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Confusing English Words - Do You Make These Mistakes?
Confusing English Words - Do You Make These Mistakes?
AccurateEnglish
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16:47 · Apr 9, 2026
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0:00
If you follow my channel, you're already an advanced English speaker.
0:04
My goal is to take your English to the final level of fluency.
0:08
Let's advance your English vocabulary
0:11
so that you can speak English with confidence
0:13
and with accuracy.
0:15
In this video, I will teach you some commonly confused words.
0:20
For example, what is the difference between appraise versus apprise?
0:26
Or when do we say in time and when do we say on time?
0:30
That's a prepositions issue.
0:32
When you change the preposition, the meaning changes a bit.
0:36
I'll explain the differences and I will give you some sample sentences.
0:40
And then, at the end of the video,
0:42
there will be a short review quiz so that you can test your knowledge.
0:46
Okay, let's get started.
0:48
Let's look at the first pair of commonly confused words.
0:51
Appraise versus apprise.
0:54
Do you know the difference?
0:56
To appraise is to evaluate or to estimate the value of something.
1:01
We can say, "The bank will appraise the house before approving the loan."
1:06
Or the expert appraised the painting.
1:09
She wants to get her diamond ring appraised.
1:13
Or we can use it as a noun, she wants to get an appraisal.
1:16
And to apprise means to inform someone or to tell someone, to notify.
1:23
And we need to use the preposition of to apprise someone of something.
1:29
We can say, "Please apprise me of any changes."
1:32
She apprised him of the situation.
1:35
So, remember, you appraise an object, but you apprise someone of a situation.
1:42
And we have to say to apprise of.
1:44
Let's listen to some native speakers using it.
1:47
>> It's hard to stay abreast of where technology is going.
1:50
>> But I want to make sure that Jim was fully apprised.
1:53
>> If the buyer on a deal is getting financing,
1:55
a bank might order an appraisal.
1:57
Bigger deals, that's not those don't get appraised like that.
2:01
>> Let's look at these two verbs, to imply and to infer.
2:06
They're commonly confused.
2:08
Do you know the difference?
2:09
To imply is to suggest indirectly.
2:12
To suggest that something is true without saying it directly.
2:16
She implied that I was late.
2:19
Are you implying that I stole it?
2:22
You didn't say it directly, but I think that's what you mean.
2:25
His voice implied frustration.
2:27
Let's listen to some native speakers using it.
2:30
>> We imply that math learning is some rare genetic ability.
2:34
But it's not.
2:35
>> So it was implied.
2:36
He didn't ask it of you, but it was implied by his behavior.
2:39
So many times people don't say things.
2:40
>> What are you implying?
2:42
>> And let's look at to infer.
2:44
To infer is to conclude something based on evidence.
2:48
We can say, "From your tone, I inferred that you were unhappy."
2:54
Based on the low sales figures,
2:56
we can infer that the new product is not popular.
3:00
It's reasonable to infer that he caused the accident.
3:03
So a speaker implies something, but the listener infers it.
3:08
Let's listen to how some native speakers use it.
3:10
>> But we can infer what somebody means even though the words aren't there.
3:14
>> We infer what we can from the data available.
3:16
>> Let's look at these three words, peak, peek, and pique.
3:21
Same pronunciation.
3:23
Peak with an e a means the highest point, the highest level.
3:28
We can say, "Peak performance, peak condition, peak efficiency."
3:34
We can say, "Athletes need to train regularly to reach peak performance."
3:40
And this is a mountain peak.
3:42
We can say, "He reached the peak of the mountain."
3:45
Sales are at a peak this month.
3:47
We can also refer to time when And a period of highest activity.
3:52
For example, peak season, peak hours, peak time.
3:57
Flights are more expensive during peak season, and summer is peak season.
4:03
I try to avoid driving during peak hours.
4:08
And let's look at the second meaning of peak,
4:10
and this one is spelled with a double e,
4:13
and it can be a verb or a noun,
4:15
and that means a quick look.
4:17
We can say, I took a peek at the test.
4:20
Or as a verb, he peeked through the window.
4:24
And pique with p i q u e is a verb,
4:28
it means to stimulate interest or curiosity.
4:31
We can say, the article piqued my interest.
4:35
The topic piqued her curiosity to learn more about the subject.
4:40
Let's listen to how some native speakers use them.
4:42
>> Unemployment at the time hit an overall peak of 10.8%.
4:45
>> A Tour de France cyclist at peak human performance.
4:50
>> Unless you peeked under those big dark glasses.
4:54
>> And I peeked around the corner and down into the living room.
4:58
>> It piqued our interest about what lies beyond Pluto.
5:01
>> And really kind of piqued my curiosity and got my got my brain excited.
5:05
>> My curiosity was piqued.
5:07
>> Do you know the difference between these two words?
