Versus

“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.

“meet” vs. “meet with” vs. “meet up with”

Pronouns, Verbs, Versus

I started to think about this comparison after hearing someone say “meet up with” a couple of days ago.

Problem:
Only two of these three are proper English.

Explanation:
I recently heard someone on the radio say “I was going to meet up with Chris in Galveston.”

This sentence contains an unnecessary preposition. The expression “meet up with” means exactly what “meet with” means but contains the unnecessary preposition “up” and therefore is not proper English.

In contrast, “meet with” is proper English but does not mean what “meet” means.

  • If I “meet John”, then he and I interact with one another for the first time.
  • If I “meet with John”, then he and I already know one another and are having another meeting together.

Solution:
Use “meet” for an initial, introductory meeting between two parties. Use “meet with” for subsequent meetings between two parties. Avoid “meet up with”.