90 Easily confused words

A

B

C Words similar in form and close in meaning

The United Nations should intervene to stop the civil war. [step in; neutral in meaning] She shouldn’t interfere in things that don’t concern her. [involve herself; negative and critical] The phone’s been ringing continually. It’s driving me crazy. [very frequently; often negative] Stir the mixture continuously until it boils. [without stopping; from a recipe] There’s a new series on TV about space exploration. [set of related programmes] I don’t want to miss this week’s episode of Oliver Twist. It’s a serial – if I miss one, I’ll lose track of the

story. [set of programmes where the story continues over different episodes] We sat in the shade of a big oak tree. [out of the sun; pleasant connotation] The evening sun cast long shadows. [dark areas or shapes] They lived in the shadow of a chemical factory. [in a place dominated by; negative connotation] She complimented me on my performance at the concert. [praised, expressed admiration for] I took a course in programming to complement my other IT skills. [make them seem better, more

complete or more attractive in combination]

Words of different form but from the same area of meaning

The cake mixture should be moist but not sticky. [slightly wet; from a recipe] The climate in the north is damp and rather cold. [slightly wet in an unpleasant way] The theme of the festival was ‘1,000 years of culture’. [the main idea that everything followed] The topic of conversation soon changed to the news. [what the people talked about] The security officer noticed a broken window. [concerned with protection of property, etc.] The safety officer told him that he must wear a helmet. [concerned with prevention of accidents, etc.] We took a smaller road in order to avoid the roadworks on the motorway. [stay away from] The escaped prisoner evaded capture for three months. [escaped from; more formal]

Phrasal combinations

Phrasal verbs may have noun forms with different meanings. verb noun

Six men broke out of the prison. There was a breakout at the prison.

The disease has broken out in several villages in the north of the country. There has been an outbreak of the disease in several villages in the north of the country.

Economists are looking out for signs of an end to the recession. The outlook is not good. The economy seems to be stagnant.

He stood at the corner, looking out for police cars. He was the lookout while the others robbed the bank.

The Swimming Club decided to set up a committee to look into the club rules. The company setup is quite complex, with branches in 30 different countries. In some cases, two verb forms have the same words in a different order and different meanings. verb 1: particle first verb 2: particle second upend[move into a vertical position] uphold[confirm, support] outdo[do better than] end up [finish] hold up [delay] do out [decorate] outrun [run faster than] run out [use something so there is none left] upset [make someone worried, unhappy or angry] set up [organise or arrange something]

Language help

Common prepositions often occur as prefixes, e.g. up and out in the table above. Other examples include over (overcook, overcome), in (input, income). Make a note of new examples as you meet them.

90.1

90.2

90.3

Choose the correct word in these sentences.

1 I have always tried not to intervene / interfere in things that are not my business. 2 Security / Safety at the factory is not good. There have been several accidents involving machinery recently. 3 There are some themes / topics I don’t like to talk about with my friends, such as politics and religion. 4 He was dozing happily in the shade / shadows of an old beech tree. 5 The theme / topic of her latest novel is growing up as an only child in the 1970s. 6 The teacher intervened / interfered to stop the argument between the two students. 7 The receptionist called the safety / security officer once it became clear that there had been a burglary. 8 He was continually / continuously complaining about something or other. 9 The moon sometimes casts wonderful shadows / shade on the sea. 10 You have to press the button continually / continuously until the green light comes on. Don’t take your finger off it, or it won’t work.

Decide whether the particle should go before or after the verb in these sentences. 1 The cheetah is so fast it can run a fast-moving vehicle. (out) 2 The police held the traffic while the President’s car passed. (up) 3 Sean made an insensitive comment and didn’t realise how much he’d set Wendy. (up) 4 The committee held her complaint, and she was awarded compensation. (up) 5 We decided to do the living room and went online to choose paint colours. (out) 6 We ended eating in a dingy café on the edge of town. (up) 7 The radio’s not working. The batteries have run . (out) 8 We ended the sofa and used it to block the doorway. (up)

Choose a noun from the box that can be associated with the following sentences.

lookout outbreak breakout upset outlook setup

1 There has been violence in the capital city. 2 My stomach was bad so I couldn’t go to work. 3 The prospects for the economy are good over the coming years. 4 I wanted to learn more about how the business was organised. 5 She made sure nobody was looking, and her husband did the shoplifting. 6 Four prisoners have escaped from a maximum security prison.