Although these are two different words that mean two different things, they are spelled very similarly, and I think that’s how the confusion creeps in. Having said that, even though the a and e are not next door to one another on the keyboard (I had to check that: I touch-type and most of the letters have worn off my keyboard through over-use) this one does come up fairly frequently.

Expensive means of high cost – either in monetary or some other terms. An expensive training course costs a lot, an expensive manoeuvre might cost the army dear in terms of people or equipment.

Expansive means covering a wide area, or extensive (although I don’t see extensive mixed up with expensive, which you would kind of expect!). It also means relaxed, communicative and genial, when used to describe a person. “The grounds of the castle are expansive”.

So you may have grounds which are both expansive, as in large, and expensive in terms of their cost of upkeep. But there’s going to be no more mixing up of the two words, now, is there?

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.

Yuck, yuck, yuck! I said to (well, Tweeted to) the last person I saw muddling these up, “Don’t make me do a Troublesome Pair on this one!” but actually there is a need, isn’t there.

I’ll make it short.

Pus is the liquid formed in infected tissue

Puss is a term of affection for a cat, or a coquettish (young) woman.

Pussy (pronounced to rhyme with “fussy”) means full of the above liquid. Pussy (calm down … and pronounced with a u as in “pushy”) is another affectionate term for a cat. Maybe that’s how the confusion has crept in.

Anyway, there we go: all done now. Eugh. But necessary, yes?

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.

This one is a real life example of something I found in an academic text. Luckily I spotted the error and saved the client’s blushes! But I also thought, “Aha – a Troublesome Pair!”

Asterix is a cartoon character, a Gaul resisting the Romans, in a series of French books.

An asterisk is one of these * – a little star which is usually used to indicate that there is some text in a footnote at the bottom of the page.

Don’t put a Gaul where you mean to put a little star, or, indeed, a little star where you mean to put a Gaul!

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.

I find that I and other people wince a bit when we see myself used, as it commonly is, in a seeming attempt to sound more formal, or managerial, or literary, or, well, something. We’ve all seen it – “If you have a problem, please contact myself”. Keep it simple is the rule here: “If you have a problem, please contact me”. There is a place for myself, but it’s a smaller, more precise place than people may imagine.

OK, I’m ranting a bit now; let’s just look at the rules for this one …

Myself is the reflexive first person singular – used by the speaker to refer to themselves as the object of a verb or preposition when he or she is the subject of the clause as well – “I picked myself up from the ground and continued on my way”, “I got myself dressed in time for the video call with my important client”. It’s also used in an emphatic way for I or me, emphasising that something was done personally by the speaker: “I didn’t go to the hairdresser, no: I cut my hair myself”. These, really, are the only times we use myself.

Me is the nice, plain, simple first person singular, used by the speaker to refer to him/herself as the object of a verb where someone else is the subject: “He gave the job to me”; “Please contact me or Linda if you need this work to be done”.

If you’re doing something to yourself, you can use myself. If someone’s doing it to you, you need to use me. “I cleaned myself up after I grazed my knees”/”I cleaned myself”; “Gill cleaned me up after I grazed my knees”/”Gill cleaned me”. Clear now?

Don’t get mixed up with themself/themselves and me/I, while we’re on this topic of how to refer to people …

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.

There are lots of other word pairs with an -s- and -c- (practise/practice, advise/advice) that are differentiated by the fact that one is a verb (the -s- one) and one a noun (the -c- one). These two have become slightly more separated and slightly less confused, I feel (but maybe you’ve found differently).

To devise is a verb meaning to plan or invent something (usually something such as a process, procedure or mechanism that is quite complicated). “He devised a route to get from Manchester to Birmingham, not using any motorways”, “The clockmaker devised a mechanism for making a watch show the time in 15 different time zones”.

A device is a noun meaning a piece of mechanical or electronic equipment made for a particular purpose (“He constructed a device for making American recipes using English measuring instruments”), or a plan, trick or scheme (and, by extension, a form of words that’s intended to produce a particular effect: “She used a metaphorical device to explain quantum mechanics in her astounding poem”).

So, you could, indeed, devise a device, but I don’t think you’d want to, simply because of the cumbersome repetition (just like you don’t practise practices!).

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.

This one has come up a few times and so I am sure there are a few people out there who are confused when trying to choose between using advisor or adviser.

So, which is it to be? I think people may think that advisor is more formal (even posher) in some ways, and it’s definitely used more in official documents and marketing-ese.

But in reality, this is another pair that means exactly the same. Adviser or advisor: just pick one!

What I would say (and what I always say), is be consistent. If you introduce a mortgage advisor on page 1, make sure they haven’t changed into a mortgage adviser by page 4!

Oh: but it’s always advisory (not advisery, which isn’t a word) when you’re talking about having the power to make recommendations (but not to enforce them, interestingly). “The panel is operating in an advisory capacity and cannot force the employees to wear baseball caps”.

I personally prefer advisor. What do you think?

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.

There are lots of other word pairs with an -s- and -c- (for example, practise/practice) that are differentiated by the fact that one is a verb (the -s- one) and one a noun (the -c- one). This one gets mixed up just as much, so it’s time to talk about it!

Advise is the verb. It means to offer advice to or to recommend. “‘I would not advise you to climb the steep face of the mountain: walk up the slope, instead,’ said John.”

Advice is the noun. It’s what’s advised: a recommendation or guidance offered with respect to future actions by the person being advised. “We took John’s advice, and took the easy way up the mountain.”

It should become easier to remember these once you have established that (in UK usage):

The word with the s is the verb, and involves doing something

The word with the c is the noun, and involves the thing itself.

You can find more troublesome pairs here and the index to them all so far is here.