English Words: Use them correctly!

English Words: Use them correctly!

TITLE

PARAS, Marvin Brian J.

NAME

Ms. Hiedee A. Miranda

TEACHER

November 5, 2013
SUBMISSION DAY

English Words: Use them correctly!

Abstract
Nowadays, many of us dont know the correct usage of some English words (e.g. how to use which & that, difference of good & well, etc). Geraldine Woods (2011) said that out of 10 people, only 5 know the difference of your & youre. Theres also a case where we thought that the meaning of the word that were using is correct but its not (e.g. ultimate, terrific, etc). Therefore, I came up with this idea for us to know the correct usage of the English words that we normally misuse. This study involves knowing how to use English words correctly. The goal is to avoid errors in using English words in our daily life. Errors occur when we dont know the meaning of a certain word and when to use it. Thats why it is very important for us to know and study these errors. The first part of the Discussion Page emphasizes the difference between two related words and some words that we commonly use but we dont know the real meaning. The last part includes the relevance of this study, the tips to be not confused in using those words correctly and the reason why we need to learn the correct usage of these words. The research may be useful for the daily life of a person especially those who are using English as their language.

English Words: Use them correctly!

Dont gobblefunk
~ Roald Dahl, The BFG

around with words.

English Words: Use them correctly!

Discussion Page
We study in school almost half of our lives. Since kindergarten, our teachers teach us how to count, write, read and even use correct grammar. Dr. Ron Marken (2012) said that school is not enough to learn everything. Theres still a lot more to learn. Theres something that you can learn from yourself without the help of anyone. One example is to find difference of two similar words. Normally, when two words sound and look the same, we tend to interchanged it and made a total mess. If you think you use that word correctly, you better check the dictionary first before you state a certain statement. This is one of the errors that we need to avoid. And, this is the reason why I, the researcher, list some two similar English words that we commonly misuse and swap. First on the list is affect and effect. We switch these two because they look the same. The only difference is that their first letter is different. If you look the dictionary for their meanings, affect is commonly used as a verb (e.g. This poem affected me so much that I cried.) while effect is commonly used as a noun (e.g. Temperature has an effect on reaction spontaneity.). We can use affect as noun which has a technical meanings in psychology, music, and aesthetic theory: an emotion or subjectively experienced feeling (e.g. We tried appeasing the rain gods, but to no affect.) and effect can be used as a verb which means to cause (something) to be (e.g. The dynamite effected the wall's collapse.). Second is acute and chronic. Temple Grandin (2004) said that acute and chronic usually interchanged because not all people know these words. Acute (illness) is defined as rapidly worsens and reaches a crisis (e.g. She was treated with epinephrine during an acute asthma attack.) while Chronic (illness) is long-lasting or lingering illness (e.g. It is not a terminal illness, but it does cause chronic pain.). Third is breath and breathe. Just like the first words on the list (affect and effect), they look the same. But if you found out the meaning

English Words: Use them correctly!

of it, breath is used as a noun which means the air that is inhaled or exhaled from the lungs (e.g. he would fight until his last breath.) while breathe is used as a verb which means the act of inhaling or exhaling (e.g. Is she breathing?). Fourth is cant and cant. If you look at these words, they actually dont have a difference (maybe the apostrophe is). Michael Lynn Liebler (2005) said that we commonly misuse a word because of the punctuations. If you search for their meanings, cant is the contraction of cannot (e.g. I can't understand the dialogue in this book.) and cant has a number of different meanings including a slope or slant (e.g. It is written in Cant.) or a kind of slang or jargon spoken by a particular group of people. Fifth is complementary and complimentary. These words actually sound and look the same. But, if you look for their meanings they have difference. Complementary (i.e. they complete each other) means things or people that go together well (e.g. Exercise, nutrition, and medical care are complementary factors in good health.) while Complimentary describes praise given to someone or something (e.g. Jane was complimentary about the new couch.). Sixth is desert and dessert. Maya Angelou (1991) said that these are the most common misuse words. At first look, you cant even identify whats their difference until you read it. But these two words have a totally different meaning. Desert can be an adjective, verb or noun. As an adjective, it means uninhabited and desolate (e.g. desert wastes). As a verb, it means abandon or leave (e.g. he deserted his wife and daughter and went back to Philippines.). As a noun, it means a dry, barren area of land (e.g. Sahara desert). On the other hand, Dessert means last course of the meal (e.g. Would you like to see the dessert menu?). Seventh is its and its. Just like the fourth words on the list (cant and cant), their difference is the punctuation (i.e. apostrophe). Its is the contraction which replace it is or it has (e.g. It's time to eat! (it is time to eat) while Its is the possessive determiner corresponding to it meaning

English Words: Use them correctly!

belonging to it (e.g. My cell phone has poor reception because its antenna is broken.) Eight is isle and aisle. If you pronounce these two words, they sound the same but if you look at their spelling, theyre different from one another. Isle means an island (e.g. He came from a small isle.) while aisle means a corridor through which one may pass from one place to another (e.g. The coffee is down the third aisle on the left.). Ninth is lay and lie. Even though they do not look and sound the same, it is still confusing because they are synonymous. Their meanings are similar but if you decipher it, youll know their difference. Lay is a transitive verb meaning to place something (e.g. I lay my husband's work clothes out for him every morning.) while Lie is an intransitive verb meaning to recline (e.g. You should not lie down right after eating a large meal.) Nancy Schiesari (2002) said that the distinction between these related verbs is further blurred by the fact that the past tense of lie is lay. On the other hand, Lie can also mean to not tell the truth (e.g. She lied to me.). But in that case, the past tense is lied. Tenth is lose and loose. Just like the sixth words on the list (desert and dessert), you cant identify their difference until you read it.