For a while, I’ve been seeing a lot of misused words in some stories I’ve read that bother the f out of me. Since it seems that few people want to take a look at Ezn’s writing guide (and I’ll admit, I’m guilty of messing up one or two things he outlines in that guide, but not most of these), I’d like to list the most common word sets that I see many writers using incorrectly, as well as one or two relevant ones that people may find helpful (in no official order). Reader contributions have also been added.

There are more, obviously, but these are the ones I see the most. There will be a few others listed at the bottom without full explanations. If you’d like me to add some, feel free to respond with them.

Please keep in mind that I'm an American from the suburbs of New York. I’m using my own wording and phonetics in most of these initial explanations (added ones may not include phonetics), so they aren’t official, and may be different from how others say them (though they do work), but if what I write as explanations are nearly identical to other sites you see out there, it’s a coincidence (though I may be using similar ideas with pieces that have been added later). There may be some other usages that I don’t include; I’m using the most common ones, and (what I hope are) the easiest explanations. If there are others that I’m missing that you’d like to contribute, don’t hesitate to comment.

You’ll also notice that if I use one of these words in another’s description after I’ve given an explanation for them, they’ll be in caps (most of the time) to drive the point home (unless I’m in the middle of that set).

Set 1: Lead, Led, Lead

I’m starting with this because it’s the one that bothers me the most. I get the feeling that people think the present and past forms of the word ‘lead’ work like the word ‘read.’ They don’t.

—Lead (LEEd) (verb)
- Escort, be in front of a group; take charge
> “We need you to lead us!” (ambiguous sentence )
—Led (LEHd)
- Past Tense of Lead (LEEd)
> “He led us through the forest so we wouldn’t get lost.”
—Lead (LEHd) (noun)
- An element, or a metal
> “The alchemist is trying to turn lead into gold? AGAIN?”

Set 2: There, Their, They’re [all pronunciations basically the same: (thAIR)]

This is the set you hear about people getting yelled at for, and for good reason. The meanings are nothing alike, and they are in no way interchangeable.

—There
- A place
> “My house is over there.”
- Acknowledging that something exists
> “There is a great restaurant down the street.”
- *Bonus* Used to console someone (not used frequently, but still used)
> “There, there, it’ll be alright.”
—Their
- Shows possession
> “That’s their ball, give it back.”
—They’re
- Contraction for “they are”
> “They’re leaving in ten minutes.”

Set 3: Its, It’s [same pronunciations: (IHts)]

I can understand why these get confused, since the ‘apostrophe+s = possession’ idea is taught pretty early in our lives, but pronouns like 'it' are the exception to that rule.

—Its
- Shows possession for something that either does not have a gender, or the gender is not being acknowledged
> “That dragon will kill you if you touch its gold!”
—It’s
- Contraction for “it is”
> “It’s only a matter of time…”

In case you need it, the list of other pronoun exceptions regarding the 'apostrophe+s = possession' rule include: mine, yours, hers, his, ours, and theirs. (thanks, 5834494)

Set 4: Your, You’re

I see these mixed up pretty frequently. The pronunciations can differ, and are essentially interchangeable as far as I’m aware (though I usually hear [yURR] as opposed to [yOAR], speaking as an American), but the words are not interchangeable!

—Your
- Possessive of “you”
> “Your room is filthy! Clean it up!”
—You’re
- Contraction for “you are”
> “There is no way you’re going out dressed like that!”

[Who hasn’t heard those from THEIR mother? ]

Set 5: To, Too, Two

Only the second two are really a problem, and I don’t see this mistake too much, but enough that I felt the need to include it. All of them sound the same most of the time (tOO), but I also hear the first one just kind of getting the vowel chopped off pretty frequently.

