CONFUSING WORDS & FALSE FRIENDS (CHECK YOUR ENGLISH VOCABULARY FOR IELTS)

CHECK YOUR ENGLISH VOCABULARY FOR IELTS

CONFUSING WORDS & FALSE FRIENDS

CONFUSING WORDS

Confusing words are two or more words which have a similar meaning to each other but are used in a different way

OR

Are related to the same topic, but have a different meaning.

OR

Look similar, but have a different meaning.

FALSE FRIENDS

False friends are words in English which have a similar-looking word in another language but which have a different meaning.

Complete the following sentences with the appropriate word.

1	action/activity The police took immediate _____________ when they realised the situation was getting out of hand. Economic _____________ stagnated as the recession took hold.
2	advice/advise Can you _____________ me on the best course of action to take? He offered me some excellent _____________.
3	affect/effect Cuts in spending will have a serious _____________ on the National Health Service. The strike will seriously _____________ train services.
4	appreciable/appreciative There is an _____________ difference between manslaughter and murder. She was very _____________ of our efforts to help.
5	assumption/presumption They raised taxes on the _____________ that it would help control spending. It’s sheer _____________ for the government to suggest things have improved since they came to power.
6	avoid/prevent Rapid government reforms managed to _____________ a revolution taking place. He’s always trying to _____________ taking a decision if he can help it.
7	beside/besides The office is just _____________ the railway station. _____________ their regular daytime job, many people do extra work in the evening.
8	briefly/shortly _____________ before the conflict began, the army pulled down the border posts. The minister spoke _____________ about the need for political reform.
9	channel/canal The television _____________ received a formal complaint about the programme. The Suez _____________ was built in the second half of the nineteenth century.
10	conscientious/conscious Most people are _____________ of the need to protect the environment. _____________ workers should be rewarded for their hard work.
11	continual/continuous A _____________ trade embargo has badly affected the economic infrastructure. The computer has given us _____________ problems ever since we installed it.
12	control/inspect Environmental health officers regularly _____________ kitchens and other food preparation areas. The government plans to _____________ the price of meat to make sure it doesn’t go up.
13	criticism(s)/ objection(s) They didn’t raise any _____________ when we insisted on inspecting the figures. The government plan’s met with severe _____________.
14	damage/injury/harm It was a severe _____________ which needed immediate hospital treatment. A lot of _____________ was caused to buildings along the coast during the storm. There’s no _____________ in taking a break from your job now and then.
15	discover/invent When did he _____________ the telephone? Did Alexander Fleming _____________ penicillin?

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