Grammar Tip of the Day (Confusing words) A.Affect vs. Effect Many people are confused by the difference in the words affect and effect and often use them improperly. We will try to clear things up for everyone. Effect is usually but not always used as a noun. Here are some proper usages of the word effect: The word effect means a result. Example: What was the effect of your experiment? You should use effect when immediately following the words: into, on, take, the, any, an, or and. Example: The law came into effect in the spring. Effect can also mean to cause or accomplish. Example: I hope to effect many changes in the town. Affect is usually but not always used as a verb. Here are some proper usages of the word affect: The word affect means influence. Example: Your letter affected my opinion on the case. Affect can also mean to move emotionally. I was deeply affected by the woman’s story. Affect can also mean facial expressions. Example: As the verdict was announced the defendant showed little affect. B.Less vs. Fewer Less and Fewer are so similar it could get confusing. Let’s try to figure it out, shall we? But first, let’s be reminded of the difference between MUCH and MANY. Much is used with mass nouns – things you can’t count individually. Many on the other hand, is used for count nouns, i.e. things you can count individually Just like much, less is used with uncountable quantities – things you can’t count individually. - She has less interest in classic music than her husband And just like many, fewer is used with countable quantities – things you can count individually. - He has fewer books than his wife TIP: Less means ‘not as much’, while fewer means ‘not as many’ Confusing exceptions: Even though less is used with uncountable quantities, it is applied to time, money and distance - The meeting lasted less than 1 hour C.Lose vs. Loose Oh wow, mixing Lose and Loose is one of the most common yet embarrassing spelling mistakes. Lose is used when you lose (as in misplace) something. - You always lose your car keys Loose is used as opposite of tight, and also to describe something that is free - I am wearing a loose shirt - The prisoner is running loose They are even pronounced differently. Lose has the sound of Z, while Loose has the sound of S. TIP: whenever in doubt, see if you can use the word Lost instead. Of course it won’t match the tense, but it will give you an idea if you are using the right word.Lost->Lose. I hope you found this helpful. (Source-ArticlesBase)

Meaning of “i.e.” and “e.g.” in a Sentence. Many of you might be surprised to know that the meanings of the two words, “e.g” and “i.e” are different from one another. There are many people who use these two words interchangeably but in reality they cannot be used in each others place. Hence one should be careful about the use of these words. It is important to know the meanings of these words. The word “e.g’ means “for example” and it originates from the Latin word “exempli gratia”. On the other hand the word “i.e” means “that is” and is derived from the Latin word “id est”. There are some suggestions with the help of which you can remember the meaning of these words. The meaning of the word, “e.g” can be remembered as the word “example” starts with “e” so “e.g” means for example. As far as the use is concerned you can say that, “There are seven colors in the rainbow, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. This gives a complete list. On the other hand when you are giving an incomplete list you can use the word, “e.g”. It can be said, There are 7 colors in the rainbow, e.g., red, orange and yellow. In simple words it can be said that with the use of, “i.e” you are actually stating the colors of the rainbow. While with the use of, “e.g” you are giving examples of the colors which are present in the rainbow. There are certain confusions with the use of these words. Some grammarians feel that like all the Latin abbreviations the words “e.g” and “i.e” needs to be italicized. While many feel that there is no need to italicize these words because they are used very commonly in the English language. Again there is disagreement regarding the capitalization of these words. Some hold an opinion that is fine to write these words in capital letters while others are of the opinion that there is no need to capitalize these words. They say that these words do not generally begin a sentence. Hence that way also no capitalization is required. Again people are not very sure whether or not to use a comma after these two words. Most of the grammarians are of the opinion that a comma is needed after one use either of these words. But in British English it is not important to use a comma after these two words. It is recommended that the next time you have to use either “e.g”, or “i.e” it would be helpful if you say them. This is because when you say the sentence in your mind you are more likely to point out the mistake. (Source-Free English Grammar Tips)