English Toolkit

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11.4Confused words of similar meaning
TYPICAL ERROR A smaller amount of people attended than the organisers had hoped for.
CORRECTION A smaller number of people attended than the organisers had hoped for.

EXPLANATION It is common to hear people use amount when they really mean number. Amount refers to a quantity (e.g. a quantity of flour, which is not made up of separate, individual countable items or pieces). By contrast, number refers to countable, separate items. Hence, we say that a smaller amount of water is required by certain plants than others or that a particular bucket holds a greater amount of water than another. By contrast, we might say that a greater number of people watched the Olympic Games than ever before.

There are many such pairs of words that are commonly confused (Indeed, a great number!)

For each pair of frequently confused words, drag the correct word into the appropriate sentence.
a
alternate (every second one) / alternative (a choice)
i. Because the road is flooded, we will have to find an
route.

ii. The Ashes test rivalry dates from a series in England in 1882, but every
series since then has been played in Australia.

alternate

alternative



b
amount (quantity) / number (countable)
i. Federer served a large
of aces.

ii. For a large
of the match, his opponent looked outclassed.

amount

number



c
compare (similarities) / contrast (differences)
i. If we
the two species of monkey, we find that they have a lot in common.

ii. If we
monkeys and humans, we can see that, despite similarities, there are significant differences.

compare

contrast



d
contemporary / modern (con + temp = the same time, e.g. a contemporary of Confucius)
i. Haydn and Mozart were
composers, both writing music in the eighteenth century.

ii. One wonders what Mozart and Haydn would make of
music.

modern

contemporary



e
continual (interrupted) / continuous (not interrupted or broken)
i. Despite
rain interruptions, most of the matches were completed.

ii. Cars should not cross
parallel lines in the middle of the road.

continual

continuous



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