Ten top spelling tips - Emphasis

Ten top spelling tips Ten top spelling tips English can be a confusing language. Swapping one word for another that sounds exactly the same (a homophone) can alter the meaning completely. Picking the right one gives your business writing credibility. Here are some commonly confused words clarified, to help you make the right choice every time. 1. Practice and Practise Practice with a c is the noun so it can mean a rehearsal, a run-through or an office belonging to certain professionals. For example, a doctors practice, a lawyers practice or the dreaded dentists practice. Practise with an s is the verb (in UK English) and means to do or to carry out. So you could say, Tracey practised singing Madonnas Like a Virgin on several occasions. But it didnt help her get into the Pop Idol final or, Plan B, the convent. Note that US English uses practice for both noun and verb. 2. Desert and Dessert A desert is a wasteland or a wilderness that quite often features sand and a few camels. A dessert is a big fat pudding! Think ss for sugary sweet. 3. Your and Youre Use your when talking about your pen, your file, your desk. Use youre when you mean you are. For example, Youre going to work today. Because your boss will give you the heave-ho if you take another sick day. 4. There, Theyre and Their Arranging a night out at a swanky bar with your friends? You can say, Great, Ill see you there! Theyre sure to wear their finest cocktail attire. 5. Affect and Effect A person can be affected by an incident whereas an effect is the result of an incident. For example, Jim was deeply affected by his wife running off with the Australian travel rep. The effects of this were: he had a funny turn whenever Skippy the Bush Kangaroo was on TV, and he decided to holiday in Skegness, not Sydney, in future. 6. Horde and Hoard Horde can be used to describe a crowd. For example, hordes of people attended the rugby match. Whereas a hoard is a stash of treasure. 7. Stationary and Stationery Confused about when to use stationery or stationary? When you are writing about paper products or similar, think e for exercise book and use stationery. Or you could think of a stationary car, which rhymes with ar. 8. Canvass and Canvas A slimy politician will canvass votes. But canvas is a type of material favoured by artists – or boy scouts pitching their tents. 9. Bare and Bear When the sun comes out, Britons strip off and bare all in their swimming costumes! But can you bear the sight of all that exposed flesh? 10. Compliment and Complement To compliment someone is to make an encouraging remark. Complementing them, however, may be more welcome, as it means to support or help.