5:10
Weary and wary.
5:13
Make sure that you're not pronouncing them with a v sound.
5:16
It's not very, it's wary.
5:19
Let's look at weary first.
5:20
It means physically or mentally exhausted, very tired, or bored,
5:26
especially because you have been doing something for a long time.
5:30
After hiking for many hours, he felt weary and needed to rest.
5:35
The long hours of studying left me feeling weary.
5:39
And let's look at the meaning of wary.
5:42
It means cautious or careful about potential dangers or problems.
5:47
If you are wary,
5:48
you are careful because you think something might be dangerous or harmful.
5:53
We can say, "I'm wary of driving in this snowstorm."
5:58
We must teach children to be wary of strangers.
6:02
You should be very wary of giving people your bank account information.
6:06
Have you been using these words correctly?
6:09
Criterion and criteria.
6:12
Remember, criterion is singular
6:15
and that means a single standard
6:17
or rule used to judge
6:19
or to evaluate something.
6:21
And criteria is the plural form, multiple standards or multiple rules for evaluation.
6:28
So, if there's only one, don't say criteria.
6:31
We would say, "One important criterion for the job is strong communication skills.
6:37
Cost was the main criterion used in selecting the product."
6:42
And criteria is plural.
6:44
The criteria for admission are listed on the website.
6:48
So, criteria are, criterion is.
6:52
We evaluated the candidates based on several criteria.
6:56
We hear criteria more often, so it's easy to make a mistake.
7:01
If you're speaking about only one, make sure that you say criterion.
7:05
And this is similar to other irregular English plurals.
7:09
Phenomenon, only one.
7:11
Phenomena, plural.
7:14
Bacterium, only one.
7:15
Bacteria, plural.
7:17
Let's go on to the next words.
7:19
What is the difference between these two words?
7:22
Immigrate, emigrate.
7:24
Do you know the difference?
7:26
To immigrate is to come into a country in order to live there permanently.
7:30
They immigrated to the United States.
7:33
Many people immigrate for better opportunities.
7:37
And to emigrate is to leave your country in order to live in another
7:41
country.
7:42
We can say, "His grandparents emigrated from Italy many years ago.
7:47
They plan to emigrate from Colombia to Canada."
7:51
So, to immigrate is to come in and to emigrate is to exit.
7:56
You emigrate from a place and you immigrate to a place.
8:00
Did you know that one?
8:02
If you would like to keep improving your already advanced English skills,
8:06
at Accurate English we offer many options.
8:09
We have an articles course
8:11
that teaches you all the rules
8:12
that you need to know for using a,
8:15
an, and the correctly.
8:17
We also offer an advanced vocabulary course. 400 advanced words you must know for
8:24
fluent English and the American accent course
8:27
that teaches you all the rules of a good,
8:30
clear, standard American accent.
8:33
And we have a phrasal verbs course
8:35
that teaches you the most common expressions
8:38
that native speakers use.
8:40
And we also offer one-on-one accent reduction coaching for professionals.
8:44
At Accurate English, we've been teaching the American accent to actors in Los Angeles
8:50
and to professionals for over 25 years.
8:53
I have worked as an American accent trainer for many different companies such
8:57
as Apple,
8:59
Microsoft, Google, HP, UCLA Medical School, USC Law School, and so many more.
9:06
To get more information about the online training and one-on-one coaching,
9:11
go to accurateenglish.com.
9:13
Okay, let's go on to the next pair of words.
9:16
What is the difference between these two words?
9:19
House and home.
9:21
A house is a physical building where people live.
9:24
They bought a new house.
9:26
The house has three bedrooms.
9:28
But a home is a place where you live and feel comfortable.
9:32
You feel like you belong there.
9:34
It's an emotional meaning.
9:36
You can say, "When I arrived in that city, it felt like home immediately."
9:41
"This place feels like home."
9:44
Or when someone visits you, you can say, "Make yourself at home."
9:48
And we don't necessarily just use it for a house.
9:52
We can use it this way.
9:53
"I quickly felt at home in my new job."
9:57
And of course, you know the expression to work from home.
10:00
We don't say, "I work from my house."
10:03
We say, "I work from home."
10:05
And this is a very common expression.
10:07
A stay-at-home mom.
10:09
She quit her job to be a stay-at-home mom.
10:13
Let's look at the difference between these two words.
10:16
Autumn and fall.
10:18
Let's make sure you're pronouncing autumn correctly.
10:21
The N is silent.
10:23
Autumn.
10:24
Autumn.
10:25
The main difference is that autumn is more common in British English.
10:29
And it's also used in American English,
10:32
but it's considered more formal in American English.
10:35
Most Americans say fall.
10:37
So, we say spring, summer, fall, winter.
10:41
The leaves fall in the fall.
10:43
Let's look at on time versus in time.
