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Affect or effect? Fewer or less? Clear rules and examples for words people often mix up.
'Affect' is usually a verb (to influence); 'effect' is usually a noun (a result).
Use 'fewer' for things you can count; 'less' for things you cannot count.
'Its' shows possession; 'it's' means 'it is' or 'it has'.
'Your' shows possession; 'you're' means 'you are'.
'Their' = belonging to them; 'there' = a place; 'they're' = they are.
'Lie' means to recline (no object); 'lay' means to put something down (needs an object). The past of 'lie' is 'lay', which adds to the confusion.
Use 'who' for the subject (he/she); use 'whom' for the object (him/her).
'Then' refers to time; 'than' is used in comparisons.
'Loose' (adjective) means not tight; 'lose' (verb) means to misplace or be defeated.
'Accept' means to receive or agree; 'except' means excluding.
'Advice' is a noun; 'advise' is a verb.
In British English (used in Pakistan), 'practice' is the noun and 'practise' is the verb.
Use 'since' with a point in time; 'for' with a length of time.
'Between' is for two; 'among' is for more than two.
'Bring' means towards the speaker; 'take' means away from the speaker.
You 'borrow' from someone; you 'lend' to someone.
Traditionally, 'each other' is used for two and 'one another' for more than two.
'Farther' is for physical distance; 'further' is for extent or 'additional'.
'Beside' means next to; 'besides' means in addition to.
'Raise' needs an object (to lift something); 'rise' has no object (to go up by itself).
The speaker 'implies' (suggests); the listener 'infers' (concludes).
'Disinterested' means impartial; 'uninterested' means not interested.
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