Here’s a list of all the troublesome pairs I’ve done (both ways round) in alphabetical order, to help you find them more easily.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
Adapt or adopt
Adopt or adapt
Advice or advise
Advise or advice
Affect or effect
Affect or impact
Allude, elude or illude
Allusive, elusive or illusive
Altar or alter
Alter or altar
Alternate, alternating or alternative
Alternating, alternative or alternate
Alternative, alternate or alternating
Among or amongst (see while or whilst)
Among or between
Amongst or among (see whilst or while)
Amoral or immoral
Amount or number
Annex or annexe
Annexe or annex
Any more or anymore
Anymore or any more
Assume or presume
Assure, ensure or insure
Asterisk or Asterix
Asterix or asterisk
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B
Baited or bated
Bare or bear
Bated or baited
Bazaar or bizarre
Bear or bare
Between or among
Biannual or biennial
Biennial or biannual
Bimonthly or semimonthly / semi-monthly
Biweekly or semiweekly / semi-weekly
Bizarre or bazaar
Borrow or lend
Bought or brought
Breach or breech
Breech or breach
Brought or bought
Burglary or robbery
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C
Can, may or might
Cite, sight or site
Client or customer
Comparable or comparative
Comparative or comparable
Complement(ary) or compliment(ary)
Compliment(ary) or complement(ary)
Compose, consist or comprise
Comprise, compose or consist
Confound or confuse
Confuse or confound
Consequently or subsequently
Conserve or preserve
Consist, comprise or compose
Continual or continuous
Continuous or continual
Councillor or counsellor
Counsellor or councillor
Convince or persuade
Coruscating or excoriating
Cue or queue
Customer or client
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D
Definite or definitive
Definitive or definite
Defuse or diffuse
Delusion or illusion
Desert or dessert
Dessert or desert
Device or devise
Devise or device
Diffuse or defuse
Disc or disk
Discreet or discrete
Discrete or discreet
Disinterested or uninterested
Disk or disc
Disorganised or unorganised
Dissatisfied or unsatisfied
Drier or dryer
Dryer or drier
Due to or owing to
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E
Effect or affect
E.g. or i.e.
Elder or older
Eligible or illegible
Elude, illude or allude
Elusive, illusive or allusive
En route or on route
Enquiry, inquiry or query
Ensure, insure or assure
Erstwhile or sometime
Erupt or irrupt
Excoriating or coruscating
Expansive or expensive
Expectancy or expectation
Expectation or expectancy
Expensive or expansive
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F
Faint or feint
Fair or fare
Fare or fair
Feint or faint
Fewer or less
Flammable or inflammable
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G
Gunnel or gunwale
Gunwale or gunnel
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H
Hangar or hanger
Hanger or hangar
have or of
Hear! Hear! or Here! Here!
Here! Here! or Hear! Hear!
Heterogeneous or homogeneous
Historic or historical
Historical or historic
Hoard or horde
Homogeneous or heterogeneous
Homograph, homonym or homophone
Homonym, homophone or homograph
Homophone, homograph or homonym
Horde or hoard
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I
I or me
I.e. or e.g.
Illegal, illicit or unlawful
Illegible or eligible
Illicit, unlawful or illegal
Illude, allude or elude
Illusion or delusion
Illusive, allusive or elusive
Immeasurable or unmeasurable
Immoral or amoral
Impact or affect
Imply or infer
Infer or imply
Inflammable or flammable
Inquiry, query or enquiry
Insure, assure or ensure
Interlude, interval or intermission
Intermission, interlude or interval
Interval, intermission or interlude
Invaluable or valuable
Invitation or invite
Invite or invitation
Irrupt or erupt
ise or ize
ize or ise
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J
Judgement or judgment
Judgment or judgement
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K
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L
Lead or led
Led or lead
Lend or borrow
Less or fewer
Libel or slander
Licence or license
License or licence
Lightening, lighting or lightning
Lighting, lightning or lightening
Lightning, lightening or lighting
Linage or lineage
Lineage or linage
Loose or lose
Lose or loose
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M
Mandrel or mandrill
Mandrill or mandrel
Manx, minx or minks
Marinade or marinate
Marinate or marinade
May, might or can
Me or I
Me or myself
Might, can or may
Minks, minx or Manx
Minx, Manx or minks
Mrs or Ms
Ms or Mrs
Mucous or mucus
Mucus or mucous
Myself or me
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N
Number or amount
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O
Ocular or oscular
Of or have
Of or off
Off or of
Older or elder
On route or en route
Opossum or possum
Oscular or ocular
Owing to or due to
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P
Pacific or specific
Palate, pallet or palette
Pallet, palette or palate
