Confusing Words Clarified: Group C; Homonyms, Homophones, Homographs, Synonyms, etc. +(lists of "C" sections that are organized into what for some people are confusing groups of words)Three words that every student of language should understand are homonyms, synonyms, and antonyms. Homonyms are words that sound alike, but have different meanings. Synonyms are words that are related in meaning but do not sound alike (begin and commence, for example). Antonyms are direct opposites in meaning, as hot and cold; white and black.
With homonyms, the following set of to, too, and two are all pronounced exactly alike, but by no means are they interchangeable in writing. To be sure that you choose the correct spelling for any on these, you must know the meanings of all three so you will not make wrong choices with a feeling of vagueness and uncertainty. Efforts have been made to help you grasp the meanings of these and other words that may be confusing so you can utilize them with greater accuracy in your communication. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome by writing to: E-mail Contact (just click it for an e-mail form) or by typing, words@wordinfo.info, as the address in your e-mail heading. If you have any problems understanding the pronunciation symbols, go to this Pronunciation Chart for clarifications.cannon, canon, canyon
cannon (KAN uhn)
A large mounted gun that shoots heavy metal or stone balls and which was once a common military weapon: "In past wars, a variety of cannon were used to cause great devastation."
canon (KAN uhn)
A Roman Catholic Church law: "People are expected to know the canon of the Church."
2. An accepted rule or guide about how people should behave or about how something should be done: "Anyone who disregards every canon of honesty as she has, should be fired." canyon (KAN yuhn)
A narrow valley with steep sides, often with a river in the bottom: "They rode the mules to the bottom of Grand Canyon to view the Colorado River."
cant, can’t
cant (KANT)
Words that are supposed to sound like serious statements about important issues; such as, religion or morality, but that are not honest or sincere: "We think the people are sick of hypocrisy and cant from their leaders."
can't (KANT)
A contraction of the words can not: "The child yelled out, 'I can’t do it!' when he was urged by his father to jump off the diving board into the pool."
canter, cantor
canter (KAN tur)
A gait slower than a gallop but faster than a trot: "The rider kept the horse in an easy canter."
cantor (KAN tur)
The official soloist or chief singer of the liturgy in a synagogue: "Jan Pierce was a cantor before becoming an opera singer."
canvas, canvass
canvas (KAN vuhs)
Coarse cloth used to make tents, sailing cloth, etc.: "The tent was made of green canvas."
canvass (KAN vuhs)
To survey, examine, or to investigate: "In the spring, she would canvass her neighbors, asking for donations to the charity."
capable, culpable
capable (KAY puh buhl)
Having the ability required for a specific task or accomplishment: "We were sure that he was capable of winning the game."
culpable (KUL puh buhl)
Deserving of blame or censure as being wrong, evil, improper, or injurious: "He's more culpable than the others because he's old enough to know better."
capital, capitol, Capitol
capital (KAP i t'l)
1. In the form of uppercase letters; for example: A, B, C, etc., rather than a, b, c: "In his e-mail message, he typed in lower case letters at times when he should have used capital letters."
2. Having the main offices of a government: "The state's capital city is where the main government officials are located." 3. When referring to a crime, having death as a possible punishment: "Homicide that occurs during the course of an attempted kidnapping is a capital crime in several states." 4. The amount of money, property, etc. which is used to start or to operate a new business: "Do they have sufficient capital to continue in business or will we lose our jobs?" "He needed more capital for the investment." capitol (KAP i t'l)
A building, or group of buildings, in which a state legislature meets and where other state government offices may be housed: "Have you seen the new capitol building which was recently built in our city?"
"The governor spoke on the capitol steps." Capitol (KAP i t'l)
The white marble domed building in Washington, D.C., where the U.S. Congress meets: "The organization is lobbying Capital Hill to increase funding for educational research."
Capital punishment is when those guys in the Capitol of Washington, D.C. come up with a new capital tax. carat, caret, carrot, karat
carat (KAR uht)
A unit of weight measuring pearls and precious stones, equal to 200 milligrams: "She was given a one carat diamond ring for her birthday."
caret (KAR it)
A mark (^) indicating something to be inserted "He included a caret to show where something is missing; such as, a word or phrase in a written or printed document."
carrot (KAR uht)
An orange colored root vetgetable: "She ate a raw carrot with her lunch."
karat (KAR uht)
A unit of fineness for gold, equal to 1/24 of the total amount of pure gold in an alloy: "Pure gold is 24 karat while gold that is 50 percent pure is 12 karat."
A carat is the unit of measurement by which many a woman estimates a man's love. careen, career
careen (kuh REEN)
Typically involving speed, to move or sway from side to side: "The car appeared to careen down the street as if it were out of control."
career (kuh RIR)
A permanent profession or calling for which one trains: "It is often difficult to decide what career to choose when you are young."
caries, carries
caries (KAR eez, KAR i eez)
Decay of teeth, bones, or tissues: "The dental assistant checked each of the students for caries as part of his job."
carries (KAR eez)
Something or someone who holds or supports something while moving from one place to another: "She often carries her baby in her arms."
"My son always carries his books to school in a backpack." carol, carrel
carol (KAR uhl)
A song of joy or a hymn: "As a normal practice, they were singing a carol in church on Sunday."
carrel (KAR uhl)
A partially partitioned nook in or near the stacks in a library, used for private study: "The library didn't have another carrel available for me to do my research."
carousal, carousel
carousal (kuh ROU zuhl)
A party or revelry that is marked by drunkenness and out of control behavior: "The neighbors called the police when the carousel next door spilled out into the street."
carousel (kar" uh SEL, kar" uh ZEL)
1. A Merry-Go-Round: "The children enjoyed riding on the carousel in the park."
2. A circular conveyor system: "She saw her luggage on the carousel at the airport." cartilage, cartridge
cartilage (KAHR t'l ij)
Tough white fibrous connective tissue attached to the surfaces of bone joints: "When she fell during the tennis match, she tore the cartilage in her knee."
cartridge (KAHR trij)
1. Small arms ammunition or shotgun shells: "He carried the cartridge of shot gun shells in a special pocket in his jacket."
2. A small modular unit designed to be inserted into a larger piece of equipment: "The toner for the office printer came in a cartridge which made it easy to change." 3. A case containing reeled magnetic tape: "The small tape recorder required a cartridge of tape in order to record the speech." 4. A case with photographic film that can be loaded directly into a camera: "His old fashioned camera had a separate cartridge for the film, not a disk." carton, cartoon
carton (KAR t'n)
A box made of cardboard: "When the carton is empty, please place it in the recycling bin."
cartoon (KAR toon)
An amusing drawing of people or things which are often also intended for satirical or political purposes: "That particular political cartoon in the newspaper always makes people laugh or, in some cases, there are those who may be offended."
cask, casque
cask (KASK)
A barrel to hold liquids: "The cask of wine was stored in the cave."
casque (KASK)
A helmet, especially an ornate visorless headpiece of the 16th century: "The teacher wore a casque to illustrate the kind of helmet worn by a soldier of past."
casket, gasket
casket (KAS kit)
A coffin wherein a dead body is placed: "We were amazed at the price of the coffin and asked to see other models."
gasket (GAS kit)
A seal used between matched machine parts or around pipe joints to prevent the escape of gas, fluids, etc.: "The rubber gasket on the pipes was important for the safety of the workers."
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