pairs Flashcards
Knead, Need
Kneed: She is kneading the floor
Need: I don’t need him.
Queue, Cue
Queue: Please, don’t jump the queue.
Cue: I have never seen him miss a cue.
Choral, Coral
Choral: I don’t like choral music.
Coral (red stone, marjan): I like the coral lips of babies.
Quarts, Quartz
Quarts: A gallon has four quarts.
Quartz (silicon mineral): Quartz is used for glassmaking.
Discrete, Discreet
Discrete: Lemon and lime are two discrete fruits.
Discreet: He is a discreet man.
Epoch, Epic
Epoch: The king’s death marked the end of an epoch.
Epic: Have you read the epic love story of Romeo and Juliet?
Libel, Liable
Libel (defamation): He sued the newspaper for libel.
Liable: You are liable for the damage caused.
Male, Mail
Male: Horse is a male animal.
Mail: Please send him a mail.
Banned, Band
Banned: Tiktok is banned in Pakistan.
Band: Which is your favorite music band?
Barred, Bard
Barred (blocked, secured): He sits by the barred window.
Bard (poet and singer): He is a good bard.
Brooch, Broad
Broach
Brooch: Clean the brooch with a soft cloth.
Broad: He has a broad forehead.
Broach (bring a new topic in discussion): Eventually, she broached the subject of her divorce.
Collusion, Collision
Collusion (conspiracy): The officials are in collusion with the criminals.
Collision (crash): The car was in collision with the bus.
Fain, Feign
Fain (gladly, agreeable): Poor laity are fain of little.
Feign (give a false appearance): She feigned nervousness.
Hoard, Horde
Hoard (stock): It is unlawful to hoard.
Horde (crowd): Her bodyguards helped her walk through the horde of fans.
Illusion, Delusion
Illusion: Winged eyeliner gives the illusion of large eyes.
Delusion (misconception): He was under the delusion that I intend to marry him.
Persecute, Prosecute
Persecute (harass, victimize): We must not persecute anyone.
Prosecute (legal proceeding): He was prosecuted for theft.
Prescribe, Proscribe
Prescribed: The doctor prescribed him some painkillers.
Proscribe (forbid): Cultivation of weed is proscribed in Pakistan.
Respectfully, Respectively
Respectfully: I respectfully oppose the argument.
Respectively: I gave the bag and books to Ali and Umar respectively.
Complacent, Complaisent
Complacent (careless, self-approving): He is a glib and complacent person.
Complaisant (cooperative): She is always helpful and complaisant.
Auger, Augur
Auger (a tool used for boring holes): Put the auger back in the toolbox.
Augur (forecast, sage): The end of the cold war seemed to augur well.
Emigrate, Immigrate
Emigrate (leave, relocate, migrate): They emigrated from Russia.
Immigrate (settle in the non-native country): He is an American who immigrated to Australia.
Envy, Jealous
Envy: I envy you.
Jealous: She is jealous of my success.
Invade, Attack, Intrude
Invade: The island was invaded by pirates.
Attack: He was killed in an attack on the office.
Intrude: He has no right to intrude in my life.
Trifling, Trivial
Trifling (unimportant, minor): Life is too short to spend on trifling matters.
Trivial (common, minor): He could remember every trivial incident in great detail.
Simulation, Dissimulation
Simulation: The solider’s skills are tested through simulation.
Dissimulation (misrepresented): He is capable of great dissimulation and hypocrisy.
Venal, Venial
Venal (buyable, corrupt): Custom officers are notoriously venal.
Venial (forgivable, tolerable): Both mortal and venial sins should be avoided.
Council, Counsel
Council: The local council is in charge of repairing roads.
Counsel: Experts are available to counsel you.
Distinct, Distinctive
Distinct (distinguishable): I can feel the distinct smell of nicotine.
Distinctive (particular): Bear has a very distinctive smell.
Apposite, Opposite
Apposite (appropriate): Which dress is apposite for school?
Opposite: He was on the opposite side of street.
