk to keep track, is an uncountable total--so amount is the correct usage.

Precede and proceed
Precede means to come before. Proceed means to begin or continue. Where it gets confusing is when an ing comes into play. "The proceeding announcement was brought to you by..." sounds fine, but preceding is correct since the announcement came before.
If it helps, think precedence: Anything that takes precedence is more important and therefore comes first.

Principal and principle
A principle is a fundamental: "We've created a culture where we all share certain principles." Principal means primary or of first importance: "Our startup's principal is located in NYC." (Sometimes you'll also see the plural, principals, used to refer to executives or (relatively) co-equals at the top of a particular food chain.)
Principal can also refer to the most important item in a particular set: "Our principal account makes up 60 percent of our gross revenues."
Principal can also refer to money, normally a sum that was borrowed, but can be extended to refer to the amount you owe--hence principal and interest.
If you're referring to laws, rules, guidelines, ethics, etc., use principle. If you're referring to the CEO or the president (or the individual in charge of the high school), use principal. And now for those dreaded apostrophes.

It's and its
It's is the contraction of it is. That means it's doesn't own anything. If your dog is neutered (the way we make a dog, however much against his or her will, gender neutral), you don't say, "It's collar is blue." You say, "Its collar is blue." Here's an easy test to apply. Whenever you use an apostrophe, un-contract the word to see how it sounds. In this case, turn it's into it is: "It's sunny" becomes "It is sunny." Sounds good to me.

They're and their
Same with these: They're is the contraction for they are. Again, the apostrophe doesn't own anything. We're going to their house, and I sure hope they're home.

Who's and whose
"Whose password hasn't been changed in six months?" is correct. "Who is (the noncontracted version of who's) password hasn't been changed in six months?" sounds silly.

You're and your
One more. You're is the contraction of you are. Your means you own it; the apostrophe in you're doesn't own anything. For a long time a local nonprofit had a huge sign that said "You're Community Place."
Hmm. "You Are Community Place"?
Probably not.

Advise and advice
Aside from the two words being pronounced differently (the s in advise sounds like a z), advise is a verb while advice is a noun. Advice is what you give (whether or not the recipient is interested in that gift is a different issue altogether) when you advise someone.
So, "Thank you for the advise" is incorrect, while "I advise you not to bore me with your advice in the future" is correct if pretentious.
If you run into trouble, just say each word out loud and you'll instantly know which makes sense; there's no way you'd ever say, "I advice you to..."

Ultimate and penultimate
Recently I received a pitch from a PR professional that read, "(Acme Industries) provides the penultimate value-added services for discerning professionals."
As Inigo would say, "I do not think it means what you think it means."
Ultimate means the best, or final, or last. Penultimate means the last but one, or second to last. (Or, as a Monty Python-inspired Michelangelo would say, "the Penultimate Supper!")
But penultimate doesn't mean second-best. Plus, I don't think my PR friend meant to say her client offered second-class services. (I think she just thought the word sounded cool.)
Also, keep in mind that using ultimate is fraught with hyperbolic peril. Are you--or is what you provide--really the absolute best imaginable? That's a tough standard to meet.

Well and good
Anyone who has children uses good more often than he or she should. Since kids pretty quickly learn what good means, "You did good, honey" is much more convenient and meaningful than "You did well, honey."
But that doesn't mean good is the correct word choice.
Good is an adjective that describes something; if you did a good job, then you do good work. Well is an adverb that describes how something was done; you can do your job well.
Where it gets tricky is when you describe, say, your health or emotional state. "I don't feel well" is grammatically correct, even though many people (including me) often say, "I don't feel too good." On the other hand, "I don't feel good about how he treated me" is correct; no one says, "I don't feel well about how I'm treated."
Confused? If you're praising an employee and referring to the outcome say, "You did a good job." If you're referring to how the employee performed say, "You did incredibly well."
And while you're at it, stop saying good to your kids and use great instead, because no one--especially a kid--ever receives too much praise.

