Words Easily Confused Online Trivia | Definitions

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Two words that may easily be confused based on their close spellings are 'ingenious' and 'ingenuous'. The word 'ingenious' is an adjective meaning 'clever' or 'inventive'. Which of the following is the closest in definition to the word 'ingenuous'?

Answer: Naive

Someone who is 'ingenuous' is innocent, child-like and unsophisticated in speech or thought.

The pronunciations of the two words are quite dissimilar ('ingenious' pronounced in-JEEN-yuhs and 'ingenuous' pronounced in-JEN-yoo-uhs), so, ideally, they should not be confused in speech.

The word 'ingenuous' comes from the Latin 'ingenuus', literally meaning 'native'. Oddly enough, the word 'ingenuous' was formerly defined as meaning 'noble' or 'generous', but this definition has become obsolete. The word 'ingenious' comes from the Latin 'ingenium', meaning 'intellect' or 'mind'.

2. The words 'complaisant' and 'complacent' are often confused in both writing and speaking. The word 'complacent' refers to 'a smug sense of self satisfaction', but what is the proper definition for its homophone 'complaisant'?

Answer: Easily willing to please others

Actually, the meanings are not completely unrelated, one referring to a sense of self-pleasure, the other referring to the concern for the pleasure of others. This makes sense when one explores the etymology of the two words, both arising from the same source, the Latin 'complacere', meaning 'to please'.

3. One of the most common errors I encounter in both printed and spoken English is a confusion between the words 'flout' and 'flaunt'. Which of the two words, if either, means to 'openly disregard' something?

Answer: Flout

The word flout comes from the Dutch 'fluiten', meaning 'whistle, play the flute'. Its archaic meaning, to mock, somewhat relates to its more modern meaning, to 'openly disregard' a rule, or some other formally established institution.

The word flaunt is in no way related to flout. To flaunt means to display something (wealth, for example) ostentatiously.

Typically, the word flaunt is used in cases where the word flout should be used (ex. He decided to flaunt the rules and not wear a tie.)

4. The words 'compliment' and 'complement' are homophones, and to make matters worse, their spellings are only separated by a single letter. Compliment is the more commonly used word, meaning 'an expression of praise' in noun form, and the provision of such praise as a verb. Complement is a less common, but equally useful term. Which of these words is a synonym of complement?

Answer: Addition

The most common definition of complement is something that enhances or improves another thing by virtue of some added features it provides. The word actually has several other meanings, depending on the field of its usage (grammar, geometry, medicine, etc.)

Because of their similar spellings, it should come as no shock that the two words (compliment/complement) have a common Latin root, 'complementum', meaning 'complete, full'.

5. In this question, I'm thinking about two words that often get confused in their verb form. One of these words means 'to fail', while the other means 'to struggle'. The name of which of these fish fits the latter definition?

Answer: Flounder

The words described in the question (in verb form) are 'founder' (to fail) and 'flounder' (to struggle). The two words, as verbs, are sometimes confused in both written and spoken English. There is no confusion between the two words in their noun forms.

A founder is someone who first establishes something, a company perhaps, while a flounder is a coastal flat fish that hugs the ocean bottom.

6. Another example of confusion based on pronunciation is that which occurs in the use of 'effect' and 'affect'. Which of these words, if either, can be used as a noun meaning 'a result'?

Answer: Effect

The difference between the two words is somewhat subtle, which does not help in regards to alleviating the confusion between them. Affect means to make a difference to something, while to effect something is to bring about some particular result. Effect also has a noun form, meaning 'a result'. There is a specialized noun form for affect; in the field of psychology, it means 'emotion as influencing behavior'.

The two words have different etymologies. Affect ultimately comes from the Latin 'affectare', meaning 'to aim at', while effect comes from the Latin 'effectus', meaning 'to accomplish'.

7. Like some of the examples above, the spellings of the words 'averse' and 'adverse' are separated by the insertion of a single letter. Both are adjectives, adverse meaning 'harmful'. Which of these would be a proper antonym for the word averse?

Answer: Supportive

It is more likely that the word adverse will be used in place of averse, for example, 'I am not adverse to trying new things.' The word averse means 'opposed to', its etymology from the Latin 'avertere', which means 'to turn from'. The word adverse comes from the Latin 'adversus', meaning 'against, opposite'.

8. Two words that are confused both by their similar spelling and pronunciation are 'discreet' and 'discrete'. The more commonly used word of the two is discreet, which means 'prudent' or 'unobtrusive'. Which of these definitions best describes its homophone discrete?

Answer: Individually separate

It is no wonder that these two words are often confused in print, as their spellings and pronunciations are so very similar. Incidentally, the origin of the words explains their similar spelling, both coming from the Latin 'discretus', meaning 'separate'.

9. 'Appraise' and 'apprise' are pronounced differently, but this does not prevent them from being confused in speech. Which one of them, if either, has the same meaning as the word 'praise'?

Answer: Neither

Though the spelling of the three words are similar, and there are some commonalities in their etymologies, the three words have very discrete meanings. To appraise something is to assess its value, while typically the word apprise is used in the construction 'apprise someone of', in other words, to inform or tell someone. To praise someone or something is to express your admiration or approval for that person or thing.

10. 'If we don't play well in the second half, we will loose this game.' Which word in the preceding sentence is used incorrectly?

Answer: Loose

One of the most common spelling errors I see in writing involves a confusion between the words 'loose' and 'lose'. When you lose a game, you simply do not win. The word loose has nothing to do with winning or losing, but rather refers to something not tightly in place or tied down properly, or, in another sense of the word, relaxed or even careless.

I hope you have enjoyed this quiz and perhaps learned a few new things. Thank you for playing. I invite you to try some of my other quizzes if this one pleased you.

Source: Author thejazzkickazz

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Words Easily Confused Trivia Quiz

The English language contains a number of words that sound so similar they are confused very easily. In large part, these are homophones, but this is not always the case. Please partake in this quiz as we sample some of these awkward cases. Good luck!

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