# Words one can get confused **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 18, 2022, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772 "2022-09-18T20:10:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/61 "2022-09-19T12:18:25Z")
lighting, lightening, lightning ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/62 "2022-09-19T13:00:09Z")
One I frequently see on social media: Whoops instead of oops ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/63 "2022-09-19T13:24:51Z")
Two words I get confused in reading: uniformed and uninformed. I’ve seen both used in front of “police” and I have to double-check. ---
**Author:** ![Bonum\_Legatum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bonum_legatum/32/6183_2.png) [@Bonum\_Legatum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bonum_Legatum)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/64 "2022-09-19T13:32:05Z")
Some of these mistakes are likely misspellings rather than misunderstandings. Now for my contribution: Insure: To purchase insurance for. Assure: To remove someone’s doubts about something. Ensure: To take steps so that (something) will certainly happen. ARGH: One of the on line dictionaries uses the second third definition for ASSURE. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/65 "2022-09-19T14:07:50Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > People sometimes misspell “reckless” by putting a w on the front (i.e. “wreckless”) Becomes ironically hilarious when someone talks about “wreckless driving” which of course would (nearly) equate to someone driving safely and defensively, i.e. unlikely to get in a wreck in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/66 "2022-09-19T14:24:36Z")
Morbidity vs Co-morbidity vs Mortality Morbidity = having an unhealthy condition. Co-Morbidity = having more than 1 unhealthy condition, which may or may not have the same cause. Mortality = # of deaths resulting from an unhealthy condition. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/67 "2022-09-19T14:29:46Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > **Disinterested** - impartial > **Uninterested** - bored Begrudgingly, I think the ship has sailed on that one. It is rare that I hear “disinterested” to me the impartial sense of the word. I also tend to avoid it now, as I don’t know if the listener will know which sense I mean it in, or is even familiar with the classical definition. No biggie – “impartial” works fine – but I kind of liked that word in the “disinterested judge” sense. > I still don’t know whether the band **Live** rhymes with ‘give’ or ‘jive’. The latter. (Or at least I have never heard anyone say the former, and I’ve known a few fans.) ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/68 "2022-09-19T14:57:44Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > Whoops instead of oops Perhaps this is my British dialect, but I use them (verbally) interchangeably. What is the difference to you? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/69 "2022-09-19T15:04:36Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > One of the on line dictionaries uses the second third definition for ASSURE. Also, I think “insure” is a standard variant spelling of your definition of “ensure”. In the U.K. 30 years ago I would have treated this as an error, but I’d say it might even be the more common way to spell it in the U.S.? > **[Definition of INSURE](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/insure)** > > to provide or obtain insurance on or for; to make certain especially by taking necessary measures and precautions; to contract to give or take insurance… See the full definition ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/70 "2022-09-19T15:06:20Z")
hone and home You hone your skills. You home in on an issue. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/71 "2022-09-19T15:08:46Z")
I think that’s also one where “hone in on an issue” might eventually become standard. The meaning is so close that it feels like it makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/72 "2022-09-19T15:10:11Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Perhaps this is my British dialect, but I use them (verbally) interchangeably. What is the difference to you? In my American English dialect, they are interchangeable, except maybe for the verb sense that “So-and-so whoops up the crowd.” Or “to whoop” in the sense of a beating. “Whoops” and “oops” are both interjections signifying a minor mishap of some sort. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/73 "2022-09-19T15:10:56Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I think that’s also one where “hone in on an issue” might eventually become standard. The meaning is so close that it feels like it makes sense. Not really. To hone is to sharpen. You can hone a knife or hone your skills. To home in on something is to approach a resolution. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/74 "2022-09-19T15:14:58Z")
I understand the difference. But surely you can see that the meanings are similar? Perhaps one might regard “hone in on a solution” as metaphorical. But clearly both of them share a general sense of refining to create something that is better / works better. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/75 "2022-09-19T15:26:02Z")
“potpourri” and “patchouli”. They both smell like ass, but in completely different ways. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/76 "2022-09-19T15:29:45Z")
I wonder where Wreckless Eric obtained his name? > **[Wreckless Eric](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wreckless_Eric)** > > Eric Goulden (born 18 May 1954), known as Wreckless Eric, is an English rock/new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single "Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in Mojo magazine's list of the best punk rock singles of all time. It was also acclaimed as one of the "top 40 singles of the alternative era 1975–2000". > Wreckless Eric was born in Newhaven, East Sussex. He is a cousin of actress Gemma Arterton through her mot... ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/77 "2022-09-19T15:34:15Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Two words I get confused in reading: uniformed and uninformed. > I’ve seen both used in front of “police” and I have to double-check. Both can be used in front of ‘police’, in various circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/78 "2022-09-19T15:49:37Z")
My favourite words-to-be confused-by are enormity and enormousness. Some people are amazed by the enormity of the Milky Way galaxy, for instance. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/79 "2022-09-19T15:50:40Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > Perhaps this is my British dialect, but I use them (verbally) interchangeably. What is the difference to you? Whoops are loud cries of joy or excitement. "_a moment’s silence was followed by whoops of delight_ Oops is a sign of mild dismay. “_Oops, I slipped._” It can also be used to dissemble. “_Oops, I just backed into your car_.” I have also seen “Opps” which is just plain wrong. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2022, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/80 "2022-09-19T15:58:56Z")
Sitting on the Reference Shelf above my writing desk is a copy of **The Penguin Dictionary of Confusibles** , which I picked up ages ago at some used book store. It’s full of these kinds of things. Sadly, it seems to no longer be in print. And the web page for a used copy seems itself to be hopelessly confused: [https://www.discoverbooks.com/The-Penguin-Dictionary-of-Confusibles-Adrian-Room-p/0140054510.htm?cond=0003&gclid=CjwKCAjwpqCZBhAbEiwAa7pXea4Ymq9SvYrmdRzob8D8mTkY98v-40XiSjeK0mDLDSrXdj88cOPSVxoC8qcQAvD\_BwE](https://www.discoverbooks.com/The-Penguin-Dictionary-of-Confusibles-Adrian-Room-p/0140054510.htm?cond=0003&gclid=CjwKCAjwpqCZBhAbEiwAa7pXea4Ymq9SvYrmdRzob8D8mTkY98v-40XiSjeK0mDLDSrXdj88cOPSVxoC8qcQAvD_BwE) Here’s the description they give of the book: > [@](#): > > In this handsome volume, renowned photographer Hans Silvester points his lens at the famous horses of the Camargue region in southern France. Since prehistoric times, these rugged animals have run free in the vast swamps of the Rhone delta, where they have adapted to harsh conditions by banding together in small herds. Thanks to the remarkable ability of the photographer to gain the trust of wild creatures, we can observe the fierce white stallions as they protect their mares and foals and forage in their hostile but spectacular environment. This book offers a rare glimpse of wild horse behavior that will intrigue all horse lovers and fans of animal photography. Confusable, indeed! Here’s a better review: > **[The Penguin Dictionary of Confusibles: Room, Adrian: 9780140054514: Amazon.com:...](https://www.amazon.com/Penguin-Dictionary-Confusibles-Adrian-Room/dp/0140054510)** > > The Penguin Dictionary of Confusibles \[Room, Adrian\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. The Penguin Dictionary of Confusibles [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772.md?page=5)