Definitions of
sound-alike words: E
- edition
- published version, as in: Read the latest edition of the Tax Tips and Tactics newsletter.
- addition
- something added, as in: We toured the addition to the hospital yesterday.
- effect
- (1, a noun) immediate or direct result, as in: What effect does that medicine have on you?
- (2, a verb) accomplish, as in: He braided the bedsheets to effect an escape.
- affect
- to act upon or influence, as in: Strong emotions can affect your health.
- effective
- producing the desired result, as in: He has an effective introduction in his presentation.
- efficient
- producing the desired result with the least waste, as in: I design graphics for Web pages that are an efficient use of bandwidth.
- eight
- the number after seven, as in: Breakfast will be at eight in the morning.
- ate
- past tense of eat, as in: We ate
in that new restaurant last week.
- elapse
- (of time) pass by, as in: Three minutes elapsed before her page had completely loaded--too many graphics!
- lapse
- (1) to slip or fall, as in: When the announcement came, we all lapsed into silence.
- (2) to lose effect, as in: Your insurance policy will lapse if you don't pay the premiums.
- relapse
- a slip backwards, as in: Just when we thought he was going to get well, he suffered a relapse.
- elicit
- draw out, as in: The band's performances always elicit praise from the critics.
- illicit
- not allowed, as in: Illicit copying of another person's work is punishable by law.
- eligible
- qualified for, as in: Every person who submits a new word this month is eligible to win the prize.
- illegible
- hard to read, as in: I have seen Web sites where the text was illegible because the background was too strong a design.
- ineligible
- legally disqualified, as in: In the U. S., a president who has been elected twice is ineligible to run again.
- allusion
- indirect or casual mention, as in: No one made any allusion to the scandal while she was in the room.
- illusion
- presentation of a false or misleading idea, as in: The magician gave the illusion of sawing the woman in half.
- delusion
- mistaken belief of a confused state of mind, as in: He was under the delusion that he could fly.
- elusion
- evasion or clever escape, as in: The embezzlers celebrated their elusion
of the police a little too soon.
- elusive
- hard to catch or grasp, as in: The solution to the problem proved more elusive than they first thought.
- illusive
- deceptive or unreal, as in: Lost in the desert, he saw an illusive oasis called a mirage.
- emerge
- come out of something enclosed, as in: Out of four candidates, you emerge as the favorite.
- immerge
- plunge into (same as immerse), as in: Immerge the burn in cold water to minimize the skin damage.
- immerse
- plunge into, as in: Sometimes we get so immersed in our work, we forget how much time has elapsed.
- emigrate
- move out of a country, as in: My neighbors decided to emigrate to New Zealand while the children were still young.
- immigrate
- move into a country, as in: My mother immigrated to this country from Lithuania.
- emanate
- flow out from, as in : She was so creative that ideas just seemed to emanate from her.
- eminent
- outstanding, as in: Steven Hawking is one of the most eminent thinkers of our time.
- imminent
- impending, as in: When she heard a storm was imminent, she backed up her work and unplugged the computer.
- en route
- on the way, as in: En route to town to sell the cow, Jack traded the cow for some magic beans.
- root
- (1) underground part of a plant, as in: A carrot is a root vegetable.
- (2) origin or source, as in: We can't solve this problem until we get to its root.
- (3) cheer for or wish success for, as in: Who did you root for in the
Olympics?
- rout
- terrible defeat, as in: The Super Bowl turned out to be a complete rout.
- route
- a path which is planned and followed regularly, as in: I'm thinking of supplementing my salary with a newspaper route.
- assure
- declare positively, as in: I assure you that I will be finished by next Tuesday.
- ensure
- make sure, as in: Order today to ensure delivery by Monday.
- insure
- cover by insurance, as in: This company will insure the data on my hard disk as well as the computer itself.
- envelop
- enfold or surround completely, as in: The python slithered forward to envelop its prey and crush it.
- envelope
- container for a letter, as in: Please send a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope with your request.
- equable
- even or equal and uniform, as in: Their goal is to create a more equable taxation system.
- equitable
- fair and just, as in: The injured party sought an equitable settlement.
- erasable
- capable of being rubbed out or removed, as in: Don't use an eraseable pen when doing your bookkeeping records, because these records are supposed to be permanent.
- irascible
- easily provoked to anger, as in: After years of enduring chronic pain, he became so irascible it took courage to go visit him.
- especially
- standing apart uniquely from the rest, as in: The air quality where I live is especially bad. <gasp>
- specially
- given unusual treatment, as in: Look in the specially-marked boxes for your entry blank.
- assay
- chemical analysis, as in: The assay office will test your ore to see how much gold it contains.
- essay
- a short composition expressing the author's opinions, as in: Students applying for a scholarship often have to write an essay.
- every day
- each day without exception, as in: Every day, he comes home and says, "Hi, Honey. What's for dinner?"
- everyday
- ordinary, as in: Wear your everyday clothes to school, and save your finest for special occasions.
- every one
- each, without exception, as in: I bought a dozen eggs yesterday and every one was cracked when I got home.
- everyone
- everybody, as in: Everyone at work says to tell you, "Get well soon."
- ewe
- female sheep, as in: The ewe was bleating and looking for her lamb.
- yew
- evergreen tree of the taxus genus, as in: The finest violin bows are made of yew wood.
- you
- the one or ones being spoken to, as in: I guarantee that you will be
satisfied or your money will be cheerfully refunded.
- exalt
- glorify or put much higher, as in: In ancient Egypt, the pharoah was exalted over his subjects.
- exult
- rejoice, as in: The winning team went to the restaurant to exult in
their victory.
- accede
- (1) give in to, as in: We accede to your demands.
- (2) take a position of authority, as in: When did the King accede to the
throne?
- exceed
- to go past a stated amount, as in: It is illegal to exceed the speed limit.
- accept
- to agree to take, as in: I accept the terms of your offer.
- except
- excluding, as in: I knew all the answers on the test, except the last one.
- access
- permission to go in or to approach, as in: No one has access to my private files but me.
- excess
- more than enough, as in: We gave our excess fruit to our neighbors.
- expand
- enlarge, as in: One reason for a business to have a Web site is to expand its market.
- expend
- pay out money, as in: Because they neglected to expend any money or time on marketing their business, they soon went bankrupt.
- expansive
- broad, as in: Their expansive front lawn was the envy of the neighborhood.
- expensive
- costing a lot of money, as in: A large front lawn can be expensive when you add up the water bills, fertilizer bills, and energy consumed in mowing it regularly.
- expatiate
- write or speak in great detail, as in: Please forgive me if I expatiate, but this is my favorite topic.
- expiate
- atone for or make amends for, as in: She devoted her life to charity to try to expiate the wrongs of her youth.
- extant
- still existing, as in: The museum has the last extant copy of the manuscript.
- extent
- the limit to which something extends, as in: The extent of the Universe seems to grow as our ability to make better telescopes grows.
This list of definitions can't replace your dictionary. Rather
than discussing every possible meaning of the words on this list,
I try to show how one word differs from another in a group of words that sound or
look very much alike.
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