Deprecate, Depreciate
Deprecate (abhor): I strongly deprecate the use of violence.
Depreciate (devalue): New cars depreciate in price quickly.
Punctual, Punctilious
Punctual: He is a punctual person.
Punctilious (careful, attentive): He is vigilant and punctilious.
Judicial, Judicious
Judicial: The case is subject to judicial review.
Judicious (sensible): Government should ensure the judicious use of resources.
Salutary, Salubrious
Salutary (beneficial, healthy): The punishment had a salutary effect on the boy.
Salubrious (favourable, health-giving): Vegetables are salubrious for health.
Canvas, Canvass
Canvas: She is painting on a canvas.
Canvass (suggest, electioneer): Early retirement was canvassed as a solution of unemployment.
Veracity, Voracity
Veracity (truthfulness): I have doubts regarding the veracity of this story.
Voracity (hungriness): He ate with the voracity of a starving man.
Moat, Mote
Moat (A deep ditch filled with water surrounding the castle): They built a moat around the castle.
Mote (particle): I feel an irritating mote of dust in my eye.
Loath, Loathe
Loath (unwilling, hesitant): I was loath to leave.
Loathe (more than hate): I loathe these horrible roads.
Ingenious, Ingenuous
Ingenious: He was ingenious enough to overcome the limited budget.
Ingenuous (trustful, innocent): The Ingenuous kid believes in fairies.
Wreak, Wreck
Wreak (bring about, impose, inflict): These insects can wreak havoc on crops.
Wreck: The blast wrecked 100 houses.
Mitigate, Alleviate
Mitigate (soften the effect of something): We should adopt ways to mitigate the environmental effect of burning coal.
Alleviate (to ease (physical pain)): Painkillers can help alleviate headaches.
Popular, Populace
Popular: He is a popular singer.
Populace (population): The majority of the populace travel to work by bus.
Compliment, Complement
Compliment: He complimented me on my dress.
Complement: Husband and wife complement each other.
Excite, Incite
Excite: Flying still excites me.
Incite (encourage): Just a few words will incite him into action.
Virtual, Virtuous
Virtual: Do you know the concept of virtual reality?
Virtuous (moral, righteous): She is the most moral and virtuous woman.
Exceptional, Exceptionable
Exceptional: He delivered an exceptional speech.
Exceptionable (offensive, objectionable): There was no exceptionable scene in the movie.
Luxuriant, Luxurious
Luxuriant (lush): Tall luxuriant plants grew along the river bank.
Luxurious (expensive, pleasure-giving): This is the most luxurious hotel in the town.
Mean, Mien
Mean: I don’t like her, she is so mean.
Mien (look): He has a judicious, academic mien.
Observation, Observance
Observation: The patient is under observation.
Observance (practice, tradition): Strict observance of the rules must be ensured.
Naughty, Knotty
Naughty: He is a naughty kid.
Knotty (complex): This numerical is quite knotty.
Ghostly, Ghastly
Ghostly: There seemed to be a ghostly presence in the room.
Ghastly (awful, ill, terrible): What is the most ghastly crime you have ever heard?
Hew, Hue
Hew (cut, chop, fashion): He hewed his enemies into pieces.
Hue: Add orange to get a warmer hue.
Adjoin, Adjourn
Adjoin (be next to): The dining room adjoins the kitchen
Adjourn (suspended, decamp): The meeting is adjourned till the next notification.
Allay, Ally
Allay (decrease, reduce): Drink some water to allay your hunger.
Ally (Combine, join): He is an ally of Ali.
Bases, Basis
Bases: They attacked our military bases.
Basis: Provide a conclusion on the basis of evidence.
Click, Clique
Click: Don’t click on the red button.
Clique: We are a clique of 5 members.
Distract, Detract
Distract: He was distracted by a beautiful lady.
Detract (lessen): The horrible roads will detract the enjoyment of our trip.
Plaintiff, plaintive
Plaintiff (a person who brings a case against another): The plaintiff appealed for the rehearing of the case.