—To
- Can be used as a preposition or an adverb, and there are more than twenty different grammatical uses, so I’ll save you (and me) some time and say that if it doesn’t work as one of the other two, use to.
—Too
- An excess of something
> “YOU’RE driving way too fast!”
- Synonym for “also”
> “They have a dog! Why can’t we have a dog, too?”
*Important Note* When using “too” this way, it is ALWAYS preceded by a comma (and after it if IT’S in the middle of a sentence)! Sources like Grammar Girl (which I’m not denouncing—that site is great) will tell you that you really only need the comma when YOU’RE emphasizing a pause—which, given the way many people speak, is probably true—but if you really want to be grammatically correct in YOUR writing, make sure to use the comma(s)! It may look a bit strange, but that’s the proper way to go about it. As an editor, the only time I give leeway for that rule is when what I call “speed-speak” is being used, where the dialogue intentionally leaves out any and all punctuation until ITS end to emphasize the speed of the speech. Think Pinkie Pie: “Oh yeah I know everypony’s birthday and THEIR half-birthdays too because there’s always a reason to celebrate and I need to make sure I have enough supplies when IT’S time to throw a party and when is it not time to throw a party?”
—Two
- The number 2
> “I’d like two scoops of ice cream, please.”

Set 6: Then, Than

I see this mix-up a lot, and after I learned the difference, seeing the wrong one has always bugged the heck out of me. While most of the time I hear both said the same way—(thEHn)—‘than’ also has an alternate pronunciation which I don’t think I can type without the latin symbol, since I have a feeling (AH) is going to sound like Applejack’s drawl, and that’s not what ‘than’ sounds like.

—Then
- Denotes a sequence of events
> “I just had TO drop my bags at home, then I came straight here!”
- Marks a point in time (Trick: if “at the time” works in ITS place, IT’S correct; “back then” would also be suitable)
> “I was unemployed then. I had been job searching for months.”
- Used as a closing remark
> “I’ll see you later, then.”
*Note* This is another instance where the word in question should be preceded by a comma.
—Than
- Used to make comparisons
> “How the heck did I get a higher grade than you on that test?”
- Used when referring to choices
> “I’d rather go jetskiing than wind sailing.”
*Note* There’s a reason the distinction between ‘then’ and ‘than’ is important. This example sentence would be grammatically correct with either one, but the meanings are very different. The use of ‘thAn’ means the speaker wants TO do one thing instead of the other. If we had used ‘thEn,’ the speaker would have wanted TO do BOTH: first jetskiing, then wind sailing. The ‘e’ denotes time. If it helps, remember that the ‘e’ in time is used with then.

Set 7: Affect, Effect

If I only mentioned the most common uses of each of these words, this would be a fairly easy explanation, but bringing up the others means that this is probably one of the most complex pairs on this list. Both of these words can serve as a verb and a noun, but each word's opposite use is pretty rarely used. (thanks, 5835471, for prompting me to add the other forms, and for the examples, but I also want to note that SirNotAppearingInThisFic and AShadowOfCygnus brought this up, too)

—Affect
- Have an impact on something (verb—more common)
> “I don’t want shoulder surgery to affect my throwing!”
- An attitude or emotion (noun—rare)
> "When he heard the news, his affect quickly dropped, and he became much more upset."
—Effect
- A result of something (noun—more common)
> “Headaches are a side effect of the medication.”
- To bring about (verb—rare)
> "If you wish to effect change, you must be willing to escape your comfort zone."

Set 8: Accept, Except

I don’t see this mistake THAT frequently, but it’s a jarring enough error that it can completely break my immersion in a story when I do, and you never want that TO happen TO YOUR readers. These pronunciations have a similar issue with ‘THAN’ and ‘THEN.’ The first syllable of ‘accept’ generally uses the same pronunciation as ‘except’ (EHk-sept), but also can use the same sound as THAN’s alternate pronunciation.

—Accept
- To receive something, i.e. a gift
> “Please accept this token of our thanks.”
- To recognize something is occurring
> “You have to accept the fact that you have new responsibilities now.”
—Except
- Refers to something outside a norm or trend
> “Why does everyone have a car except me?"

Set 9: Lets, Let’s [Same pronunciations: (LEHts)]

Honestly, I think this is just a matter of either laziness, or people not realizing one is a contraction. This one will be quick.

—Lets
- Allows
> “He always lets his dog go out into the backyard around three.”
—Let’s
- Contraction of “let us,” though very few people use the contraction in full form when useable, and the contraction is never used when the full form should be*
> “Let’s go to the park!”
*What I mean by this is that you rarely hear people say, “Let us go to the park!” (though you might from someone with ‘elegance’) or “We want to go outside, but Mom won’t let’s!”

Set 10: Rain, Rein, Reign [All similar pronunciations: (rAYn)]

Nobody ever has an issue with the first, but I see the second and third mixed up. I only included ‘rain’ because it also sounds alike.

