Hello all!
I’m back with another Which Word? segment, and today I’ll be discussing a few words groups that are confusing not because the meanings are closely related but because it’s hard to know which one is spelled which way!
Up first is one of my personal favorites: desert and dessert. We know one of them means an arid section of land and one of them refers to something sugary and delicious, but it can be tough to remember which is which. The trick I was taught to remember is one that makes me smile every time: Just ask yourself, which item would you rather have more of? More arid land or more delicious treat? The one you (probably) want more of gets more s‘s. Thus, desert is the arid land and dessert is the treat.
Next is a grouping that plagues even the best of writers: their, there, and they’re. While all three words sound exactly the same, their spellings and meanings are all different. Their is an indication of possession (their dog, not your dog); there is an indication of place (their dog went over there, while your dog stayed here); and they’re is a contraction of they are (their dog went over there where they’re standing, while your dog stayed here where you’re standing). I am sorry to say that I don’t have any handy tricks for you for remembering this one perfectly, but if you can remember the sentence about the dog and which spelling goes where in that sentence, you’ll have a good shot at figuring it out. And if all else fails, try testing for the contraction first, since it’s the only one with an apostrophe. If you can replace the word in your sentence with they are, then you’re looking for they’re. If not, at least you have a 50/50 shot between the other two!
And speaking of two, that brings me to our final grouping for today: to, too, and two. Once again, we have three words here that all sound the same but have different spellings and definitions. Generally speaking, most people have no problems with to. In fact, the issue I run across is that a lot of people use to all the time, even when the proper word is either too or two. Too is an indicator of something being more than what is possible or wanted (my boss was asking too much of me), while two is the spelling of the number 2. The trick I’d suggest using to remember which of these to use in which case is to run through three quick steps: (1) Ask yourself if it’s a number. If so, use two. (2) Ask yourself if you’re trying to indicate overabundance. If so, use too (easy to remember because is has more o‘s that to…to indicate more!). (3) If you’ve answered questions (1) and (2) in the negative, use to.
I hope that helps clear up some very common confusing word groups. The simplest things can make the biggest difference, and using these words appropriately in your writing will set you above the pack in no small way!
Until next time!