Confusing Words List

REF	LEVEL	WORD	POS	MEANING	EXAMPLE
CF01
CF01		averse	adj.	strongly disliking or opposed to	I don't smoke cigarettes, but I'm not averse to the occasional cigar.
CF01		adverse	adj.	having a negative effect on something	So far, the drug is thought not to have any adverse effects.
CF01		judicial	adj.	of or relating to a judgment	We will have to seek a judicial remedy for breach of contract.
CF01		judicious	adj.	showing good judgment	Judicious planning now can prevent problems later.
CF01		discrete	adj.	individually separate and distinct	We can break down the process into several discrete steps.
CF01		discreet	adj.	tactful, prudent	Sarah was always very discreet about her love affairs.
CF01		disinterested	adj.	not influenced by personal feelings	A disinterested third party mediated the dispute.
CF01		uninterested	adj.	not interested	Older workers are generally uninterested in computers.
CF01		urbane	adj.	notably polite or polished in manner	She was charming and urbane, full of witty conversation.
CF01		urban	adj.	relating to towns and cities	Traditional beliefs still flourish alongside a modern urban lifestyle.
CF02
CF02		momentous	adj.	having great or lasting importance	His college graduation was a momentous day in his life.
CF02		momentary	adj.	lasting for a very short time	After a momentary silence, the chairman spoke again.
CF02		luxuriant	adj.	growing thickly, strongly, and well	The plants in my grandpa's garden are very luxuriant.
CF02		luxurious	adj.	very comfortable and expensive	He lived in a luxurious flat that was built right into the factory.
CF02		amicable	adj.	characterized by or showing goodwill	Both parties hope to reach an amicable settlement.
CF02		amiable	adj.	pleasant, friendly and easy to like	Everybody knew Robert as an amiable fellow.
CF02		imminent	adj.	likely to happen very soon	They gave a dire warning that an earthquake was imminent.
CF02		eminent	adj.	important, respected, and admired	Churchill was one of the world's most eminent statesmen.
CF02		ceremonial	adj.	relating to or used in a ceremony	The president represented the nation on ceremonial occasions.
CF02		ceremonious	adj.	especially or excessively polite or formal	He greeted his rival with a ceremonious display of friendship.
CF03
CF03		connote	v.	signify certain additional meanings	For me, the word 'family' connotes love and comfort.
CF03		denote	v.	represent or mean something	The loss of colour does not denote any particular condition.
CF03		adopt	v.	legally take something as your own	I reckon it's time to adopt a different strategy in our dealings with her.
CF03		adapt	v.	make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose	The scriptwriter helped her to adapt his book for the screen.
CF03		evade	v.	avoid or escape from someone or something	The Prime Minister evaded the question and didn't reply to it.
CF03		avoid	v.	stay away from someone or something	You really must find a way to avoid similar problems in future.
CF03		deprecate	v.	criticize or express disapproval	Mark deprecated the violence that had happened during the protests.
CF03		depreciate	v.	diminish in value over a period of time	New cars depreciate quickly in the first three years.
CF03		precede	v.	come before something in time	The chairwoman preceded the meeting with a brief welcoming speech.
CF03		proceed	v.	continue to do something	They're not sure whether they still want to proceed with the sale.
CF04
CF04		allude	v.	mention something in an indirect way	He did not even allude to his cousin's engagement to Jennifer.
CF04		elude	v.	avoid or escape by speed or trickery	Greg managed to elude capture by enemy forces for several months.
CF04		imply	v.	suggest something without saying it directly	It does not imply that all teachers should engage in research.
CF04		infer	v.	suggest indirectly that something is true	We infer from your letter that you have not made up your mind.
CF04		misplace	v.	put in a wrong or inappropriate place	She misplaces her glasses with such regularity that aides carry extras.
CF04		displace	v.	take the place of somebody/something	Television has displaced film as the most popular form of entertainment.
CF04		emigrate	v.	leave a country of residence for a new one	My family emigrated from Ireland to Australia in 1955.
CF04		immigrate	v.	come to live permanently in a foreign country	To start a new chapter in his life, he immigrated to Canada.
