WORDS OFTEN CONFUSED
275
denoting the ceremony surrounding a burial or cremation (a quiet funeral) or, figuratively, the destruction of something (the funeral of her hopes), whereas the adjective funereal has the wider sense of “gloomy” or “mournful” (funereal surroundings). funereal/funeral further/farther
See
furthest/farthest
FUNERAL/FUNEREAL.
See
FARTHER/FURTHER. FARTHER/FURTHER.
See
gait/gate The nouns gait and gate are pronounced identically but are unrelated in meaning. Gait means “manner of walking”: She recognized him by his unusual gait, arms swinging out of time with his legs. Gate means “opening in wall or fence”: The visitors entered by the garden gate. gamble/gambol The verbs gamble and gambol share the same pronunciation but have different meanings. Gamble means “stake something on an uncertain outcome”: He gambled everything he had on reaching town before dawn. Gambol means “frisk,” “frolic,” or “skip about in play”: He gamboled like a newborn lamb on the lawn. gambol/gamble gate/gait
See
See
GAMBLE/GAMBOL.
GAIT/GATE.
general/generic These two adjectives are related in meanings but are not synonymous. General includes among its meanings “overall,” “as a whole,” and “widespread” (a general armistice, in general, a general effect), whereas generic is more specific, meaning “of or relating to a group or class” (a generic term). Generic also has the secondary meaning of “nonproprietary” (a generic drug). generic/general
See
GENERAL/GENERIC.
genes/jeans These two words are unrelated in meaning and should not be confused in spelling. Genes are the units of inheritance responsible for transferring certain traits from one generation to another (inherit genes from your parents), whereas jeans are trousers made from hardwearing cotton twill cloth or denim (a pair of blue jeans). genial/congenial
See
CONGENIAL/GENIAL.