Choose Your Words (Beginning With Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z)
Caught between words? Make the right choice.
QQQQQ
quote/ quotation
If you quote someone, do you create a quote or a quotation? To quote is to transcribe what someone said or wrote, crediting that person.
RRRRRR
rebut/ refute
To rebut is to try to prove something isn’t true, but to refute is to actually prove it isn’t. Getting them mixed up won’t get you kicked out of the debate club, but it’s worth knowing the difference.
regrettably/ regretfully
Regrettably is used when something’s a bummer, but it’s not necessarily your fault. Regretfully is when you’re full of regret, like if you decided to stay home and your friends saw your crush at the dance.
reluctant/ reticent
Reluctant means resisting or unwilling, while reticent means quiet, restrained, or unwilling to communicate. Is it a distinction worth preserving?
respectfully/ respectively
If you kiss the mob boss’s ring, do it respectfully, or full of respect and admiration. But respectively means “in the order given,” so if you have to kiss up to the rest of the mob, make sure to shake hands and high five Jimmy Rags and Tommy Two Face, respectively because Jimmy prefers a handshake, but Tommy loves a good high five.
SSSSSSS
sac/ sack
Both are containers, but a sac is for plants and animals, and a sack is for a sandwich. So spiders put their eggs in a sac, and people put their groceries in a sack.
scrimp/ skimp
These words are two sides of the same coin: ways to get more or to make something go further. One side is about saving; the other is about spending less.
sensual/ sensuous
The words sensual and sensuous are often used interchangeably, but careful writers would do well to think before using one or the other.
simple/ simplistic
Simple isn't the same as simplistic. Being simplistic means trying to explain something complicated as being simpler than it is; that is, oversimplifying.
stationary/ stationery
Make sure you’re stationary, or still, while you jot down a love letter on your fancy stationery, so the writing isn’t all squiggly.
statue/ statute
Look under the pigeons and you might find a bronze statue in a park, but there’s probably a statute, or law, about how big it can be.
TTTTTTT
than/ then
Than compares things, but then is all about time. They sound similar and were even spelled the same until the 1700s. Not anymore! Vive la difference!
that/ which
The words that and which point to something — which one? That one! Before a clause or phrase, a that clause goes with the flow, but a which clause starts with a pause. American English makes a big deal out of the distinction but British English doesn't, which may be why it's so dang confusing.
their/ there/ they're
How do you comfort grammar snobs? Pat them on the back and say, their, there. You see, they're easily comforted, but you have to get it in writing because those words sound alike. Their shows possession (their car is on fire), there is a direction (there is the burning car), and they're is short for "they are" (they're driving into the lake).
tortuous/ torturous
Don’t torture yourself trying to remember the difference between tortuous and torturous. Tortuous describes something like the long and winding road. But torturous is what a room full of masochists might say: “Torture us!” It describes something painful, like a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
turbid/ turgid
Turbid can refer to something thick with suspended matter, while turgid means swollen or bombastic.
UUUUUU
unconscionable/ unconscious
These two words look and sound similar. In fact, if you think too hard about them together, you might find your tongue tripping over them.
unexceptional/ unexceptionable
Clearly, past writers have confused the meanings of unexceptional and unexceptionable to an extent that meanings are expanding.
VVVVV
venal/ venial
Catholics everywhere are confused: do they commit venal sins or venial sins? And what is a venal/venial sin anyway?
veracious/ voracious
Voracious describes someone super hungry, like a zombie or a wolf. A voracious appetite makes you want to eat a whole cake. Veracious (with an "e") means truthful, as in a veracious first president who cannot tell a lie.
WWWWW
wave/ waive
To wave is to move to and fro, like when you wave your hand. Hello there! To waive, with a sneaky "i," is to give up your right to do something.
weather/ whether/ wether
The weather outside is partly cloudy whether you like it that way or not. A wether, on the other hand, is a castrated sheep. You read that right.
who/ whom
To Whom It May Concern: who is a subject and whom is an object. Who acts and whom receives. Say what? Who is like "he" or "she" and whom is like "him" or "her." Who is collecting money for homeless kittens? He is! Then to whom does the money go? Send the money to him.
who's/ whose
Knock knock. Who's there? It's an apostrophe telling you that who's is short for "who is." Whose silly idea was it to make these words sound alike? Who knows? But whose shows possession and who's is a contraction.
YYYYYY
your/ you're
You're is short for "you are" and your shows ownership. If you're getting them mixed up, your secret is safe with us. Better yet, here's help! It's your secret.
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A-E Vocabulary
F-L Vocabulary
M-Q Vocabulary
R-Z Vocabulary
Poetry Terms
QQQQQ
quote/ quotation
If you quote someone, do you create a quote or a quotation? To quote is to transcribe what someone said or wrote, crediting that person.