CF04		persecute	v.	treat someone cruelly or unfairly	Ronald said his first wife persecuted him with her unreasonable demands.
CF04		prosecute	v.	officially charge somebody with a crime	Officers are now deciding whether to prosecute the makers and retailers.
CF05
CF05		council	n.	formal meeting for discussion or consultation	The local council has organised a two-mile fun run for charity.
CF05		counsel	n.	a lawyer who represents a person in a court	Defence counsel looks for inconsistencies between witness statements.
CF05		morale	n.	the state of mind of a person or group, spirit	Her optimism sharply contrasted with the low morale of her supporters.
CF05		morals	n.	standards for good or bad behaviour	The newspaper has become the self-appointed guardian of public morals.
CF05		referee	n.	(football) the official who controls the game	The referee reported two Leeds United players for violent conduct.
CF05		umpire	n.	(tennis) the official who controls the game	Connors started shouting curses at the umpire who called the ball out.
CF05		amenities	n.	aim to provide pleasure and comfort	The amenities of the resort centre are only a short walk away.
CF05		facilities	n.	may not aim to provide pleasure and comfort	The extra money will give us the scope to improve our facilities.
CF05		ally	n.	a country that helps another country in a war	Poland has received concrete declarations from its NATO allies.
CF05		alley	n.	a narrow road or path between buildings	There's a narrow alley which divides our house from the one next door.
CF06
CF06		misuse	v.	use something in the wrong way	Several cabinet ministers were found guilty of misusing public funds.
CF06		disuse	n.	the state of not being used	Early in 1922, the tramway fell into disuse for the second and final time.
CF06		elicit	v.	get a response, information from someone	He said he was hopeful that his request would elicit a positive response.
CF06		illicit	adj.	forbidden by law, rules, or custom	Some will argue that all illicit drugs are too dangerous to legalise.
CF06		conscious	adj.	aware of something; noticing something	He is conscious of the fact that there's a limit to what we can achieve here.
CF06		conscience	n.	an individual's sense of right and wrong	Buying his wife flowers helped to salve his conscience.
CF06		prospective	adj.	relating to or effective in the future	The story should act as a warning to other prospective buyers.
CF06		perspective	n.	a way of thinking about something	Sustainable development implies a long-term perspective.
CF06		confident	adj.	having or showing confidence or certainty	We need a confident leader to overcome these difficulties.
CF06		confidant	n.	one to whom secrets are entrusted	Her mother-in-law became her confidant after years of building trust.
CF07
CF07		dual	adj.	with two parts, or combining two things	They have employed a dual strategy to achieve these two objectives.
CF07		duel	n.	a competition between two people or groups	David won a pitching duel with John by the score of 5-3.
CF07		compliment	n.	a polite expression of praise or admiration	It had not been his intention to favour her with a compliment.
CF07		complement	v.	make a good combination with sb or sth else	Summer and winter bedding plants complement the finished effect.
CF07		canvas	n.	a piece of cloth used for painting on	They carried huge canvas paintings depicting scenes from the Bible.
CF07		canvass	v.	examine carefully, investigate by inquiry	Each candidate sent people to canvass various areas of the city.
CF07		resent	v.	feel bitter or angry about something	He bitterly resented the fact that his wife had been so successful.
CF07		recent	adj.	happening or starting from a short time ago	The police want to discuss these recent racist attacks with local people.
CF07		wreathe	v.	surround or cover something	The local people used to wreathe the guest's head in leaves.
CF07		wreath	n.	an arrangement of flowers in a circular shape	She weaves an apple blossom wreath and hangs it from a branch.
CF08
CF08		sensitive	adj.	easily getting affected by something	There are highly sensitive and delicately balanced ecosystems in the forest.
CF08		sensible	adj.	having or showing good sense or judgment	Once you reach middle age, you have to be sensible with your health.
CF08		affect	v.	have an effect on, make a difference to	The north of the country was worst affected by the drought.
CF08		effect	n.	an impression made by something, a result	His films had an immeasurable effect on a generation of Americans.
CF08		beside	prep.	by the side of or near	The cat waited hopefully beside the cupboard for some food.