If and whether
If and whether are often interchangeable. If a yes/no condition is involved, then feel free to use either: "I wonder whether Jim will finish the project on time" or "I wonder if Jim will finish the project on time." (Whether sounds a little more formal in this case, so consider your audience and how you wish to be perceived.)
What's trickier is when a condition is not involved. "Let me know whether Marcia needs a projector for the meeting" isn't conditional, because you want to be informed either way. "Let me know if Marcia needs a projector for the meeting" is conditional, because you only want to be told if she needs one.
And always use if when you introduce a condition. "If you hit your monthly target, I'll increase your bonus" is correct; the condition is hitting the target and the bonus is the result. "Whether you are able to hit your monthly target is totally up to you" does not introduce a condition (unless you want the employee to infer that your thinly veiled threat is a condition of ongoing employment).

Stationary and stationery
You write on stationery. You get business stationery, such as letterhead and envelopes, printed.
But that box of envelopes is not stationary unless it's not moving--and even then it's still stationery.

Award and reward
An award is a prize. Musicians win Grammy Awards. Car companies win J.D. Power awards. Employees win Employee of the Month awards. Think of an award as the result of a contest or competition.
A reward is something given in return for effort, achievement, hard work, merit, etc. A sales commission is a reward. A bonus is a reward. A free trip for landing the most new customers is a reward.
Be happy when your employees win industry or civic awards, and reward them for the hard work and sacrifices they make to help your business grow.

Sympathy and empathy
Sympathy is acknowledging another person's feelings. "I am sorry for your loss" means you understand the other person is grieving and want to recognize that fact.
Empathy is having the ability to put yourself in the other person's shoes and relate to how the person feels, at least in part because you've experienced those feelings yourself.
The difference is huge. Sympathy is passive; empathy is active. (Here's a short video by Brené Brown that does a great job of describing the difference--and how empathy fuels connection while sympathy drives disconnection.)
Know the difference between sympathy and empathy, live the difference, and you'll make a bigger difference in other people's lives.

Criterion and criteria
A criterion is a principle or standard. If you have more than one criterion, those are referred to as criteria.
But if you want to be safe and you only have one issue to consider, just say standard or rule or benchmark. Then use criteria for all the times there are multiple specifications or multiple criterion (OK, standards) involved.

Mute and moot
Think of mute like the button on your remote; it means unspoken or unable to speak. In the U.S., moot refers to something that is of no practical importance; a moot point is one that could be hypothetical or even (gasp!) academic. In British English, moot can also mean debatable or open to debate.
So if you were planning an IPO, but your sales have plummeted, the idea of going public could be moot. And if you decide not to talk about it anymore, you will have gone mute on the subject.

Peak and peek
A peak is the highest point; climbers try to reach the peak of Mount Everest. Peek means quick glance, as in giving major customers a sneak peek at a new product before it's officially unveiled, which hopefully helps sales peak at an unimaginable height.
Occasionally a marketer will try to "peak your interest" or "peek your interest," but in that case the right word is pique, which means "to excite." (Pique can also mean "to upset," but hopefully that's not what marketers intend.)

Aggressive and enthusiastic
Aggressive is a very popular business adjective: aggressive sales force, aggressive revenue projections, aggressive product rollout. But unfortunately, aggressive means ready to attack, or pursuing aims forcefully, possibly unduly so.
So do you really want an "aggressive" sales force?
Of course, most people have seen aggressive used that way for so long they don't think of it negatively; to them it just means hard-charging, results-oriented, driven, etc., none of which are bad things.
But some people may not see it that way. So consider using words like enthusiastic, eager, committed, dedicated, or even (although it pains me to say it) passionate.

Then and than
Then refers in some way to time. "Let's close this deal, and then we'll celebrate!" Since the celebration comes after the sale, then is correct.
Then is also often used with if. Think in terms of if-then statements: "If we don't get to the office on time, then we won't be able to close the deal today."
Than involves a comparison. "Landing Customer A will result in higher revenue than landing Customer B," or "Our sales team is more committed to building customer relationships than the competition is."

Evoke and invoke
To evoke is to call to mind; an unusual smell might evoke a long-lost memory. To invoke is to call upon some thing: help, aid, or maybe a higher power.
So hopefully all your branding and messaging efforts evoke specific emotions in potential customers. But if they don't, you might consider invoking the gods of commerce to aid you in your quest for profitability.
Or something like that.

Continuously and continually
Both words come from the root continue, but they mean very different things. Continuously means never ending. Hopefully your efforts to develop your employees are continuous, because you never want to stop improving their skills and their future.
Continual means whatever you're referring to stops and starts. You might have frequent disagreements with your co-founder, but unless those discussions never end (which is unlikely, even though it might feel otherwise), then those disagreements are continual.
That's why you should focus on continuous improvement but only plan to have continual meetings with your accountant: The former should never, ever stop, and the other (mercifully) should.

