Sophomore “Right Word” List
Put this list in your binder and bring it with you to class every day.
1. accept—(v.) to receive with approval
except—(prep.) other than; (conj.) unless
2. affect -- (v.) to influence
effect – (n.) a consequence; a result
3. among—(prep.) in the midst of, in shares for each (when dividing among more than two)
between— (prep.) in the space or time separating, in shares for each (dividing between two)
4. amount— (n.) used for bulk measurement
number— (n.) used to count separate units
5. base—(n.) the part on which a thing rests or stands, the lowest part, a corner of a baseball
diamond, a mathematical term, or a word to which other parts may be added (stem)
base— (adj.) morally low, menial, or degrading
base—(v.) to place on a basis or foundation, to locate, or to station
bass— (n.) pronounced base-- a low, male singing voice or instrument
bass—(adj.) pronounced base-- referring to a low, male singing voice or instrument
bass—(n.) a freshwater or saltwater food and game fish of North America
6. bizarre—(adj.) very strange or weird
bazaar—(n.) a sale or place of sale for various items
7. brake—(n.)
brake—(v.)
break—(n.)
break—(v.)
a device for slowing or stopping a wheel or vehicle
to cause to slow down or stop
a brief rest period, a broken part of something, the beginning, or (slang) good luck
to crack or cause to separate into pieces, to fail to obey, to escape from, to end
8. bring—(v.) to carry or cause something or someone to come with oneself, to cause to occur
take—(v.) to get hold of, to win, to subscribe to, to choose, to use as a means of transportation
9. cent—(n.) a coin worth one hundredth of a dollar
scent—(n.) a smell or aroma
scent—(v.) to sense or know by smell
sent -- (v) past tense of send; to arrange for something to be taken to another place
10. choose—(v.) to select
chose—(v.) past tense of choose
chosen—(v.) past perfect tense of choose
chosen—(adj.) selected as a preference
11. chord—(n.) a combination of three or more musical notes, a straight line segment joining any
two points on the circumference of a circle, or a feeling/emotion
cord—(n.) a string, rope, or wire
12. cite—(v.) to quote or mention as an authority or to summon to appear before a court of law
sight—(n.) the power of seeing, vision, or something seen/viewed
sight—(v.) to perceive with the eyes
site—(n.) the position of a place or town, or a place where something is found or happened
13. cloth—(n.) material made by weaving, knitting, braiding, etc.
clothe—(v.) to put clothes on, to provide clothes for someone, or to cover someone/something
clothes—(n.) clothing, apparel
14. connotation—(n.) the emotional idea or feeling that people connect to a word
denotation—(n) the literal meaning of a word
15. definite—(adj.) clearly defined, exact, positive, or having fixed limits
definitely—(adv.) adverbial form of definite; certainly; WATCH SPELLING
defiant—(adj.) boldly or openly resisting
defiantly—(adv.) adverbial form of defiant; WATCH SPELLING
16. desert—(n.) a sandy or rocky area with very little rainfall and vegetation
desert—(v.) to go away from someone or something, to abandon
dessert—(n.) a sweet course or treat served at the end of a meal
17. drank—(v.) past tense of the verb drink
drunk— (v.) past perfect tense of the verb drink
drunk— (n.) a person who has drunk too much alcohol and is intoxicated
drunk— (adj.) intoxicated, under the influence of alcohol
drunken—(adj.) intoxicated, under the influence of alcohol
18. farther—(adj.) refers to physical distance
further – (adv.) refers to additional time, quantity, or degree
19. fewer—(quantifier pro.) refers to the count of number of separate units
less—(quantifier pro.) refers to bulk measurement
20. good—(adj.) above average, agreeable, honorable, reliable, or beneficial
well—(adv.) in a good, satisfactory, clear, thorough, or healthy way
21. hang—(v.) to fasten or attach from above, to die by hanging, or to suspend/dangle
hanged—(v.) past tense of hang when referring to a person
hung—(v.) past tense of hang when referring to an object
22. imply—(v.) to suggest or express indirectly (the speaker)
infer—(v.) to draw a conclusion from something that is known or hinted at (the listener)
23. its—(adj.) belonging to it (possessive pronoun used as an adj.)