Palette, palate or pallet
Pair, pear or pare
Pare, pair or pear
Passed or past
Past or passed
Peace or piece
Peak, pique or peek
Pear, pare or pair
Pedal or peddle
Peddle or pedal
Peek, peak or pique
Peer or pier
Perquisite or prerequisite
Persuade or convince
Perspective or prospective
Piece or peace
Pier or peer
Pique, peek or peak
Pore or pore
Pore or pour
Possum or opossum
Practice or practise
Practise or practice
Premier, premiere or premium
Premiere, premium or premier
Premium, premier or premiere
Prerequisite or perquisite
Preserve or conserve
Presume or assume
Prescribe or proscribe
Prevaricate or procrastinate
Principal or principle
Principle or principal
Procrastinate or prevaricate
Proscribe or prescribe
Prospective or perspective
Pus or puss
Puss or pus
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Q
Queue or cue
Query, enquiry or inquiry
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R
Rain, rein or reign
Rebut or refute
Refute or rebut
Regretfully or regrettably
Regrettably or regretfully
Reign, rain or rein
Rein, reign or rain
Relation or relative
Relative or relation
Robbery or burglary
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S
Sear, seer or sere
Seer, sere or sear
Semimonthly / semi-monthly or bimonthly
Semiweekly / semi-weekly or biweekly
Sere, sear or seer
Sight, cite or site
Silicon or silicone
Silicone or silicon
Site, sight or cite
Slander or libel
Slay or sleigh
Sleigh or slay
Sleight or slight
Slight or sleight
Some time, sometime or sometimes
Sometime or erstwhile
Sometime, sometimes or some time
Sometimes, some time or sometime
Specific or pacific
Spelled or spelt
Spelt or spelled
Stationary or stationery
Stationery or stationary
Stentorious or stertorous
Stertorous or stentorious
Subsequently or consequently
Surfeit or surplus
Surplus or surfeit
Swath or swathe
Swathe or swath
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T
That, which or who
Themself or themselves
Themselves or themself
Than or then
Then or than
There, they’re or their
Their, there or they’re
They’re, their or there
Till or until
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U
Undulant or unguent
Undulate or ungulate
Unguent or undulant
Ungulate or undulate
Uninterested or disinterested
Unlawful, illegal or illicit
Unmeasurable or immeasurable
Unorganised or disorganised
Unsatisfied or dissatisfied
Until or till
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V
Valuable or invaluable
Venal or venial
Venial or venal
Viscous or viscus
Viscus or viscous
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W
Waist or waste
Waive or wave
Waiver or waver
Wander or wonder
Warn or worn
Wary or weary
Waste or waist
Wave or waive
Waver or waiver
Weary or wary
Weather or whether
Whether or weather
Which, who or that
While or whilst
Whilst or while
Who, that or which
Who or whom
Whom or who
Who’s or whose
Whose or who’s
Wonder or wander
Worn or warn
Would have or would of
Would of or would have
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X
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Y
Your or you’re
You’re or your
Yours or your’s
Your’s or yours
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Z
Zeroes or zeros
Zeros or zeroes
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LibroEditing proofreading, editing, transcription, localisation 
Sarah
September 19, 2011 at 6:30 pm
Would you be able to compare persuade and convince please? Think it’s quite a subtle difference but hard to explain.
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Liz at Libro
September 19, 2011 at 6:31 pm
I can certainly add those to the list! Thanks for your suggestion!
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Nordie
October 9, 2011 at 8:59 am
Of and Off?
Just caught myself about to use one, when I probably should have used the other.
And not a pair, but the correct use of “either” and “Neither”? (So you can only have “either one thing or the other”, not “either A or B or C”?)
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Nordie
October 9, 2011 at 9:15 am
Who’s and Whose?
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Liz at Libro
October 9, 2011 at 9:37 am
Both good ones, will add them to the list! Thank you!
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Nordie
October 21, 2011 at 5:38 pm
Me again – lose and loose?
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Liz at Libro
October 22, 2011 at 8:40 am
Will add it to the list! Keep them coming!
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Rose Harris
January 9, 2012 at 11:31 am
Hi Liz,
I do so enjoy reading your troublesome pairs. I have one (well, a trio actually) for you – peek, peak and pique. I have so often read of someone’s interest being peeked! A pet hate – people who use “myself” when they mean “me” or “I” in the mistaken belief that it makes them sound more competent and official. It doesn’t.
I could spend ages ranting away like a grumpy old woman, but I’ll spare you. Keep up the good work!
