There are some words that are often misused in English because the speaker does not know the difference between them. Many words sound alike even though they have different spellings and meanings.

Many Nigerians hide under the guise of English being a borrowed language; contrary to this misguided thought or saying, English is the official language in Nigeria and youths are encouraged to learn how to speak and write it since they use it more in school.
As an international language, it is essential for Nigerians to learn and avoid the common errors in English.

A list of words has been prepared in this post to help learners have a better grasp of the language. The beautiful thing about English as a language is the fact that it keeps changing.

Some phrases that were acceptable about ten years ago are archaic now; some of them have been subjected to change and modified to suit the current practices and use of English.

No man is an island; it is possible for a person sound in the language to be misguided and make some errors while speaking. However, if your spoken English is so polished you hardly make mistakes, then you area guru.

Find below some of the words that are often misused daily and what they mean:

1. Lose versus loose

Lose means ‘fail to win’, ‘misplace’ or ‘cease to be in possession’ of a thing. Loose on the other hand is the opposite of tight.

The two words sound alike but do not mean the same thing even though their spellings are similar.

2. Isle versus aisle

An isle is an island while an ‘Aisle’ is a corridor through which one may pass. Newly married couple walks down the aisle when they are joined in holy matrimony.

3. It’s versus its

Some of the errors made in written English could be avoided.

It is or it has is often written as it’s while it’s a possessive determiner meaning ‘belonging to it’.

4. Breathe versus breath

This is a mistake that is being seen online and in brilliant articles. ‘Breathe’ is a verb meaning to inhale, take in air while ‘breath’, a noun, is the air inhaled or exhaled while breathing. Simply put, when you breathe, you inhale and exhale breath.

5. Compliment versus complement

Compliment is a noun meaning ‘a polite expression of praise or admiration’ while ‘Compliment’ means ‘a thing that contributes extra features to something else in such a way as to improve or emphasize its quality’.

6. Lay versus lie

Lay means to put (a thing) down carefully or gently while ‘Lie’ means to recline. It should be noted that the past tense of ‘lie’ is ‘lay’.

7. Uninterested versus disinterested

There is a big difference between these words. Uninterested means not interested, not concerned and not engaged while ‘Disinterested’ means unbiased, not influenced; a person who has no particular interest in how something turns out.
A judge should be both interested (involved, concerned, engaged) and disinterested (unbiased).

8. Literary versus literally

Literary is an adverb that means ‘concerning literature and its contents, procedures and analysis; possessing a style in formal writing’ while ‘literally’ is an adverb meaning ‘in a literal sense, precisely and exactly’.

It is a term of emphasis. These two words have no similarities when it comes to meaning or context; however, people misuse them daily.

9. Allusion, hallucination and illusion

An allusion is an indirect or metaphorical reference to something. An ‘illusion’ is a false picture of something that is there while hallucination is seeing something that is not there.

10. Ascent versus assent

To assent means to agree while ascent has to do with advancing or going up from an original position.

11. Assure versus ensure

To assure is purely to intend to give the listener confidence while ‘ensure’ is to make certain of.

12. Canvas and canvass

Canvass is a type of fabric known for being strong and tough while ‘canvass’ is a way of trying to get people’s support or find out where their support lies.

13. Desert and dessert

A desert is a barren or uninhabited place while a ‘dessert’ is the last course of a meal.

http://latestnigerianews.com.ng/must-read-see-13-english-that-we-nigerians-often-misuse-every-body-is-guilty-of-no-4/

Nice one