Lessons on Commonly Confused Words

Construction has a bad __________________ on traffic. 

• Affect
• Effect

Rain and snow also ________________ traffic flow. 

• Affect
• Effect

A truck lost __________ load on the freeway. 

• It's
• Its

Four racers ____ in a bobsled during a race.

• set
• sit

It is _________ much work for one day.

• too
• to
• two

The Standing Rock Sioux tribe worries that the $3.8 billion pipeline from North Dakota to Illinois will threaten its drinking water and destroy sacred ______. 
— Seattle Times (Nov 1, 2016)

• cites
• sites

“We cannot just _______ in the twenty-first century that hundreds of millions of people are left out.” 
— Nature (Oct 31, 2016)

• accept
• except

UAB Hospital, where the injured were treated, declined to release information on them, ______ requests by their families for privacy. 
— Washington Times (Nov 1, 2016)

• citing
• siting

The premium, he said, reflects the average cost of care for an _______ population. 
— New York Times (Oct 29, 2016)

• insured
• ensured

Angela _________ made dinner before her kids came home.

• all ready
• already