Confusing words

flammable / inflammable

These two words are actually synonyms, both meaning easily set on fire. The highly flammable (inflammable) fuel was stored safely in a specially built tank. Use nonflammable to mean not flammable.

flaunt / flout

To flaunt means to show off shamelessly: “Eager to flaunt her knowledge of a wide range of topics, Helene dreamed of appearing on a TV trivia show.” To flout means to show scorn or contempt for: “Lewis disliked boarding school and took every opportunity to flout the house rules.”

hanged / hung

Hanged is the past tense and past participle of hang when the meaning is to execute by suspending by the neck: “They hanged the prisoner for treason.” “The convicted killer was hanged at dawn.” Hung is the past tense and participle of hang when the meaning is to suspend from above with no support from below: “I hung the painting on the wall.” “The painting was hung at a crooked angle.”

historic / historical

In general usage, historic refers to what is important in history, while historical applies more broadly to whatever existed in the past whether it was important or not: “a historic summit meeting between the prime ministers;” “historical buildings torn down in the redevelopment.”

i.e. / e.g.

The abbreviation e.g. means for example (from Latin exempli gratia): “Her talents were legion and varied (e.g., deep sea diving, speed reading, bridge, and tango dancing).” The abbreviation i.e. means that is or in other words (from Latin id est):“The joy of my existence (i.e., my stamp collection) imbues my life with meaning.”

stationary / stationery

Stationary is an adjective that means fixed or unmoving: “They maneuvered around the stationary barrier in the road.”Stationery is a noun that means writing materials: “We printed the letters on company stationery.”