RRRRRR
rebut/ refute
To rebut is to try to prove something isn’t true, but to refute is to actually prove it isn’t. Getting them mixed up won’t get you kicked out of the debate club, but it’s worth knowing the difference.
regrettably/ regretfully
Regrettably is used when something’s a bummer, but it’s not necessarily your fault. Regretfully is when you’re full of regret, like if you decided to stay home and your friends saw your crush at the dance.
reluctant/ reticent
Reluctant means resisting or unwilling, while reticent means quiet, restrained, or unwilling to communicate. Is it a distinction worth preserving?
respectfully/ respectively
If you kiss the mob boss’s ring, do it respectfully, or full of respect and admiration. But respectively means “in the order given,” so if you have to kiss up to the rest of the mob, make sure to shake hands and high five Jimmy Rags and Tommy Two Face, respectively because Jimmy prefers a handshake, but Tommy loves a good high five.
SSSSSSS
sac/ sack
Both are containers, but a sac is for plants and animals, and a sack is for a sandwich. So spiders put their eggs in a sac, and people put their groceries in a sack.
scrimp/ skimp
These words are two sides of the same coin: ways to get more or to make something go further. One side is about saving; the other is about spending less.
sensual/ sensuous
The words sensual and sensuous are often used interchangeably, but careful writers would do well to think before using one or the other.
simple/ simplistic
Simple isn't the same as simplistic. Being simplistic means trying to explain something complicated as being simpler than it is; that is, oversimplifying.
stationary/ stationery
Make sure you’re stationary, or still, while you jot down a love letter on your fancy stationery, so the writing isn’t all squiggly.
statue/ statute
Look under the pigeons and you might find a bronze statue in a park, but there’s probably a statute, or law, about how big it can be.
TTTTTTT
than/ then
Than compares things, but then is all about time. They sound similar and were even spelled the same until the 1700s. Not anymore! Vive la difference!
that/ which
The words that and which point to something — which one? That one! Before a clause or phrase, a that clause goes with the flow, but a which clause starts with a pause. American English makes a big deal out of the distinction but British English doesn't, which may be why it's so dang confusing.
their/ there/ they're
How do you comfort grammar snobs? Pat them on the back and say, their, there. You see, they're easily comforted, but you have to get it in writing because those words sound alike. Their shows possession (their car is on fire), there is a direction (there is the burning car), and they're is short for "they are" (they're driving into the lake).
tortuous/ torturous
Don’t torture yourself trying to remember the difference between tortuous and torturous. Tortuous describes something like the long and winding road. But torturous is what a room full of masochists might say: “Torture us!” It describes something painful, like a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
turbid/ turgid
Turbid can refer to something thick with suspended matter, while turgid means swollen or bombastic.
UUUUUU
unconscionable/ unconscious
These two words look and sound similar. In fact, if you think too hard about them together, you might find your tongue tripping over them.
unexceptional/ unexceptionable
Clearly, past writers have confused the meanings of unexceptional and unexceptionable to an extent that meanings are expanding.
VVVVV
venal/ venial
Catholics everywhere are confused: do they commit venal sins or venial sins? And what is a venal/venial sin anyway?
veracious/ voracious
Voracious describes someone super hungry, like a zombie or a wolf. A voracious appetite makes you want to eat a whole cake. Veracious (with an "e") means truthful, as in a veracious first president who cannot tell a lie.
WWWWW
wave/ waive
To wave is to move to and fro, like when you wave your hand. Hello there! To waive, with a sneaky "i," is to give up your right to do something.
weather/ whether/ wether
The weather outside is partly cloudy whether you like it that way or not. A wether, on the other hand, is a castrated sheep. You read that right.
who/ whom
To Whom It May Concern: who is a subject and whom is an object. Who acts and whom receives. Say what? Who is like "he" or "she" and whom is like "him" or "her." Who is collecting money for homeless kittens? He is! Then to whom does the money go? Send the money to him.
who's/ whose
Knock knock. Who's there? It's an apostrophe telling you that who's is short for "who is." Whose silly idea was it to make these words sound alike? Who knows? But whose shows possession and who's is a contraction.
YYYYYY
your/ you're
You're is short for "you are" and your shows ownership. If you're getting them mixed up, your secret is safe with us. Better yet, here's help! It's your secret.
.......................................................................
You may also like 😊😊😊😊
Newspaper Vocabulary
Words of '-ism'
Barron's GRE
Fantastic 25 (Words)
A-E Vocabulary
F-L Vocabulary
M-Q Vocabulary
R-Z Vocabulary
Poetry Terms
Thank you for sharing.
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