Động từ dễ gây nhầm lãn 3 pdf

depreciate/deprecate
DEPRECIATE/DEPRECATE
To depreciate something is to actually make it worse, whereas to deprecate something is simply to
speak or think of it in a manner that demonstrates your low opinion of it.
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desert/dessert
DESERT/DESSERT
Perhaps these two words are confused partly because “dessert” is one of the few words in English
with a double “S” pronounced like “Z" ("brassiere” is another). That impoverished stretch of sand
called a desert can only afford one “S.” In contrast, that rich gooey extra thing at the end of the meal
called a dessert indulges in two of them. The word in the phrase “he got his just deserts” is
confusingly pronounced just like “desserts.”
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device/devise
DEVICE/DEVISE
“Device” is a noun. A can-opener is a device. “Devise” is a verb. You can devise a plan for opening a
can with a sharp rock instead. Only in law is “devise” properly used as a noun, meaning something
deeded in a will.
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dialogue
DIALOGUE
DISCUSS
“Dialogue” as a verb in sentences like “the Math Department will dialogue with the Dean about funding” is commonly used jargon in business and
education settings; but abhorred by traditionalists. Say "have a dialogue” or “discuss” instead.
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dieties
DIETIES

DEITIES
This one is always good for a laugh. The gods are deities, after the Latin deus, meaning “god.”
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differ/vary
DIFFER/VARY
“Vary” can mean “differ,” but saying “our opinions vary” makes it sound as if they were changing all
the time when what you really mean is “our opinions differ.” Pay attention to context when choosing
one of these words.
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different
DIFFERENT THAN
DIFFERENT FROM/TO
Americans say “Scuba-diving is different from snorkeling,” the British sometimes say “different to” and those who don’t know any better say “different
than.” However, though conservatives object, you can usually get away with “different than” if a full clause ollows: “Your pashmina shawl looks
different than it used to since the cat slept on it.”
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dilemma
DILEMMA
DIFFICULTY
A dilemma is a difficult choice, not just any difficulty or problem. Whether to invite your son’s mother to his high school graduation when your current
wife hates her is a dilemma. Cleaning up after a hurricane is just a problem, though a difficult one.
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dire straights
DIRE STRAIGHTS
DIRE STRAITS
When you are threading your way through troubles as if you were traversing a dangerously narrow passage you are in “dire straits.” The expression and

the band by that name are often transformed by those who don’t understand the word “strait” into “dire straights."
See also
straightjacket/straitjacket.
List of errors
file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/dire.html03/09/2005 15:37:34
disburse/disperse
DISBURSE/DISPERSE
You disburse money by taking it out of your purse (French “bourse”) and distributing it. If you refuse
to hand out any money, the eager mob of beggars before you may disperse (scatter).
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disc/disk
DISC
DISK
“Compact disc” is spelled with a “C” because that’s how its inventors decided it should be rendered; but a computer disk is spelled with a “K” (unless
it’s a CD-ROM, of course). The New York Times insisted for many years on the spelling “compact disk” in its editorial pages, often incongruously next
to ads containing the patented spelling “disc”; but now even it has given in.
List of errors
file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/disc.html03/09/2005 15:37:38