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Commonly Confused Words Worksheets

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A chart of 18 sets of commonly confused words, four sentence pages, two proofreading pages and a write-your-own page, for 4th grade writers.

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Commonly confused words chart

18 sets of commonly confused words, each with a short meaning, and two tricks for remembering them.

Choose the right word

Circle and write the word that fits each sentence: possessives and contractions; then and than, accept and except, affect and effect; desert and dessert, breath and breathe; and to, too and two.

  • Preview of the printable “Commonly confused Words: their, they're, your, you're, its, it's” worksheet: choosing between possessives and contractions: their, they're, your, you're, its, it's, whose, who'sView all 2 pages

    Commonly confused Words: their, they're, your, you're, its, it's

    Choosing between possessives and contractions: their, they're, your, you're, its, it's, whose, who's

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages51 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Commonly confused Words: then, than, accept, except, affect, effect” worksheet: choosing then or than, accept or except, affect or effect, loose or lose, quiet or quiteView all 2 pages

    Commonly confused Words: then, than, accept, except, affect, effect

    Choosing then or than, accept or except, affect or effect, loose or lose, quiet or quite

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages52 KB

  • Preview of the printable “Commonly confused Words: desert, dessert, breath, breathe and more” worksheet: choosing desert or dessert, breath or breathe, advice or advise, choose or chose, passed or pastView all 2 pages

    Commonly confused Words: desert, dessert, breath, breathe and more

    Choosing desert or dessert, breath or breathe, advice or advise, choose or chose, passed or past

    Answer key on page 2

    US LetterPDFA4PDF

    2 pages53 KB

Proofread and write

Find and fix the wrong word in each sentence, then write sentences of your own.

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these commonly confused words worksheets

Commonly confused words look or sound alike but mean different things. Some are homophones (their, there and they're; to, too and two). Others only sound close or differ by a letter (then and than, accept and except, affect and effect, loose and lose, quiet and quite, desert and dessert, breath and breathe).

Many of the trickiest pairs are a possessive and a contraction: its and it's, your and you're, their and they're, whose and who's. The test is simple: if you can say it is, you are, they are or who is, use the word with an apostrophe. If the word shows who something belongs to, there is no apostrophe.

These worksheets start with a chart of 18 sets of commonly confused words and what each one means. Four sentence pages ask children to circle and write the word that fits, two proofreading pages ask them to find and fix the wrong word, and a final page asks them to write sentences of their own. Pages with right answers have an answer key on page 2.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.4.1.GCorrectly use frequently confused words (e.g., to, too, two; there, their).
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.4.2.DSpell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed.

How to use them

  1. Hang the chart near the writing area or glue it into writing notebooks.
  2. Teach a few sets at a time. Set A covers possessives and contractions; set B covers then and than, accept and except, affect and effect, loose and lose, and quiet and quite; set C covers desert and dessert, breath and breathe, advice and advise, choose and chose, and passed and past.
  3. Use the proofreading pages after children know the pairs. Finding someone else's mistake is good practice for checking your own writing.
  4. Finish with the write-it-right page, then look for the same words in children's own writing.

Teaching tips

  • For its and it's, have children read it's as it is. If the sentence still makes sense, keep the apostrophe.
  • Then is about time (first, then, next); than compares (taller than). Both a and than have the letter a.
  • Affect is usually the action (a verb); effect is usually the result (a noun). Think of an action and an end result.
  • Dessert has two s's, like a second helping of something sweet. The desert has just one.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What are commonly confused words?

Words that look or sound alike but have different meanings and spellings, such as their, there and they're; then and than; and affect and effect.

Are commonly confused words the same as homophones?

Some are. Homophones sound exactly the same (to, too, two). Other confused words only sound close (accept and except, loose and lose) or are spelled almost the same (desert and dessert).

What grade learns commonly confused words?

Children start with simple homophones in 2nd and 3rd grade. In 4th grade they are expected to use frequently confused words like to, too and two and there and their correctly in their own writing.