it’s—(contraction) it is or it has (pronoun and verb combined as subject/verb)
24. lead—(v.) to show the way or to begin
led—(v.) past tense of lead
lead—(n.) pronounced led-- a heavy, soft, poisonous metallic element
lead—(n.) the main role or a person who has the main role
lead—(n.) a clue or an introductory sentence/sentences of an article or story
25. lay—(transitive. v.=needs an object) to place; also past tense of lie
lie—(intransitive v. =does not need object) to recline
lie –( v) to say something untrue
26. loose—(adj.) not firmly attached
lose—(v.) to have no longer due to some act or accident
27. medal—(n.) a flat piece of metal given as an award
metal—(n.) a chemical element such as gold, lead, copper, or iron
mettle—(n.) spirit, courage, or the quality of a person’s character
meddle – (v) to interfere in something that does not concern you
28. pedal—(n.) a foot-operated part or lever that operates or controls a working machine, etc.
pedal—(v.) to push/operated the pedal or pedals
petal—(n.) the divisions or parts of a flower
peddle—(v.) to travel from place to place and sell small things
29. precede—(v.) to go or come before or ahead of
proceed—(v.) to continue, especially after a stop or interruption
30. principle—(n.) a basic truth, law, belief, or doctrine
principal— (n.) head of a school, a person who takes a leading role, or an original sum of money
borrowed or invested
principal—(adj.) greatest, first, or main
31. quote—(v.) to repeat or reproduce the exact words of, to bring forward as evidence, or to state
a price *In FORMAL writing, it is not grammatically proper to use the verb quote as a noun in
place of quotation.
quotation—(n.) a person’s words quoted or repeated exactly by another person, or a statement
of the current price offered for a stock, bond, etc.
32. regardless—(adj./adv.) having or showing no regard or consideration; in spite of
irregardless—this is not a word and should not be used in place of regardless.
33. root— (n) the lower part of a plant that grows in soil or water, or the origin of something
root— (v.) to dig up, to search , to give encouragement to or to cheer (used with for)
route—(n.) pronounced either rout or root-- a course, road, or way for travel
rout—(n.) an overwhelming or complete defeat
rout—(v.) to uncover or find by searching, to drive or force out, or to search for (same as root)
34. sense—(n.) a power by which a living being can determine something (e.g., sight), or a feeling of
awareness, or reasonableness
sense—(v.) to be aware or conscious of or to understand
since—(adv./prep.) from then till now; continuously after the time of, or during the time after
since—(conj.) because
35. sophomore—(n.) a student in the second year of high school or college
sophmore— the incorrect spelling of sophomore
36. than—(conj.) in comparison with or except/but
then—(adv.) at that time, at another time, in that case, or in addition
then—(n.) that time
37. their—(pron./adj.) of or belonging to them
there—(adv.) in or toward that place
there—(pron.) a function word used to introduce a sentence or clause in which the verb comes
before the real subject
they’re- they are
38. threw—(v.) past tense of the verb throw
through—(prep/adv.) from the beginning to the end, because of, or having finished from one
side to the opposite or other side, or from beginning to end
through—(adj.) finished or allowing free or unobstructed traffic
thru— another spelling of through (not preferred, especially in formal writing)
thorough—(adj.) complete, exact
39. waist—(n.) the middle part of the human body
waste—(v.) to use or spend in a careless or useless way, or to lose strength, energy, or health
waste—(n.) wild or desolate place, garbage, material eliminated from a body, or useless things
40. which—(pron.) what one or ones, a thing, circumstance, or event that…
witch—(n.) an ugly, ill-natured, and/or evil woman
41. who—(pron.) used as the subject of a verb; (TRICK: use with HE) Who went to the store? HE did.
whom—(pron.) used as the object of a preposition or as a direct object; (TRICK: use with HIM or
THEM –match the “M”) Whom do you love? I love him/them.
whoever—(pron.) used when it does not matter who (HE) DOES something
whomever—(pron.) used when it does not matter who RECEIVES something or has
something done to HIM or THEM (match the “M”)
42. woman—(n.) an adult female human being
women—(n.) more than one adult female human being