Commonly confused words
በብዛት የሚምታቱ ቃላት
Words that sound the same or almost the same but mean different things: their/there/they're, your/you're, then/than, affect/effect and more. Spell-check will not catch them, because each one is a real word.
Words that sound the same
These pairs and triples are pronounced the same, so the only way to choose is meaning. A quick test for the apostrophe words: say the full form. If “they are” fits, write they're; if “you are” fits, write you're; if “it is” fits, write it's.
In Amharic
እነዚህ ጥንዶችና ሦስትዮሾች አንድ ዓይነት ይነበባሉ፤ ስለዚህ መምረጫው ትርጉሙ ብቻ ነው። አፖስትሮፊ ላላቸው ቃላት ፈጣን ፈተና፦ ሙሉ ቅርጹን ይናገሩ። “they are” ከገጠመ they're ይጻፉ፤ “you are” ከገጠመ you're፤ “it is” ከገጠመ it's።
| Word | Meaning | Amharic | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| their | belonging to them | የእነሱ | Their car is blue. |
| there | in that place; there is/are | እዚያ፤ አለ | Put it there. There are two rooms. |
| they're | they are | እነሱ ናቸው | They're late. |
| your | belonging to you | የእርስዎ | Is this your bag? |
| you're | you are | እርስዎ ነዎት | You're welcome. |
| its | belonging to it | የእሱ (ለነገር) | The store changed its hours. |
| it's | it is / it has | እሱ ነው | It's closed today. |
| to | direction; before a verb | ወደ፤ -ለ- | I go to work. I want to eat. |
| too | also; more than enough | ደግሞ፤ በጣም | Me too. It's too hot. |
| two | the number 2 | ሁለት | two children |
| whose | belonging to whom | የማን | Whose phone is this? |
| who's | who is / who has | ማን ነው | Who's at the door? |
| hear | with your ears | መስማት | I can't hear you. |
| here | in this place | እዚህ | Come here. |
- Words with an apostrophe are always two words squeezed together (they're, you're, it's, who's).
- too has an extra o for “extra”: too much, me too.
- here is inside there and where: all three are about place.
- There are three apartments for rent, and their prices are fair.
- You're right; your form is missing a signature.
- It's a good school, and its teachers are kind.
- I want to go too, but two tickets are too expensive.
- Whose car is parked outside? Who's driving it?
Words that look or sound similar
These are not pronounced exactly the same, but learners mix them up. Several pairs are a noun and a verb: advice (noun, ምክር) and advise (verb, መምከር); effect (noun) and affect (verb). Some pairs are one word in Amharic but two in English: ማዋስ / መዋስ are lend / borrow, and ማምጣት / መውሰድ are bring / take.
In Amharic
እነዚህ በትክክል አንድ ዓይነት አይነበቡም፤ ግን ተማሪዎች ያምታቷቸዋል። ብዙዎቹ ጥንዶች ስምና ግሥ ናቸው፦ advice (ስም፣ ምክር) እና advise (ግሥ፣ መምከር)፤ effect (ስም) እና affect (ግሥ)። አንዳንድ ጥንዶች ደግሞ በአማርኛ ቅርብ ቃላት ሲሆኑ በእንግሊዝኛ የተለያዩ ናቸው፦ ማዋስ / መዋስ = lend / borrow፤ ማምጣት / መውሰድ = bring / take።
| Word | Meaning | Amharic | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| then | next; at that time | ከዚያ | Eat first, then go. |
| than | in comparisons | ከ… ይልቅ | She is taller than me. |
| affect | verb: to change something | መንካት፣ ተጽዕኖ ማድረግ | The heat affects my sleep. |
| effect | noun: a result | ውጤት፣ ተጽዕኖ | The medicine had a good effect. |
| accept | to say yes; to receive | መቀበል | We accept cash. |
| except | but not | ከ… በስተቀር | Open every day except Sunday. |
| lose | to not have any more | ማጣት | Don't lose your keys. |
| loose | not tight | ልል | These pants are loose. |
| advice | noun: an opinion | ምክር | Thank you for the advice. |
| advise | verb: to give advice | መምከር | I advise you to wait. |
| borrow | to take for a short time | መዋስ | Can I borrow your pen? |
| lend | to give for a short time | ማዋስ | Can you lend me your pen? |
| bring | to carry here | ማምጣት | Bring your ID tomorrow. |
| take | to carry there | መውሰድ | Take this letter to the office. |
| a lot | many; much (two words) | ብዙ | a lot of work (never alot) |
| quiet | not noisy | ጸጥ ያለ | The library is quiet. |
| quite | fairly; very | በጣም፣ ትንሽ | It's quite cold. |
- You borrow FROM someone; someone lends TO you. Not: Can you borrow me $20?
- bring = toward the speaker; take = away from the speaker.
- Most of the time: affect is the verb, effect is the noun.
- than goes with comparatives: better than, more than. then is about time: and then.
- This apartment is cheaper than the last one.
- We visited the clinic, and then we went home.
- Can I borrow your car? / Can you lend me your car?
- The new schedule will affect everyone.
- My lawyer advised me to keep the receipts. It was good advice.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| They're coming tomorrow. | They are coming → they're. | |
| You're welcome. | You are welcome → you're. | |
| He is older than me. | Comparisons use than. | |
| Can you lend me your phone? | lend = give for a time; borrow = take for a time. | |
| I have a lot of work. | a lot is always two words. | |
| I don't want to lose my job. | lose (one o) = stop having; loose = not tight. |
Practice
Each answer is checked as you go, with the reason. Nothing here is saved.
___ moving to Henderson next month.
Thank you! — ___ welcome.
My rent is higher ___ last year. (then / than)
Can you ___ me $10 until Friday?
The store is open every day ___ Sunday.
It's ___ hot to walk today. (to / too / two)
The cold weather can ___ your health.
My friend gave me some good ___.
___ phone is ringing? (whose / who's)
(At home, to a guest) Please ___ your children next time!
Don't ___ your receipt. (lose / loose)