Chili is (1) a hot pepper, and (2) (short for chili con carne) a Mexican stew usually made with beans and meat and often containing the pepper. Chilly is an adjective meaning cool enough to cause chill. ... Read more
Hurdle vs. hurtle
To hurtle is (1) to move with great speed, or (2) to fling with great force. The second definition makes it a synonym of hurl. Hurtle is never a noun. To hurdle is to leap over something or to overcome an obstacle. As a noun, hurdle refers to the barriers that hurdlers and horses leap in races. ... Read more
Pale in comparison
To pale in comparison is to look weak, small, meager, or inferior compared to something else. Pale here takes the little-used sense to become smaller. It's the same pale used in the common phrase (less common in the U.S.) pale into insignificance, whose meaning is obvious. Unlike pale, which ... Read more
Hoard vs. horde
Definitions Horde refers to a large crowd or mob. It is always a noun (with rare exceptions). Hoard can be either (1) a noun referring to an accumulated store or cache, or (2) a verb meaning to accumulate a hoard. If you have a hoard of something, a horde of people might try to take it from ... Read more
Gild vs. guild
To gild is to cover with a layer of gold. It word is often used in the participial-adjective form, gilded, which means covered with a layer of gold, and it's usually figurative. Guild is a noun referring to an association of people with the same interests, trade, or pursuits. It also works as ... Read more
Macintosh, mackintosh, McIntosh
A Macintosh (now usually just Mac) is one of a series of computers made by the Apple company. A mackintosh is a style of waterproof raincoat invented in the 1820s by Charles Macintosh (the k was added to the raincoat name almost immediately). A McIntosh is a type of red apple grown primarily ... Read more
Faze vs. phase
As a verb, phase means to plan or carry out systematically. It's usually followed by in or out. For example, when you implement a plan little by little, you phase it in. When you abandon a plan little by little, you phase it out. Faze means to disrupt the composure of. If you are not bothered by ... Read more
Waist vs. waste
The waist is the part of body between the ribs and the pelvis. Waste is the word with many senses mostly relating to things used needlessly or thrown away. Its definitions include (1) to use or expend (something) needlessly, (2) to lose energy, strength, or vitality (usually with away), (3) an ... Read more
Bail vs. bale
Bale is the word for (1) tightly bound clumps of hay, cotton, or other materials, and (2) the making of such bundles. Bail is the correct word (1) in relation to sums of money given in exchange for prison release, (2) for the act of using containers to remove water from a boat, and (3) for the ... Read more
Grisly vs. grizzly
Grizzly means (1) grayish or flecked with gray, and (2) of or relating to the large brown bear native to western North America. It can also be a noun, short for grizzly bear. Grisly means gruesome, ghastly, or inspiring repugnance. There's also gristly, an adjective used to describe meat with ... Read more