10:46
They're both correct, but they have a slightly different meaning.
10:49
On time means punctual, at the exact scheduled time.
10:54
The train arrived on time.
10:56
"Please be on time."
10:59
"The buses are never on time in this city."
11:02
And in time is early enough before it's too late.
11:06
It's often used with for or to.
11:09
For example, we arrived just in time for dinner.
11:13
I hope the gift will arrive in time for her birthday.
11:17
I didn't arrive to the party on time,
11:20
but I arrived in time for dessert.
11:23
Let's look at the next pair of words.
11:25
Allusion versus illusion.
11:28
An allusion is an indirect reference to something.
11:31
And the verb is to allude, to allude to something.
11:35
And that means to mention something without talking about it directly.
11:40
We can say, "The song makes an allusion to Greek mythology."
11:45
She made an allusion to her difficult childhood.
11:48
She didn't talk about it directly.
11:50
She made an allusion.
11:52
And this word is more common, illusion, something that is not real,
11:56
a false idea or image.
11:58
Something is not what it seems to be.
12:01
The magician created an illusion of a disappearing coin.
12:06
The mirror gave the illusion of more space.
12:09
And a common expression is to be under the illusion.
12:13
We can say, "He's under the illusion that everybody agrees with him."
12:18
But that's not true.
12:19
They don't.
12:20
It's an illusion.
12:21
I was under the illusion that the deadline was next week, not today.
12:26
Let's go on to the next pair of words.
12:28
What is the difference between between and among?
12:32
Between is used for two items or two people.
12:36
For example, we can say, "The meeting is between John and Maria."
12:41
She divided the money between the two children.
12:45
Keep the secret between the two of us.
12:48
And among is used for more than two.
12:51
We can say, "He felt comfortable among friends."
12:55
The prize was shared among the winners.
12:58
There were more than just two winners.
13:00
We commonly say, "among friends, among classmates, among co-workers."
13:07
Among voters, "The new policy is popular among voters."
13:13
This new style is popular among teenagers.
13:17
Let's look at these two words.
13:19
Do you know the difference in meaning?
13:21
The pronunciation is exactly the same.
13:24
Compliment, compliment with an e can be a verb
13:27
or a noun when something goes well with something else
13:31
or to make something perfect
13:33
or better to make it complete.
13:35
We can say that scarf compliments your outfit.
13:39
This sauce is a perfect compliment to the chicken.
13:43
Red wine compliments beef
13:46
and compliment with an I is also a verb
13:49
or a noun and
13:50
that means when you say something nice to someone to praise someone.
13:55
For example, you look lovely in that dress.
13:59
I love your hairstyle.
14:01
Everyone loves a compliment and the verb is to compliment.
14:04
So we say complimented.
14:06
The teacher complimented my progress in English.
14:09
Do you know the difference between these two words?
14:12
They're pronounced exactly the same.
14:14
Council with c i l is a group of people
14:18
that are chosen to make rules
14:20
or laws or decisions such
14:23
as the city council.
14:24
We can say, I attended the city council meetings
14:28
or the student council organized a fundraiser.
14:32
And council with s e l means advice
14:36
or guidance and typically given formally such
14:40
as legal advice.
14:42
We can say she sought council before making a big career decision.
14:47
The lawyer provided council to the defendant.
14:51
Council, council, same pronunciation, different spelling, different meaning.
14:56
Okay, now let's take a little review quiz.
14:59
Let's see how many of these you remember.
15:01
You will see the words on the screen
15:03
and then you will select A
15:05
or B.
15:06
Let's look at the first one.
15:08
To inform someone, to notify someone.
15:11
Is it a praise or a prize?
15:15
The correct answer is B.
15:17
To apprise.
15:18
To apprise someone.
15:20
Let's look at the next one.
15:21
When something goes well with something else, or to make something better.
15:27
Is it A or B?
15:31
It's B, complement with an E.
15:34
They're pronounced the same way though.
15:36
To make a conclusion based on evidence,
15:39
to figure it out because you see it, is it imply or infer?
15:47
B, infer.
15:49
How about the next one?
15:50
A quick look, a glance.
15:54
Is it A, B, or C?
15:58
B, peek with a double E.
16:00
Peek.
16:01
And how about this one?
16:02
If you are cautious or very careful, you are what?
16:06
Weary or wary?
16:12
B, wary.
16:12
How about this one?
16:13
What do we say?
16:14
I made it in time for dinner or on time for dinner?
16:21
The correct answer is A, in time for.
16:24
In time for something.
16:26
How did you do?
16:28
How many mistakes did you make?
16:29
I suggest that you watch this video again and take notes.
16:33
Write the words that you didn't know, and then make your own sentences,
16:37
and say those sentences out loud,
16:40
and that way you're much more likely to remember them.
16:43
Thanks for watching and keep practicing your English.
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