CF08		besides	prep.	in addition to, as well as	Does he play any other sports besides hockey and basketball?
CF08		economic	adj.	having to do with economy	The government has initiated a programme of economic reform.
CF08		economical	adj.	using money, resources carefully	It is usually economical to buy washing powder in large quantities.
CF08		sight	n.	the act of seeing somebody/something	Ella is really squeamish and can't stand the sight of blood.
CF08		site	n.	the position or location of a town, building	They're going to build on the site of the old power station.
CF08		lend	v.	give something for temporary use	Can you lend me that cookery book for a few days?
CF08		borrow	v.	take something and use it temporarily	My younger brother borrowed his motorbike and crashed it.
CF09
CF09		teach	v.	give sb knowledge or train sb	Playing together teaches children social conventions such as sharing.
CF09		learn	v.	gain knowledge or skill	The old man seems to have forgotten everything he learnt at school.
CF09		historic	adj.	famous or important in history	Modernising historic buildings can often do more harm than good.
CF09		historical	adj.	of or relating to history	She specialises in historical novels set in eighteenth-century England.
CF09		tell	v.	tell + somebody / tell + clause	If anyone calls, tell them I'm not at home.
CF09		say	v.	say + clause / say + sth + to + sb	I'll never forgive you for what you said to me last night.
CF09		rise	v.	(no object) go up by itself	Average incomes have risen by 6% over the past year.
CF09		raise	v.	(+ object) make something go up	They raised their hands straight up so that the teacher could see them.
CF09		stationary	adj.	standing still, not moving	The stationary trucks were sitting targets for the enemy planes.
CF09		stationery	n.	writing and other office materials	Helen has bought paper, pens, and some other stationery.
CF09		desert	n.	arid land with usually sparse vegetation	He gave a hair-raising account of her escape through the desert.
CF09		dessert	n.	the sweet course of meal, pudding	The only part of the meal I really liked was the dessert.
CF10
CF10		take	v.	(effort) take + (object) + duration + infinitive	It takes one hour to fly from Madrid to Barcelona
CF10		last	v.	(exist) last + (object) + duration	The drought lasted for several months.
CF10		advice	n.	a suggestion about what to do	The centre provides expert advice for people with financial problems.
CF10		advise	v.	tell someone what you think they should do	He advised us to look abroad for more lucrative business ventures.
CF10		safe	adj.	free from harm and protected from mistakes	Is it safe to walk the streets alone at night?
CF10		secure	adj.	not likely to move, fall down	It was hard to maintain a secure foothold on the ice.
CF10		assist	v.	help somebody to do something	They assisted the doctors with the people wounded in the bus crash.
CF10		attend	v.	be present at an event	The vast majority of pupils attend state-funded schools.
CF10		audience	n.	attends a concert, play, performance, show	His first speech as president made a strong impression on his audience.
CF10		spectators	n.	attend a game, match, sport event	Spain will face Brazil in front of a crowd of 50,000 spectators.
CF10		childish	adj.	like a child, silly	We eventually ran out of patience with her childish behaviour.
CF10		childlike	adj.	having qualities that are typical of a child	Tina is tired, delicate with an air of childlike innocence.
CF11
CF11		practice	n.	perform or do habitually or usually	We learned by experience that practice makes perfect.
CF11		practise	v.	do an activity or train regularly	Aspiring musicians must practise many hours a day.
CF11		hanged	v.	(past participle) used for death by hanging	They hanged him without even the pretence of a proper trial.
CF11		hung	v.	(past participle) suspend or be suspended	Tom hammered a nail into the wall and hung a picture on it.
CF11		out-of-date	adj.	old, no longer usable	This out-of-date remedy may be more dangerous than the plant poison.
CF11		old-fashioned	adj.	relating to, or characteristic of a past era	The methods employed are old-fashioned and uneconomical.
CF11		win	v.	can be used without an object	Derek is an outstanding athlete and deserved to win.
CF11		beat	v.	cannot be used without an object	The cruel master beat his slaves mercilessly with a whip.
CF11		shade	n.	a cooler, darker area protected from light	On sunny days, the big tree provides ample shade for picnics.
