Verbs

“Affect” vs. “Effect”

Common English Blunders, Mispronunciations, Nouns, Verbs, Versus

I often see and hear mistakes with these two words.

Problem:
These words are spelled similarly but have different meanings.

Explanation:
The word “affect” is spelled A-F-F-E-C-T.

  • As a verb, the word “affect” means to act on or to produce a change in, as in “You can affect her attitude toward education.”
  • As a noun, the word “affect” means emotion or feeling, as in “The psychiatrist said that the patient’s affect could be a symptom of schizophrenia.”

The word “effect” is spelled E-F-F-E-C-T.

  • As a verb, the word “effect” means to bring about or make happen, as in “Many people believe that he cannot effect the change that he is promoting.”
  • As a noun, the word “effect” means consequence or result, as in “The effects of Hurricane Ike could be seen throughout Houston and Galveston.”

It is a common English blunder — at least in American English — to use one of these verbs as a substitute for the other one. It is also a common English blunder to use one of these nouns as a substitute for the other one.

I believe that mistaken interchanging of these two words is due to mispronunciations, which drive misspellings.

Solution:
Memorize the verb and noun definitions of these two words.

“Assure” vs. “Ensure” vs. “Insure”

Common English Blunders, Verbs, Versus

I often hear mistakes with these three verbs.

Problem:
These verbs are spelled similarly but have different meanings.

Explanation:
The verb “assure” — spelled A-S-S-U-R-E — means to state with confidence to, as in “I assure you that the ambulance will arrive within seven minutes.”

The verb “ensure” — spelled E-N-S-U-R-E — means to guarantee or secure, as in “This badge will ensure your entrance to the stadium.”

The verb “insure” — spelled I-N-S-U-R-E — means to guarantee against harm or loss, as in “The company insures 500,000 customers.”

It is a common English blunder — at least in American English — to use one of these verbs as a substitute for another of these verbs.

Solution:
Memorize the definitions of the three verbs.

“Lie” vs. “Lie” vs. “Lay”

Common English Blunders, Verbs, Versus

I often hear mistakes with these three verbs.

Problem:
These verbs have basic forms that intersect one another.

Explanation:
The three verbs of interest in this blog post are “lie”, as in to make a false statement, “lie”, as in to recline, and “lay”, as in to put in a horizontal position.

It is a common English blunder — at least in American English — to use a basic form for one of these verbs as if it were a basic form for another of these verbs.

The false-statement-related verb “lie” has these basic forms:

  • Lie — present simple, as in “When you lie, you hurt others.”
  • Lied — preterite, as in “He lied about his income.”
  • Lied — past participle, as in “She has lied to the jury.”
  • Lying — present continuous, as in “I am not lying.”

The reclining-related verb “lie” has these basic forms:

  • Lie — present simple, as in “You lie in bed when watching TV?”
  • Lay — preterite, as in “He lay there until the ambulance arrived.”
  • Lain — past participle, as in “She has lain in the hospital for five days.”
  • Lying — present continuous, as in “I am not lying on that bed.”

The verb “lay” has these basic forms:

  • Lay — present simple, as in “You lay your keys on the counter whenever entering your home?”
  • Laid — preterite, as in “He laid the napkin on the table.”
  • Laid — past participle, as in “She has laid it here every day.”
  • Laying — present continuous, as in “I am not laying that on the bed!”

Solution:
Memorize the basic forms for each verb.