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Many correctly spelled words that are being used incorrectly won't be found by a spellcheck. There are a few common reasons for this:
They're frequently confused with other words.
They result from simple, easy-to-make typos.
In each case, creating an exclusion list can force your spellchecker to stop at these words and ask you to check them once more, just to be sure. In Microsoft Word, this list is referred to as an "exclusion list". (See Chapter 10 of Effective Onscreen Editing for details on creating and using exclusion dictionaries.)
The table of word pairs that follows was originally compiled by Carolyn Haley and members of the copyediting-l discussion group, but I've modified and updated it as new words were suggested by my work and my colleagues. Additional words were suggested by Matt Stevens. The list is in alphabetical order, with the word that comes first in the left column. After the table, I've provided a single-column list of the words that you can copy and paste into your word processor to create the exclusion list. (Details on how to do this will vary among word processors. Consult the online help for details.)
If you have any words or word pairs you'd like to add to the list, please send them to me via my Contact page.
adaption | adaptation |
adviser | advisor |
affect | effect |
ameba | amoeba |
as | ass |
asses
|
asset |
assess | assets |
assume | subsume |
ate | eat |
barely | barley |
bride | bridge |
canceled | cancelled |
catalog | catalogue |
calvary
|
cavalry |
compiled | complied |
complement | compliment |
county | country |
curser | cursor |
dairy | diary |
descendant | descendent |
dialog | dialogue |
drier | dryer |
economic | economical |
eg | e.g., |
flair | flare |
foreword | forward |
form | from |
funguses | fungi |
gorilla | guerrilla |
gray | grey |
hair | hare |
home
|
hone |
ie | i.e., |
important | impotent |
input | inputted |
intension | intention |
irregardless | regardless |
it's | its |
lager | larger |
led
|
lead |
loose | lose |
manage | mange |
manager | manger |
managers | mangers |
marital | martial |
miniscule
|
minuscule |
necessarily | necessary |
patent | patient |
penal | penile |
perform | preform |
phonology | phenology |
phonological | phenological |
poses | posses |
posses
|
possess |
predominantly | predominately |
principal | principle |
perspective | prospective |
pubic | public |
quadrate | quadrat |
quadrates | quadrats |
rabbi | rabbit |
reign | rein |
sail | sale |
sale | sell |
sequestrate | sequester |
stationary | stationery |
straight | strait |
supercede | supersede |
that | which |
their | there |
than | then |
toward
|
towards |
trail | trial |
under way | underway |
useable | usable |
valance | valence |
were | where |
adviser
advisor
affect
ameba
amoeba
as
ass
asses
assess
asset
assets
assume
ate
barely
barley
bride
bridge
calvary
canceled
cancelled
catalog
catalogue
cavalry
compiled
complement
complied
compliment
country
county
curser
cursor
dairy
descendant
descendent
dialog
dialogue
diary
drier
dryer
eat
economic
economical
effect
flair
flare
foreword
form
forward
from
gorilla
gray
grey
guerrilla
hair
hare
home
hone
important
impotent
input
inputted
intension
intention
it's
its
lead
led
loose
lose
manage
manager
managers
mange
manger
mangers
marital
martial
miniscule
minuscule
necessarily
necessary
patent
patient
penal
penile
perform
perspective
poses
posses
possess
predominantly
predominately
preform
principal
principle
prospective
pubic
public
rabbi
rabbit
reign
rein
sail
sale
sell
stationary
stationery
straight
strait
subsume
supercede
supersede
than
that
their
then
there
toward
towards
trail
trial
under way
underway
valance
valence
were
where
which
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