—Rain
- Liquid precipitation
> “Why does it always rain whenever I step outside?”
—Rein
- The object used TO guide a horse (usually in a pair—reins)
> “Now grab ahold of the reins and guide the horse around the track.”
- Keep in control or restrain
> “Rein YOUR anger in, YOU’RE more civil than this!”
—Reign
- The ruling time of a person of power, i.e. a king
> “Louis XIV had a successful reign while he was on the throne.”

Set 11 (thank you, 5834319 for the more detailed version in your comment below): Peek, Peak, Pique (pEEk)

I see the wrong word used in this set quite frequently. Here's the lowdown.

—Peek
- Get a quick glance
> "I had TO peek around the corner so he wouldn't see me."
—Peak
- The top of something, i.e. a mountain, or someone's potential
> "It took us hours TO reach the mountain's peak!"
—Pique
- TO heighten an emotion, usually curiosity
> "The movie trailer piqued my curiosity."

Set 12 (thanks, 5834666): Allot, A lot, Alot

I personally haven't seen problems between 'allot' and 'a lot' myself in the past, but 'a lot' and 'alot' are a big problem.

—Allot
- Set aside something or time for
> "We made sure TO allot some time TO wash up and change our clothes before we went TO the beach. That way we knew when we would need TO leave so we wouldn't be late for dinner."
—A lot
- A large number or amount of
> "Now that's a lot of food! Are you feeding an army?"
—Alot
- Simple. THIS IS NOT A WORD OR PHRASE! It is frequently used instead of 'a lot,' and it is completely and utterly incorrect. That phrase is always TWO words.

Set 13 (thanks, 5834827): Hoard, Horde, Hoard

I see these confused quite A LOT, and I've even made this mistake myself in the past. Given that many of us probably write about dragons or large groups, this is a good one TO know.

—Hoard (verb)
- To gather a massive amount of something
> "Of course he had TO go and hoard all of the chocolate. They call him 'Chocolate Boy' for a reason."
—Horde
- A large gathering of people, usually used in a negative connotation
> "There was a horde of people at the mall for the Black Friday sale! Someone even got trampled!"
—Hoard (noun)
- A collection of something valuable to be saved for later
> "You'll regret it if you go near that dragon's hoard."

Set 14 (thanks, 5835031—this is practically word for word): Phase, Faze

This is a mistake I've actually made myself in the past, but luckily my editor caught it. It isn't overly frequent, but it's found enough that it should be noted.

—Phase
- A particular appearance or state in a regularly recurring cycle of changes, a distinguishable part in a course, development, or cycle (there are others, but these are the ones that matter here)
> "My husband's mid-life crisis was a terrible phase."
—Faze
- To disturb the composure of
> "After having it drawn myself for so long, the sight of blood doesn't faze me anymore."

Set 15 (thanks, 5835054—I actually thought of another one): Raise, Raze, Rays

This is a very important distinction, as depending on the context, the first TWO words could be polar opposites. This will be the first time I will have used all MLP-related sentence examples for the words.

—Raise
- Lift upward
> "Princess Celestia needs TO raise the sun, or the citizens will think Nightmare Moon is back again!"
- build or construct
> "C'mon, everypony! We can raise this barn in no time flat!"
—Raze
- Completely destroy
> "If we don't do something soon, Tirek will raze all of Equestria!"
—Rays
- Emitted light or energy
> "Sister, couldst thou shift thy sun's rays so they are not shining directly into Our eyes?" (sorry, wanted TO get in some Luna )

Other word confusion to keep your eyes out for:

—Lie and Lay, as well as THEIR various forms in different tenses

This one is actually pretty complex, so I don’t blame people if they mess this one up, because even I do sometimes.

—Lie
- Tell a fib (not really part of this, but just in case)
> “I cannot tell a lie.”
- TO rest
> “I have TO lie down.”
—Lay
- Put down
> “I need TO lay the baby down.”

Here’s the difference: ‘lay’ needs a direct object, meaning you have TO have something you are putting down, like a book, or in my example, a baby. You don’t lay yourself down, despite what many people think. The different tenses make things even more confusing. Ignoring the “fib” definition, whose past tense and past participle (meaning it is preceded by ‘have’ or ‘had’) are both lied, here’s the breakdown:

—Lie (present tense)
- Past tense = lay
- Past participle = lain
—Lay (present tense)
- Past tense = laid
- Past participle = also laid

It’s obnoxious, I know—and I’m pretty sure 90–95% of people use these words incorrectly. The problem is, we’ve gotten so used TO using the wrong words, nobody is really able TO tell anymore. Now that you know, keep an eye out and use the right one!