Plaintive (mournful, pathetic): Her voice was a little plaintive.
Valet, Varlet
Valet (male servant): When will the valet come to collect my laundry.
Varlet (male attendant, unprincipled man): Ask the varlet to bring my horse.
Penitence, Penance
Penitence (regret, shame): He expressed penitence for what he had done.
Penance (self-punishment, penalty): What is penance for adultery?
Crevice, Crevasse
Crevice (crack, gap): There are many crevices and wrinkles on his face.
Crevasse (crack in glacier/earth): He fell down a crevasse.
Adverse, Averse
Adverse (unfavorable): Taxes are having adverse effects on the production
Averse (anti, against): As I am averse to risk, I never play casino games.
Curb, Kerb
Curb (resistance, hold back): She promised to curb her temper.
Kerb (raised edge of sidewalk): Don’t want on the kerb, you’ll fall.
Altogether, All together
Altogether (completely): I stopped seeing her altogether.
All together (in one place or group): They arrived all together.
Allude, Elude
Allude (mention, suggest): We will allude briefly to the main points.
Elude (dodge, avoid): He eluded the security man by sneaking through the back door.
Braise, Braze
Braise (light fry and then cook in liquid): He braised the meat in the morning.
Braze (like welding): In our scenario, brazing is better than welding.
Faze, Phase
Faze (disturb, disconcert): Nothing fazes him.
Phase: They are in the last phase of training.
Maybe, May be
Maybe: Maybe, I won’t go back.
May be: He may be waiting for us.
Wrath, Wroth
Wrath (anger): He is afraid of his father’s wrath.
Wroth (angry): He is majestically wroth.
Subtler, Sutler
Subtler (ultra-fine, precise, cleaver): He looks rich and subtle than her.
Sutler (who sells provisions to the army): We have a new sutler and he has such capital things.
Retenue, Retinue
Retenue (restrain, deduction): Antibodies help to retene infection.
Retinue (escort, company): He traveled with a huge retinue of servants.
Furor, Furore
Furor (disturbance, fuss): The book caused furor across the country.
Furore (enthusiastic anger): His choice of words created quite a furore.
Dinghy, dingy
Dinghy (lifeboat): The dinghy sailed smoothly across the lake.
Dingy (gloomy dull): Her hair was a dingy brown color.
Bony, Bonny
Bony: She has a bony face.
Bonny (attractive): He is such a bonny, bouncing baby.
Callous, Callus
Callous: I hate him for his callous behavior.
Callus (hard healing tissue formed over a wound): The exposed surface will quickly form a healing callus.
Faint, Feint
Faint: I can hear a faint voice.
Feint (deceiving movement during fight): Make a feint in the east but hit in the west.
Waiver, Waver
Waiver: Please sign the fee waiver.
Waver (trembled, blink): His love for her has never wavered.
Shear, Sheer
Shear (cut the wool off): I have never sheared a sheep before.
Sheer (complete, perpendicular): The date went sheer out of my head.
Consciousness, Conscientiousness
Consciousness: Consciousness is being aware of internal and external existence.
Conscientiousness (doing a job thoroughly): Conscientiousness is a fundamental personality trait
Fantastic, Fanatical
Fantastic: You have done a fantastic job.
Fanatical (eager): her husband was fanatical about the study.
Honorable, Honorary
Honorable: he is an honorable person.
Honorary: The university awarded him the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws.
Politician, Statesman
Politician: There are some prominent politicians in Pakistan.
Statesman: Quaid-e-Azam was a statesman, not a politician.
Grateful, Gratified
Grateful: I am so grateful to you for your kind act.
Gratified (satisfy, please): He was gratified by Lucy’s response.
Imaginary, Imaginative
Imaginary: She has an imaginary friend.
Imaginative (creative): Make imaginative use of clay.
Negligent, Negligible
Negligent (careless): The Council had acted in a negligent manner.
Negligible: The value of x is negligible in this sum.
Placable, Placeable
Placeable: The mechanic is looking for a peaceable instrument for a tug-puller.
Placable:
