MISTAKEN IDENTITY When you use the wrong words, your writing suffers. One incorrect choice—using illicit when you mean elicit, for example—can completely change the meaning of a sentence. Because
there are many English words that sound or look almost identical, but have very different
meanings, choosing the right one can be difficult. You must understand the correct mean-
ing of the words you use in order to avoid “mistaken identity.”
The following list of the most commonly confused words can improve your writing by
showing you how to avoid such errors. As you read it, take note of those you have used incor-
rectly. You may want to write them down, along with a couple of sentences in which you
use them correctly. In your essay writing, pay careful attention to the denotative meaning
of every word you use.