—A while and Awhile

I’ve seen many great authors mix up these TWO uses for 'a period of time.' There are some great tricks TO help determine when TO use which, though.

—A while
- If the ‘while’ can be replaced with a definite unit of time, like a minute, hour, day, week, etc., use TWO separate words.
> "It took me a while to put this bench together."
—Awhile
- If the time period doesn't have a known ending, and the TWO words can be replaced with ‘for a while,’ use one word.
> " Come on in and stay awhile!"
- Speaking of which, ‘for a while’ is ALWAYS three separate words, never ‘for awhile.’

—Beside and Besides (thanks 5834549)

I personally don't see this TOO often, but obviously others have since IT'S been brought TO my attention. There is definitely a reasoning behind the lack of an s.

—Beside
- Next TO, alongside
> "Would you come sit beside me?"
—Besides
- Serves as a placeholder for 'furthermore,' 'also,' or 'in addition'
> "I don't want TO go out. Besides, it's freezing!"
- Serves as a synonym for 'other than'
> "Do you ever eat anything besides meat?"
- Used in place of 'apart from'
> Besides Frank, who ordered chicken wings?"

*Yes, the second TWO are similar, but not quite the same*

—Of vs. Have (thank you 5834314)

This happens a lot with phrases like 'could of' and 'should of.' The 'of's should be 'have's. I'm pretty sure this has come about because of the contractions (would've, could've, should've) making the contracted 'have' sound like 'of.'

So remember:

- Would have
- Could have
- Should have

None and Non (again, thanks, Fervidor)

Because I've grown up knowing the difference, this is a bit difficult for me to go into details, so I'll give what is hopefully an easy trick to tell when to use which.

—None
- Nothing; no amount of
> "I'm taking none of the same classes you are."
—Non
- Essentially equivalent to "not a [X]" or "not [X]," but if anyone has another explanation, please let me know
> "We use Skype all the time, so distance is a non-issue in our friendship."
*Note* In this example, the 'a' preceding 'non' would be taken out if you decided to say 'not an issue' instead.

All suggestions for additional tips are welcome if anyone has any other word sets they’d like me TO add or if they have any TO contribute. Please reply TO the original post so I get YOUR notification!

I hope this was helpful. I know Ezn’s writing guide is long, so I wouldn’t blame people for not wanting TO go through the whole thing, even though it is a good idea. Hopefully this quicker guide has given some of you that weren’t sure about these the help you needed!

PS: Apologies for all the capitalized TO’s up there, but I did say it had over twenty different uses!

Nice mate, nice.

"Could of" and "should of" could be up there, not that I see those painful things terribly often.

"Hopefully" is an adverb.

This list is a good illustration of why I always have a dictionary tab open, even if I do remember nearly all of the ones listed. (There are many other words, you see.) If you're in the know, "affect" can be used as a noun and "effect" can be used as a verb, just to keep it confusing.

5834247

Another pair I've seen misused too much is peaked and piqued.

Pique - /pēk/

noun
1.
a feeling of irritation or resentment resulting from a slight, especially to one's pride.
"he left in a fit of pique"
synonyms: irritation, annoyance, resentment, anger, displeasure, indignation, petulance, ill humor, vexation, exasperation, disgruntlement, discontent; More
offense, umbrage
"a fit of pique"

verb: 3rd person present: piques; past tense: piqued; past participle: piqued; gerund or present participle: piquing
1.
stimulate (interest or curiosity).
"you have piqued my curiosity about the man"
synonyms: stimulate, arouse, rouse, provoke, whet, awaken, excite, kindle, stir, galvanize
"his curiosity was piqued"
2.
feel irritated or resentful.
"she was piqued by his curtness"
synonyms: irritate, annoy, bother, vex, displease, upset, offend, affront, anger, exasperate, infuriate, gall, irk, nettle; informalpeeve, aggravate, miff, rile, bug, needle, get someone's back up, get someone's goat, tick off, tee off
"she was piqued by his neglect"
3.
archaic
pride oneself.

