You know, those pesky words that sound alike and so get used wrong, but spell-check alone won't catch them. 'Your' and 'you're' are good examples, as are 'there', 'their', and 'they're'.
But other ones you sometimes use or see used that jump out at you.
One I see is 'shuttered' when the author meant 'shuddered'. The latter one is probably much more common in erotica, where there is a whole lot of shuddering going on. (Which brings up 'latter' vs. 'ladder'...)
Another is 'taught', which is the past-tense of teach, when the author really means 'taut', the porn term for tight, stretched, firm, etc.
Anyone else got one?
I've seen 'waist' as 'waste' far too many times!
i.e. he grabbed her waste... LOL!
I see reign misused a lot too, when they actually mean rein, as in 'rein in my desires'. Reign is the tenure of a king or queen. I've even seen people use rain in the same context.
This thread is as good as any to share these jewels.
Homonym Humor Plus
1. He who jumps off a bridge in Paris is in Seine.
2. A man's home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.
3. Dijon vu - the same mustard as before.
4. Practice safe eating - always use condiments.
5. Shotgun wedding: a case of wife or death.
6. A man needs a mistress just to break the monogamy.
7. A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
8. Dancing cheek-to-cheek is really a form of floor play.
9. Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?
10. Condoms should be used on every conceivable occasion.
11. Reading while sunbathing makes you well red.
12. When two egoists meet, it's an I for an I.
13. A bicycle can't stand on its own because it is two tired.
14. Definition of a will: a dead give away.
15. Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
16. In democracy your vote counts. In feudalism your count votes.
17. She was engaged to a boyfriend with a wooden leg but broke it off.
18. A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.
19. If you don't pay your exorcist, do you get repossessed?
20. With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.
21. When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.
22. The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
23. You feel stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.
24. Local Area Network in Australia: the LAN down under.
25. Every calendar's days are numbered.
26. A lot of money is tainted - it taint yours and it taint mine.
27. A boiled egg in the morning is hard to beat.
28. A midget fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large.
29. Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.
30. Once you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.
31. Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis.
32. Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.
33. Acupuncture is a jab well done.
further and farther. people seem to lean towards using further. "she licked further down his chest." when what they mean is farther, because it measures distance versus degree or extent.
Areola, area around the nipple.
Aureole/aureola, halo.
I've eaten hominy and hominy grits many times.
Seriously, being dyslexic, writing the wrong word that is similar in look happens all the time. Even reading it wrong but writing it wrong happens the most. That is why when writing a story, I use a long and arduous proofing process for my own work. And I always use another person to read behind me after I've proofed and reproofed several times.
For me, proofing someone else's work is much easier.
Sole and soul have always slightly annoyed me. When I read, "I met my solemate", I always think, do they have a fish (sole) or a shoe (sole) fetish? Although strictly speaking you could have met your "sole" mate if you are talking about the one that is singular for you.
I still prefer soulmate.
Weight and wait, perhaps? Too, to and two confuses some people, as does off and of.
sight / site
and then sometimes cite falls in as well
). Though I suspect part of the problem is that they are not only homonyms, but it's a simple typo (reversing the final and penultimate letters) to turn one into the other.
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Stop eating? Really?
