Do you know the difference between leech and leach? Not many do, so don’t feel bad. Homophones can be tough for anyone, even pro-English speakers. But I’ll quickly show you the main difference between leech and leach right here, so you never have to wonder again. Leach vs. Leech: What’s the Difference? The biggest difference between “leach” and “leech” is mostly in their meanings. “Leach,” with an A and E in the middle, is considered a verb to mean the …
Why do the words “key,” “cay,” and “quay” all sound the same if they each have different meanings? What is up with that? Well, there’s a good reason, and it’s not just variant spelling. Each of those homophones has a different origin and just so happens to land on the same English pronunciation. But let’s explore them further so you don’t get them mixed up. Cay vs. Key vs. Quay Thank you, English language, for making “cay,” “key,” and “quay” …
A currant is a small dried fruit which is raisin-like, made from a Mediterranean grape, the zante. A currant is also a berry from a currant shrub such as a blackcurrant, redcurrant or whitecurrant. They are often used in baking and in jellies and jams. Currant comes from the mid-fourteenth century term raysyn of Curans, literally raisins of Corinth, referring to the zante. In the 1570s currant was also applied to the Northern European berry. Current is a flow of water …
A border is a demarcation line which separates two geographic or political areas. A border may also refer to an edge or margin, often ornamental, such as a strip of flowers or bushes that grows along a house, garden or property line. Border may also act as a transitive verb, which takes an object, to describe providing an edge or boundary. As an instransitive verb, which takes no object, border describes something which is adjacent to another thing. Border may …
Back when I was editing full-time, I once had the pleasure of editing a 100k-word manuscript that told a beautiful story. However, the author used “vary” in place of every single “very,” and it hurt my brain. If you think these words are the same, you’re in for an awakening because I’m about to explain the vast difference between them and show you how to properly use both in a sentence. Vary vs. Very: Difference in Meaning I know they …
A click is (1.) a quick, sharp sound, (2.) the act of pressing the button on a computer mouse, (3.) two people becoming suddenly attracted to each other, (4.) two or more people coming together to work successfully, (5.) to become understandable, in a flash. Click may be used as a verb or an adjective, related words are clicks, clicked and clicking. Click is considered an echoic word, but it is also associated with the Middle English clike, which is …
Rain, reign, and rein. They may seem simple words, but their similarity in sound can cause so much confusion, especially for writers. I always see these three words commonly misused or misspelled in indie books, leading to misunderstandings and sometimes even hilarious situations. So, I’ll delve into the differences between rain, reign, and rein and provide examples of how you use them correctly. Reigns vs. Reins vs. Rains Let’s start with the most commonly confused pair: reigns and reins. Reigns …
Lesser describes something has being smaller than something else, or having less of a certain quality. Not to be confused with fewer. Lesser is an adjective that is used before the noun it modifies. To be lesser-known is somewhat famous, but not of wide acclaim. Lessor is a person who leases their property. It is commonly used in reference to airplanes. It has two pronunciations in British English with the stress being allowed on either syllable. In the United States it has only one accepted …
A quay is a landing place built on the edge of a body of water, used primarily to load and unload items and people onto and from vessels. The plural is quays. It is only capitalized when it is part of a proper name. It is more commonly used outside of the United States, which prefers the term dock. The derivative quayage is the payment a customer would give to use a quay. This word can be pronounced three different ways (e.g., key, kay, and …
Lye is a harsh chemical used in making soap or washing solutions. The term was vastly more common in the 1800s (see ngram below) because people made their own lye at home. The process includes soaking hardwood ashes for days in water. The water becomes lye, which was then used to make soap. When it became more cost-effective to buy bars of soap in a store, the use of the word lye decreased. Unfortunately, a common way to hear the word lye is in relation …