Peaked

/pēkt/
adjective: peaked
having a peak.
"a peaked cap"

or

/ˈpēkəd/
adjective: peaked
(of a person) gaunt and pale from illness or fatigue.
"you do look a little peaked"
synonyms: pale, pasty, wan, drained, washed out, drawn, pallid, anemic, ashen, gray, pinched, sickly, sallow, ill, unwell, poorly, indisposed, run down, off; informalunder the weather, rough, lousy
"Marjorie, my dear, you look so peaked"

5834314 Oh no, I see those 'of's, too. I should add those.

5834319 This is a good one. I'll add it (a shortened version, at least), and there's another one you forgot: peek.

5834343

Good point... I have seen the occasional "Take a peak at something" cringeworthiness...

5834247
A great list, and I'm guilty of a few of these I have a correction, though. On its vs. it's you said that "this is the one exception" to the possession equals 's thing. It's not. We also don't say her's, your's, their's, or hi's (his'? I dunno how to make this one incorrect lol). The reason is that these are all pronouns, just like 'it'. Pronouns don't get the apostrophe a treatment when being turned into possessives.

I wanted to explain the rule because I find it much easier to learn rules than to try and memorize exceptions. Otherwise great list, and thank you for compiling it

5834494 Good catch! That's a fairly simple fix. Thanks!

And you're welcome! I hope the list helped!

5834280 5834247
Just realized while pre-reading a fic. "Besides" and "beside" are often misused.

5834549 Ah, another good one. Give me a few minutes and I'll have that up.

5834247

I used to have serious trouble with "a lot", "alot" and "allot" until I managed to figure it out.

My current nemesis is "none" vs "non." I'm getting better at it, but I still accidentally write non when I meant none.

If you ask me, this barbarian language of yours has far too many homophones.

As someone who learned English from books and written internet discussions, homophones have never really bothered me -- on the other hand I can't pronounce half of your words correctly . The first time I managed to inadvertently write "your" for "you're" I stood up a and did a little victory dance in celebration of approaching fluency. And I still can't bring myself to pronounce "they're" in a way that sounds remotely like "their".

5834666
Is "alot" even a word?

5834669

And I still can't bring myself to pronounce "they're" in a way that sounds remotely like "their".

They aren't homophones in *my* dialect, I don't think.

Is "alot" even a word?

Definitely not.

Reign/rein is something that even good, experienced writers get wrong all the time on this site. It seems to trip everyone up. You have to remember, if it's about rulership, then it probably is 'reign'. Unless we're talking about giving someone 'free rein', which is about control, but metaphorical control - you're ceding your figurative 'reins' to the mount, and letting them do what they want. There is no such thing as 'free reign'.

And there is no such thing as a 'rein of terror'. Unless you're talking about Sombra and you want to be funny. Which you shouldn't, because horse-puns are awful, and y'all should be ashamed of yourselves.

5834690

You have to remember, if it's about rulership, then it probably is 'reign'. Unless we're talking about giving someone 'free rein'

Or about reining them in.

5834247
What about Hoard and Horde?
I've seen folks use the wrong one of those.

My favorite group in WOW is the hoard.
or
The dragon sat on it's horde and dared others to steal from it.

5834669

Is "alot" even a word?

No. It's what happens when you feel reasonably sure that "a lot" only has one L in it, but still mistakenly believe it to be one word because "allot" is a thing.

This is a particularly easy mistake to make when you are not a native English speaker and your first language does have a single word equivalent for "a lot."

5834666 I know. American English is obnoxious. I'm going to add both of your examples, though. Thanks!

5834669 5834690 I've heard differences between "their/there" and "they're" [(thAY-URR), right?), but my dialect is just kind of lazy.

5834827 A good addition, but did you notice that you used the wrong "its" in your example sentence? I even used a dragon in MY example for it!

5834916
My bad.

I feel a bit wary about pointing out those mistakes, because as a Brit, I tend to see a few extra misused words that Americans don't see:

Tire vs tyre
Check vs cheque
Curb vs kerb

I understand it that these aren't misused words in American English, but in British English you refer to a wheel's tyre, a bank cheque, or parking next to the kerb.

