Look Alikes That Confuse Us

By Judith P. Nembhard

The blurb on the package said the particular brand of pantyhose I had bought would “compliment” my skin tones. I read it again to make sure that was what it said. Yes, I had read correctly. When I got home, I sent off a polite little note (a letter really) to the company that sold the stockings, explaining the misuse of the word “compliment.” In a little while, I received a reply that said, among other things, “There are two ways to spell the word.” Now, wasn’t that news!

Of course there are two spellings, and they have two different meanings, too. To “compliment” is “to give praise” to someone, something pantyhose is incapable of doing. On the other hand, to “complement” is “to add to,” just what I wanted the stockings to do for my skin tones.

Many look-alike and sound-alike word pairs, such as “compliment/complement,” are often confused and so are misused in writing. They are like identical twins that give everyone a difficult time trying to distinguish between them. But when we use word pairs, we have to distinguish between them.

Compliment: I must compliment you on the excellent speech you gave today.
-My boss gives many compliments, no criticism.
Complement: This new piece of cancer research complements earlier studies.
-We need someone to complement our team, not detract from it.

Two other words often misused are “farther” and “further.” A few days ago I heard one of the hosts on a television morning show say, “Go no further.” Then he quickly corrected himself and said, “Go no farther.” Evidently, he was having a little trouble using the right form of the word in context. “Farther” designates distance. “Further” shows extent or degree.

Farther: The gas in your tank will take you no farther than a mile.
-Farther up the road you’ll come to a cozy little inn
Further: This is further evidence that you have not been truthful.
-Your contribution will help to further the work that we have begun.
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Two even more commonly confused words are “affect” and “effect.” Most of the time the person using one or the other is sure of the intended meaning but is unsure about the spelling. “Affect” is used as a verb and means “to influence.” “Effect” can be a noun, meaning “result” or a verb meaning, “to bring about” or “to cause.”

Effect: (noun) The widespread use of chemicals has had a harmful effect on the
environment.
Effect: (verb) The new bill will effect change in the way the city does business.
Affect: Do not let Jim’s remarks affect the way you feel about our company.

The use of these word-pairs presents real-world problems for many people. If you are one of them, take the time to learn how to distinguish between them by their meaning and their spelling. And remember to pronounce them correctly. If you have questions about word usage, send them to me, and I’ll be glad to answer them for you.