# 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:** 54
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2025, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1064 "2025-10-31T09:26:05Z")
Has anyone mentioned demur and demure? Just saw the mistake in the wild. “Demure” was used as a verb in the past tense-- that is “She demured,” to mean “She declined to participate.” In this case, in some Halloween pranking that seemed innocent, but was bound to go wrong, or there wouldn’t be a story. You can demur because you are demure, so there’s some overlap of meaning, but as far as I know, there’s no verb form of demure, and if there’s an adjectival form of demur, it’s even less common then the verb form. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2025, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1065 "2025-10-31T13:30:52Z")
I’m sure I’ve read sentences along the lines of “Bob demurred on the party invite.” I may be wrong, but I’ve always considered that to be a correct usage. The second “r” is what distinguishes the various forms of “demur” from forms of “demure” There’s also **[Demurrer - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demurrer)**. Which is a legal term of art, but is a noun form related to demur. But yeah, your example from the wild is wrong for lack of a second “r”. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2025, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1066 "2025-11-01T11:00:25Z")
**Prevaricate:** to speak evasively or ambiguously, so as to conceal guilt or avoid an awkward question **Procrastinate:** to delay/postpone/put off some action. (Just saw in my paper “a long prevaricated law suit” - I suppose they might have meant it, but I suspect “procrastinated” was what they were aiming at) ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1067 "2025-11-02T00:09:22Z")
**Respectfully:** In a manner exhibiting respect or deference. **Respectably:** In a manner deserving of respect or having a good reputation. **Respectively:** Considered individually, in the order previously mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 10:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1068 "2025-11-02T10:32:43Z")
**Rein:** a part of a horse’s harness, used to slow or guide its movement: figuratively, “rein in” = to restrain. **Reign:** the period of time during which a king, emperor or similarly powerful ruler is in office. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2025, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1069 "2025-11-02T22:59:43Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > But yeah, your example from the wild is wrong for lack of a second “r”. That’s actually a typo. I’m surprised that the spellcheck didn’t catch it, unless one R is some kind of antiquated variant, but spellcheck allows it. Or it was just really late at night when I posted. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2025, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1070 "2025-11-04T19:46:31Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Has anyone mentioned demur and demure? No, but we’ve had [demurred and deferred](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/640). > [@markn\_1](#): > > **Respectfully** […] **Respectably** […] **Respectively** […] [See also.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/452) > [@PatrickLondon](#): > > **Rein** […] **Reign** […] A perennial favorite: posts# [95](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/95), [186](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/186), [335-33](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/335)7, and [770](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/770). ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1071 "2025-11-05T09:31:12Z")
And I tried “Find in page” too ! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1072 "2025-11-05T12:03:21Z")
The browser’s built-in find in page is useless in Discourse. That’s true on every type of computer and brand of browser. Because the browser only knows about a couple screen’s worth of posts surrounding the ones that you can see on-screen at this instant. Discourse swaps them in and out as you scroll up or down. Always use Discourse search. It is NOT flaky. Only operators are flaky. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2025, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1073 "2025-11-05T21:50:39Z")
**Led/Lead** is still getting confused on this board all the time. It’s been brought up in this thread at least twice over the last 3 years (by me and others). ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2025, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1074 "2025-11-06T19:47:19Z")
Here’s one that’s gotten me a few times: **Cavalry** : a military unit on horses (or tanks nowadays) **Calvary** : the site of Jesus’s crucifixion ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2025, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1075 "2025-11-06T19:55:49Z")
There’s also the Air Cavalry which ride helicopters. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2025, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1076 "2025-11-07T11:27:26Z")
Hock means to pawn, while hawk means to sell. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2025, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1077 "2025-11-07T19:42:34Z")
And hork means either to vomit or to spit phlegm. And hack means either to flail unskillfully at something, or to build and use malware. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2025, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1078 "2025-11-09T14:59:41Z")
I have seen **gain the system** a couple of times in the last few weeks. It makes a certain amount of sense, since the near-synonym _capture_ is used in similar constructions (e.g., [regulatory capture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture)). But the correct phrase is **game the system** (i.e., to exploit loopholes in the “game” or other rule-bound system, in a way not foreseen by the creators of the rules, to ensure your desired outcome). ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2025, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1079 "2025-11-14T01:59:58Z")
**pearlite** : steel **perlite** : glass ---
**Author:** ![Ignatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@Ignatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignatz)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2025, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1080 "2025-11-15T13:50:54Z")
**pearlite** steel **pearlike** fat on the bottom ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2025, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1081 "2025-11-15T18:11:36Z")
**tort** : in the law, a civil wrong subject to redress through lawsuits in the civil justice system (as distinct from the criminal justice system) **torte** : a cake-like dessert **slander** : (v) to defame in speech; (n) defamation in speech or the tort of defaming in speech **libel** : (v) to defame in writing; (n) defamation of character in writing, or the tort of defaming in writing **liable** : obliged to, responsible for, or subject to; sometimes used as a synonym for the below, but that usage is frowned on by prescriptivists **likely** : probable You _slandered_ me by saying my raspberry _torte_ tasted like feet, thereby ruining my reputation as a baker. I’m going to sue you for the _tort_ of _slander_. Then you _libeled_ me by writing on the message board that I’m acting like a baby, thereby ruining my reputation as a reasonable person. Now I’m going to sue you for _libel_ too. The court is _likely_ (but not _liable_) to find you _liable_ for damages in the millions. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2025, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1082 "2025-11-15T22:40:02Z")
**labile** : apt or liable to slip or change ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2025, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772/1083 "2025-11-16T00:28:29Z")
Labial: Pertaining to the lips. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772.md?page=53) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-one-can-get-confused/971772.md?page=55)