Troublesome Words

1
Troublesome Words

• What is a troublesome word?

2
Accept vs. Except

• Accept- verb- meaning to take something that is
  given to you or to believe or agree something is
  true
• I will accept your offer on this house.
• Except- meaning not to include
• Everyone except the young student likes it.
• Practice!

3
Practice

• They had to (accept, except) that they were
  wrong.
• Accept
• He could not (accept, except) their charity.
• Accept
• They were all there (accept, except) his brother.
• Except

4
Affect vs. Effect

• Affect- verb- to influence
• He was affected by the new grading system.
• Effect- noun- a result
• The effect of the speech was great!

5
Practice

• Studying had a positive (affect, effect) on her
  grades.
• effect
• A bad test grade can (affect, effect) your
  average.
• affect

6
May vs. Can

• The helping verb can refers to ability.
• Examples My mom can run for five miles without
  stopping.
• You can do anything if you put your mind to it.

7
May

• The helping verb may refers to permission or a
  possibility.
• Examples
• The designer may wish to choose the tiles
  himself.
• You may go out and play after supper.

8
Practice

• (May, Can) I ride my bike after I do my homework?
• May ( The speaker here asks for permission. The
  question is not, Am I able to ride my bike?
• (May, Can) we win the race?
• Can ( The question here us, Are we able to win
  the race? This is not a question that asks
  permission.)

9
Between vs. Among

• Between is from an Old English word related to
  the word two. It denotes a position between two
  things.
• The guard stood between the door and the street.
• Among derives from an Old English word meaning to
  mix or to mingle. Use among when speaking about
  more than two things.
• We wandered among the poppies, looking for the
  road to Oz.

10
Practice

• The printer is (among, between) the computer and
  the photocopier.
• between- the computer and photocopier are two
  separate things
• There are few French speakers (among, between)
  the students.
• among- the students are a group

11
Principal vs. Principle

• Principal- head of the school
• Example Mrs. Triplett is our principal.
• Principle- a rule, truth, or belief
• You should view the scientific principle that
  supports your experiment.

12
Capitol vs. Capital

• Capitol- building constituting a seat of
  government
• Our capitol is located in downtown Nashville.
• With an 0- always a building
• Capital- of a letter- conforming to ABC rather
  than abc also, assets that add to the long term
  net worth of a corporation or an individuals
  assets
• Please use capital letters to begin your
  sentences.