Systemic and systematic
If you're in doubt, systematic is almost always the right word to use. Systematic means arranged or carried out according to a plan, method, or system. That's why you can take a systematic approach to continuous improvement, or do a systematic evaluation of customer revenue or a systematic assessment of market conditions.
Systemic means belonging to or affecting the system as a whole. Poor morale could be systemic to your organization. Or bias against employee diversity could be systemic.
So if your organization is facing a pervasive problem, take a systematic approach to dealing with it--that's probably the only way you'll overcome it.

Impact and affect (and effect)
Many people (including until recently me) use impact when they should use affect. Impact doesn't mean to influence; impact means to strike, collide, or pack firmly.
Affect means to influence: "Impatient investors affected our rollout date."
And to make it more confusing, effect means to accomplish something: "The board effected a sweeping policy change."
How you correctly use effect or affect can be tricky. For example, a board can affect changes by influencing them and can effect changes by directly implementing them. Bottom line, use effect if you're making it happen, and affect if you're having an impact on something that someone else is trying to make happen.
As for nouns, effect is almost always correct: "Employee morale has had a negative effect on productivity." Affect refers to an emotional state, so unless you're a psychologist, you probably have little reason to use it.
So stop saying you'll "impact sales" or "impact the bottom line." Use affect.
(And feel free to remind me when I screw that up, because I feel sure I'll backslide.)

Between and among
Use between when you name separate and individual items. "The team will decide between Mary, Marcia, and Steve when we fill the open customer service position." Mary, Marcia, and Steve are separate and distinct, so between is correct.
Use among when there are three or more items but they are not named separately. "The team will decide among a number of candidates when we fill the open customer service position." Who are the candidates? You haven't named them separately, so among is correct.
And we're assuming there are more than two candidates; otherwise you'd say between. If there are two candidates you could say, "I just can't decide between them."

Everyday and every day
Every day means, yep, every day--each and every day. If you ate a bagel for breakfast each day this week, you had a bagel every day.
Everyday means commonplace or normal. Decide to wear your "everyday shoes" and that means you've chosen to wear the shoes you normally wear. That doesn't mean you have to wear them every single day; it just means wearing them is a usual occurrence.

Another example is along and a long: Along means moving in a constant direction or a line, or in the company of others, while a long means of great distance or duration. You wouldn't stand in "along line," but you might stand in a long line for a long time, along with a number of other people.

A couple more examples: a while and awhile, and any way and anyway.
If you're in doubt, read what you write out loud. It's unlikely you'll think "Is there anyway you can help me?" sounds right.

A lot and alot
A lot is always two words. Period. Alot is not a word, and allot means something completely different. It’s when you give something to someone, as in a share or task. He allotted her a lot of time to work on the business proposal.

Composed and Comprised
Compose means to make up, as in “the company is composed of individuals from various backgrounds.” Comprise means to contain, as in “the company building comprises a meeting room and 43 cubicles.” It’s never right to say “comprised of,” so train yourself out of that habit.

Dessert and Desert
These two are often confused and couldn’t be any more different. A desert is a dry, sandy place, like the Sahara. A dessert is crème brulee, hot fudge sundae or red velvet cake. No sand in the cake, please. An easy way to remember this is that people often want seconds when it comes to dessert, and there is a second s in the word

Except and Accept
Except means with exception, or to exclude. Accept means to receive something. She accepted every gift with a smile except the one in the red box.

To, Too and Two
You should know these three, but too means also, two is a number, and to is a proposition. Two people went to the store, too.

Lie and Lay
Lie means to recline or rest on a surface, but lay means to put something somewhere. She wanted to lie on the floor after I told her to lay her coat on the counter.

Lose and Loose
Lose is something that happens if you don’t win. If something becomes loose, it’s not tight.

【参见】
Jeff Haden
39 Incorrectly Used Words That Can Make You Look Bad
32 Incorrectly Used Words That Can Make You Look StupidBad

Avoid Embarrassment and Master These Commonly Confused Words



【注】
你要是读到这了，我就明说，要说的不是什么英文单词，而是最后一句话。