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‘censor’ or ‘censure’?

›Censor = ban Censure = reprimand

‘amused’ or ‘bemused’?

Amused = to be entertained Bemused = to be confused  

‘rebut’ or ‘refute’?

›Rebut = to argue in response to another argument Her lawyer tried to rebut the testimony that the witness gave. Refute = to deny an argument/claim She refuted the allegations against her.

‘Say’ or ‘tell’?

We use tell with an object (i.e., who is to be told):    Can you tell me where he has gone? Also, we use tell to mean to instruct or to inform: I told her to wait at home until I get there. (instructing) He told us about his experiences of teaching English in a … Continue reading →

‘well known’ or ‘well-known’? Hyphenate correctly.

Compound adjectives beginning with well are generally written with no hyphen when used alone after a verb, but with hyphen when they come before a noun. She is well dressed. BUT She is a well-dressed woman. He is not that well known. BUT He is a well-known actor.

Describing the sickeningly sweet

‘thankful’ or ‘grateful’?

Grateful is the normal word for people’s reactions to kindness, favours etc. Example: I’m very grateful for all your help. Thankful is used especially for feelings of relief at having avoided a danger or at having come through an unpleasant experience. Example: I’m thankful that we got home before the storm started.

A ‘lone wolf’ terrorist

A ‘lone wolf’ is one who prefers to act, live, or work alone. A ‘lone wolf terrorist’ is an individual who adopts extremist ideology and chooses to act accordingly, but does so alone, not as a part of a particular group or not under group command or with group assistance. Here is a link to … Continue reading →

What’s your ‘party piece’?

IT’S PARTY TIME! party piece š(a song/speech/joke/trick that somebody always does to entertain people, especially at parties) His common party piece was mimicry of politicians and celebrities. party pooper (a person who does not want to take part in an enjoyable activity and spoils the fun for other people) We had a costume party but … Continue reading →

‘used to’ or ‘use to’?