'From the beginning' refers to states and processes; 'from scratch' refers to products and other tangible results
man made vs. artificial
the words mean the same thing, but collocate with different words, i.e. we say 'artificial intelligence' and 'man-made lake'
modern vs. state-of-the-art
'modern' is more general; 'state-of-the-art' is used for talking about cutting edge technology
copy vs. replicate
'copy' is more general; 'replicate' is more formal and is normally used in scientific and technical contexts
loose vs lose
oose is usually an adjective: Posey discovered that the cows were loose. Lose is always a verb. It means to misplace something.
toward vs towards
Toward is standard in American English. Towards is standard in British English.
e.g. vs i.e.
These two Latin abbreviations are often mixed up, but e.g. means “for example,” while i.e. means “that is.”
glow-in-the-dark vs. bioluminescent
'glow–in–the–dark' can describe artificial light; 'bioluminescent' is natural
advice vs advise
Advice is a noun: Chester gave Posey good advice. Advise is a verb: Chester advised Posey to avoid the questionable chicken salad.
complement vs compliment
A complement is something that completes something else. Compliment is a nice thing to say.
hand-made vs. man-made
hand-made is manufactured by hand; manmade is created by a human
principal vs principle
Principal can be a noun or adjective. A principle (always a noun) is a firmly held belief or ideal.
than vs then
Than is used for comparisons: Posey runs faster than Chester. Then is used to indicate time or sequence: Posey took off running, and then Chester came along.
empathy vs sympathy
Empathy is the ability to understand another person’s perspective or feelings. Sympathy is a feeling of sorrow for someone else’s suffering.
emmigrate vs immigrate
emigrate means to move away from a country to live somewhere else. Immigrate means to into a country from somewhere else.
ongoing vs. in progress
'ongoing': when something isn't finished and will continue for some time; in progress: when a task is underway and will finish in the near future
clean vs. pure
'clean' means 'not dirty', 'unusued' 'pure' means 'untainted', 'not mixed'
stationary vs. stationery
stationary refers to lack of movement / stationery is office supplies
gray vs grey
Gray is the standard American English spelling. Grey is the standard British English spelling.
licence vs. license
license used interchangeably in US English / licence is noun, license is verb in Canada
reproduce vs. breed
'breed' is only used to talk about animals
butterfly vs. moth
moths are less colorful and fly at night
defence vs defense
Defense is standard in American English. Defence is found mainly in British English.
help vs. aid
'aid' is slightly more formal than 'help'
progress vs. advancement
'advancement' is a countable noun; progress can be used as a verb or an uncountable noun
breath vs breathe
Breath is a noun; it’s the air that goes in and out of your lungs: Chester held his breath while Posey skateboarded down the stairs. Breathe is a verb.
effect vs affect
Affect is usually a verb: Chester’s humming affected Posey’s ability to concentrate. Effect is usually a noun: Chester was sorry for the effect his humming had.
who's vs whose
Who’s is a contraction of “who is”: Who’s calling Chester at this hour? Whose is a possessive pronoun that means “belonging to [someone]”.
back then vs. the other day
back then: a particular time in the past that you are talking about; the other day: the recent past or a day that occurred close to the present day
Inquiry vs enquiry
Inquiry and enquiry both mean “a request for information.” Inquiry is the standard American English spelling. Enquiry is the British spelling.
further vs farther
Farther refers to physical distance: Posey can run farther than Chester. Further refers to metaphorical distance: Chester is further away finishing his task.
Your experience on this site will be improved by allowing cookies.