12 Most Misunderstood Words

Most misunderstood words are born in spoken speech; at one time, they would only gradually bleed into writing. Whether due to an honest typo or a flat out error, confusion in grammar and misunderstood words can now fly across the planet at lightning speed, thanks to email forwarding and “copy/paste” in social media. Continued exposure to misuse or improper spelling can even replace words that were carefully hammered into our heads while we originally learned to speak and write them.

Dictionary companies will grudgingly add/alter meanings if English speakers grab onto something and won’t let go, but this doesn’t happen often, and they are firm when it comes to simple misunderstandings. In this list of commonly misunderstood words, the definitions are unyielding and unlikely to change, no matter how often they are misused.