Rosr
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Liz at Libro
January 12, 2012 at 5:24 pm
Ah – thanks for that one, it’s a good one! I’ll do that in a week or so. And yes, “myself” is annoying – I’m thinking of just starting a troublesome words series and will add that one in there. Thanks for your suggestions!
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Rose Harris
January 9, 2012 at 11:33 am
FUMOP.
Oh Lord, I can’t even spell my own name!!
Rose
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Caroline Palmer
September 5, 2012 at 3:25 pm
Wow I presume you are creating this into a book – could be as big as Eats, Shoots and Leaves or whatever it was called!!
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Liz at Libro
September 5, 2012 at 3:26 pm
Thank you – I may do at some stage – still so many gaps at the moment!
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jeansbirdsean
July 9, 2013 at 11:26 am
Is it ‘defendent’ or ‘defendant’?
Thanks,
Jean
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Liz at Libro
July 9, 2013 at 12:18 pm
Hello, Jean, and thanks for dropping in to ask your question. It’s defendant.
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Guy K. Haas
August 6, 2013 at 5:55 pm
semimonthly or bimonthly (likewise for weekly)
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Liz at Libro
August 6, 2013 at 6:10 pm
Thanks for your comment – I’ve done biennial or biannual, which also covers bimonthly, but I think it has room for one of its own! I will add it to the list …
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Liz at Libro
February 10, 2014 at 6:47 pm
And I’ve done one for this one now! https://libroediting.com/2014/02/10/bimonthly-or-semimonthly-semi-monthly-biweekly-or-semiweekly-semi-weekly/
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Linda
May 5, 2014 at 12:05 pm
You could do “warn” or “worn”.
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Liz at Libro
May 5, 2014 at 6:22 pm
Ah, that is a good one, thank you!
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Damian O'Donohue
May 19, 2014 at 11:03 pm
Hi Liz,
I’ve just stumbled across your blog, and I love it. How about covering “provided that…” versus “providing that…” ? That is provided that you have the time, of course.
Regards,
Damian
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Liz at Libro
May 20, 2014 at 11:35 am
Hello Damian and thanks for your comment. I’m glad you’re enjoying my blog, and that is a good idea, I’ll put it on the list!
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Neil Langley
July 16, 2014 at 2:32 am
Hi Liz,
Really useful resource containing many of my personal bugbears! Suggest you may want to add complicated and complex
Regards,
Neil
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Liz at Libro
July 16, 2014 at 9:02 am
That’s a good one – I will add that to the list!
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Lucy
August 26, 2016 at 3:17 pm
Great! Bookmarked for future use!
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kiwinana
August 18, 2017 at 8:15 pm
Well, that’s one big list of words. I have bookmarked it so I came come back and maybe write some poetry using them. Thanks. Have a nice weekend.
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Liz Dexter
August 20, 2017 at 3:13 pm
That’s something I’d like to see – do let me know if any good poetry comes out of it!
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WREADITOR
September 20, 2017 at 8:27 pm
Gladly re-posting for my readers. Many thanks!
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Liz Dexter
September 21, 2017 at 7:21 am
Thank you!
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mark norem
March 30, 2018 at 5:01 am
Will or shall?
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Liz Dexter
March 30, 2018 at 5:25 am
Yes, I don’t think I’ve covered that one yet!
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Lady Fancifull
April 29, 2018 at 7:51 pm
What a brilliant and useful idea. Thanks Liz
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Liz Dexter
April 30, 2018 at 6:48 am
Thank you!
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Sophie Playle
June 1, 2018 at 8:57 am
Hi, Liz! Could you do a Troublesome Pairs post on ‘arching / arcing’? That one trips me up. Thanks 🙂
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Liz Dexter
June 1, 2018 at 8:59 am
Ooh, good one – will add it to the list!
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Fretchie Santos
December 4, 2018 at 2:44 pm
Raise or Rise? Shoot or Shot?
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Liz Dexter
December 4, 2018 at 3:03 pm
Thank you!
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Miriam Parmenter
May 9, 2022 at 8:18 am
Hi!
I’m so glad to have found you! I teach English as a foreign language and frequently have problems explaining the difference (and sometimes knowing the difference myself!) between words that my students use in their writing texts. I found you when I looked up the difference between decor and decoration. Thank you very much! Another pair that occurs to me is ‘incident’ and ‘incidence’, especially because the plural of ‘incident’ is pronounced the same as ‘incidence’.
Regards,
Miriam Parmenter
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Liz Dexter
May 9, 2022 at 5:37 pm
Thank you for your comment, Miriam, and I am so glad I’ve been able to help. I can certainly add incident/incidence to my list to write about!
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