CF11		shadow	n.	a dark shape cast by an object blocking light	The streetlights cast long shadows on the road at dusk.
CF11		interested	adj.	having the attention engaged	I hate to disappoint you, but I'm just not interested.
CF11		interesting	adj.	holding or catching the attention	There is an interesting article on vegetarianism in the paper.
CF12
CF12		suit	v.	(style, colour) make sb look more attractive	These boots don’t suit little boys because they are improper.
CF12		fit	v.	be the right size or shape for sb or sth	These trousers don’t fit because they are too small.
CF12		match	v.	(style, appearance) go well with sth	They’re looking for a carpet to match their bedroom curtains.
CF12		injured	adj.	hurt in an accident or attack	Five people died, and twelve were critically injured in a rail crash yesterday.
CF12		damaged	adj.	broken or spoiled (especially a thing)	The pilot was able to set down the damaged plane safely in a field.
CF12		wounded	adj.	hurt by a weapon such as a gun or a knife	The crowd backed away to let the wounded man pass through.
CF12		fee	n.	money that you pay for professional services	My solicitor charges a flat fee for handling the sale of a house.
CF12		fare	n.	the price of a journey on a bus, train, ship	They could hardly scrape up enough money for the train fare.
CF12		fine	n.	money that you have to pay as a punishment	Under the new law, motorists face fines of up to £500.
CF12		antique	adj.	​(of furniture, jewellery) old and valuable	David made a fortune by investing in antique furniture.
CF12		old	adj.	​of a particular age, no longer young	Some of the houses around here are very old.
CF12		ancient	adj.	​(ruins, times) of times long ago, very old	We were most impressed by the ruins of an ancient building.
CF13
CF13		during	prep.	followed by a noun/noun phrase	The party suffered severe losses during the last election.
CF13		while	conj.	followed by a clause (subject + verb)	I was reading a book while Margaret was cooking dinner.
CF13		for	prep.	followed by a period of time	Tony worked in this company for over twenty years.
CF13		carry	v.	hold something or someone with your hands	I managed to carry three full glasses without spilling a drop.
CF13		wear	v.	have your hair in a particular style	When she's working, she wears her hair in a ponytail.
CF13		bear	v.	support the weight of something	The armchair, too fragile to bear his weight, just collapsed.
CF13		still	adv.	continuing to be done	Helen still hasn't finished writing her essay.
CF13		already	adv.	before a particular time in the past	A crowd had already collected outside the embassy gates.
CF13		yet	adv.	up till now (questions, negatives)	Have you made the reservations for our holiday yet?
CF13		travel	n.	(uncountable) go from one place to another	The new bypass will reduce travel time to the airport.
CF13		journey	n.	(countable) go from one place to another	They went on a long train journey across Canada.
CF13		voyage	n.	a long journey, especially by sea or in space	The Titanic sank on its maiden voyage in the early hours of April 15, 1912.
CF14
CF14		let	v.	​(sb do sth) not prevent or forbid, allow	Give me a call to let me know you've arrived safely.
CF14		allow	v.	​(sb to do sth) let sb have or do sth	Most stores will allow the purchaser to exchange goods.
CF14		agree	v.	​(to sth) accept sb else's plan, suggestion	The two presidents agreed to hold a summit in the spring.
CF14		permission	n.	​(uncountable) accept the act of permitting	What do you mean by opening my letters without permission?
CF14		permit	n.	​(count) a document that allows you to do sth	He has to apply for a permit, and we have to find him a job.
CF15
CF15		only	adv.	nobody or nothing except	It took him only a few minutes to siphon off the petrol and drive away.
CF15		otherwise	adv.	in all ways except the one mentioned	I didn't like the ending, but otherwise it was an interesting book.
CF15		apart from	prep.	​except for or not considering	Apart from their house in Dublin, they also have a villa in Italy.
CF15		instead of	prep.	in the place of	They raised prices and cut production, instead of cutting costs.
CF15		rather than	adv.	​instead of	It would be better to transport the goods by rail rather than by road.
CF15		except for	prep.	apart from	The suitcase was light to carry, being empty except for two shirts.