5834938 If you don't mind, I'd rather not include these. Those are more of a 'British English vs. American English spelling' issue than a homophone issue in my eyes. For American English:

—Tire is the correct spelling for both 'become fatigued' and 'a wheel's outer lining'
—Check is correct for both 'look at' and 'a bank payment form'
—Curb is correct for both 'the edge of a sidewalk' and 'control your dog'

As an American, I'd rather not get into those details. I'm not trying to offend, I just want to stick to the more basic mistakes.

5834690

You have to remember, if it's about rulership, then it probably is 'reign'. Unless we're talking about giving someone 'free rein', which is about control, but metaphorical control - you're ceding your figurative 'reins' to the mount, and letting them do what they want. There is no such thing as 'free reign'.

And there is no such thing as a 'rein of terror'. Unless you're talking about Sombra and you want to be funny. Which you shouldn't, because horse-puns are awful, and y'all should be ashamed of yourselves.

Actually, I now kinda want to use a title like, say, "Reigning It In." Possibly for a story where Celestia has to step up and actually do some serious ruling for once.

Actually, I now kinda want to use a title like, say, "Reigning It In." Possibly for a story where Celestia has to step up and actually do some serious ruling for once.

Please do. I actually like the horse puns.

Another one I see infrequently, but recently encountered in a story I reviewed, is faze vs. phase.

Phase: a particular appearance or state in a regularly recurring cycle of changes, a distinguishable part in a course, development, or cycle (there are others, but these are the ones that matter here).

Faze: to disturb the composure of.

I see those switched from time to time.

There's another less frequently encountered homophone pair that I see misused nearly every single time I do encounter it; but I'm having trouble remember what it is now. Getting old and the memory is going.

5834955

Oh, I'm sorry. In my numerous rewrites of that post, I must have accidentally deleted the sentence that explained my point.

I'm aware that those are proper American English spellings. I just wanted to point out that there might be even more instances that either of us are unaware about.

However, after reading Batwingcandlewaxe's post, I suddenly remembered this one:

Raise vs raze.

To raise a barn is to construct one.
To raze a barn is to burn it to the ground.

In fact... that might be a good joke to play on. I don't have a single story or scene where I can make that joke, but I'm sure someone else can put it to good use.

5834314

If you're in the know, "affect" can be used as a noun and "effect" can be used as a verb, just to keep it confusing.

This. Rare that you'll see them used in those contexts 'round these parts, but still worth bearing in mind.

5835031 I actually almost made that mistake myself once. Good one to add. Thanks!

5835054 As I like to say, s'all good. You do make a good point about the other possibilities we may be unaware of. I'm certain there are.
Actually, raise and raze are a good pair, too. I'm putting those up also. Thanks!
And it looks like at least one person on deviantArt has already had some fun with that wordplay.

5835057 Agreed. I think I'm going to hold off on adding those contexts due to their rarity.
Edit: Nevermind. Added

5834938
5834955

"Nah Lois, they just spell funny in England. Canada too. It's probably something to do with the metric system."

5834247
Great list! Affect/effect is my favorite, but you didn't go far enough with it. Affect is a verb, except when it's a noun, and effect is a noun, except when it's a verb. ...Let me explain.

Affect as a verb is common: it means "to cause a change." "That song really affected me. It made me want to cry."
Affect as a noun is rare: it means "an attitude or emotion." "When he heard the news, his affect quickly dropped. He became much more upset." (N.B. I believe this is the same "affect" in "affectionate.")

Effect as a noun is common: it means "the result of affecting," roughly. "What are the side effects? Will it cause something bad?"
Effect as a verb is somewhat rare: it means "to bring about." "If you wish to effect change, you must be willing to escape your comfort zone."

So now you know.

5835471 Thank you!

I actually do know about the alternate uses of 'affect' and 'effect' (and you're not the first on this thread to mention them, either ). I was really trying to stick with the most basic aspects of each of the words that are used most commonly, with a few exceptions added in, but it sounds like enough people know about the other usages that I should add them in, too. I'll credit you and the other commenters when I put those up, and I'll likely use two of your example sentences, if you don't mind.

5835598
...Wait, really? Darn it, and I even read the whole thread to make sure I wasn't repeating it! Shows how well I was paying attention.

I have to admit I make the lead/led mistake subconsciously. Freaking homophones which are also the same word but in a different tense. D<

I'm getting better about it, though.

I still hate affect vs effect, though. I wonder if someday we're just going to ditch one or the other.

One I encountered recently is "pail" (a small bucket) vs. "pale" (light-coloured).