Homophones: Commonly Confused Words

What Is a Homophone?

According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, The term homophone generally refers to words that have:

Identical pronunciations but different spellings and meanings, such as to, too, and two.
Identical pronunciations and spellings but different meanings, such as quail (the bird) and quail (to cringe).

Do these trip you up? We all slip occasionally because our fingers are trying to keep up with the audio and our brains are running on empty. And, sometimes, certain words just confuse us, and no matter what we do, we can't seem to remember which one to use. We hope this document will help you remember and differentiate between a few of the more commonly confused words.

Common Examples

Do you know the difference between all together and altogether, or aloud and allowed, or accept and except? What about every day and everyday, or whose and who's? We've compiled the most common homophones you'll encounter in transcription with clear examples and tips for remembering which is which.

Accept / Except

Accept (verb) is to consent; except (preposition) means not including, other than.

I'd accept a billion dollars, except no one's made the offer.

Affect / Effect

Affect (verb) is to have an effect, make a difference; effect (noun) is the change as a result of an action.

I wasn't affected by the side effect.

Here's a mnemonic to help you remember: think of Edgar Allan Poe's poem The Raven.

R = Remember
A = Affect is a
V = Verb;
E = Effect is a
N = Noun

Advice / Advise

Advise (verb) is to give counsel; advice (noun) is the recommendation offered as counsel.

I'd advise you, but I don't think you need the advice.

All together / Altogether

All together is a phrase meaning in a group. Altogether is an adverb meaning completely, entirely.

Find the muddy towels, gather them all together (in a group), and wash them in a single load.
The daily practices were a bit much, but I didn't necessarily want to give them up altogether (completely).

A while / Awhile

A while (noun) is a two-word phrase and means a period of time. Awhile (adverb) means for a time. One trick for this one is that awhile has the implied meaning of for embedded into it. If you can substitute a while/awhile with for a while, then use awhile. If not, use the two-word version.

She went away for a while, but now she's back. ("She went away for for a while" doesn't work, so use two words.)
I'm going to sit and rest awhile. ("I'm going to sit and rest for a while" - this works, so use one word: awhile.

Cite / Sight / Site

Cite means to quote as evidence for or justification of an argument or statement.

Sight is the power or ability to see or a thing that one sees or can be seen.

Site means an area of ground on which a town, building, or monument is constructed (a place) or a website.

Here, let me cite some examples:

The new memorial site is absolutely stunning. What a sight to see.

Complement / Compliment

Complement means something which completes or enhances another thing.

This pearl necklace complements her dress.

Compliment means to give praise. Also, if an item is free of charge, it's complimentary.

I compliment him on his writing.
They served complimentary beverages with the meal.

Email / E-mail

TM prefers the use of email.

Everyday / Every day

Everyday is an adjective meaning commonplace, ordinary or normal. Every day means something which happens on a daily basis.

This was an everyday occurrence.
I go to the gym every day.

It's / Its

It's is a contraction of it is; its denotes possession.

It's (it is) hard to remember.
The unicorn loves its rainbow.

Let's / Lets

Let's is a contraction of let us. Lets means to allow.

Let's (Let us) go to the store.
Our mom lets us go by ourselves.

Over time / Overtime

Over time means something that happens gradually, progressively, with time. Overtime is the amount of time someone works above and beyond their normal working hours or the pay they receive for this time.

Over time, she grew to resent the amount of overtime that was required at her job.

Queue / Cue

A cue is something said or done to serve as a prompt or signal; queue is a line or sequence of items.

The non-verbal cues predators give can be subtle, like an ear twitch, or less so, such as a snarl.
As more people arrived, the queue continued to grow.

Segue / Segway

A segue is a transition. A Segway is a two-wheeled scooter (and a proper noun).

They segued from a discussion of bicycles into one of Segways.

Than / Then

Than (preposition or conjunction) introduces the second element of a comparison. Then (adverb) means at that time.

If there's more than one person, then there's at least two.

There / Their / They're

There (adverb) meaning that place or position. Their denotes possession. They're is a contraction of they are or they were.

They're forever getting their words mixed up there.

To / Too / Two

To (preposition); Too (adverb) to a higher degree than expected, excessive, or additionally; Two (number).

Don't forget to put two Os in too. It's almost too many.

You're / Your

You're is a contraction of you are or you were. Your is possessive.

You're not kidding about your silliness.

Versus / Verses

Versus means against, opposed to, in contrast to. Verses are part of a song or poem.

She wrote verses about man versus beast.

Who's / Whose

Who's is a contraction of who is or who has. Whose is possessive.

He is the teacher who's (who has) been here the longest.
Whose locker is that one in the corner?