Quiz On 20 Commonly Confused Words

20 Questions | By Owlishschool | Last updated: Nov 9, 2014 | Total Attempts: 216

Questions

Settings

Source: grammar. About. Com

Questions and Answers

1.

A recent study found that many air fresheners are high in chemicals that have been linked to _____ health effects in high doses.
- A.
  
  Adverse
- B.
  
  Averse
2.

The young hockey star was dubbed "the phantom" for his ability to _____ defenders.
- A.
  
  Allude
- B.
  
  Elude
3.

The malty flavor of buckwheat honey makes it a nice _____ to blue cheese.
- A.
  
  Complement
- B.
  
  Compliment
4.

Amazon unveiled the Kindle, its digital-book reading _____, at the end of 2007.
- A.
  
  Devise
- B.
  
  Device
5.

The genes, _____ bits of DNA on the chromosomes in each cell, control all body activities by directing the production of essential chemicals.
- A.
  
  Discreet
- B.
  
  Discrete
6.

When his ship _____ on the coast of Scotland in 1883, the Danish captain thought he saw a seven-pointed star in the sky.
- A.
  
  Floundered
- B.
  
  Foundered
7.

In 1958, a Spanish photographer accompanied Fidel Castro and his band of revolutionaries during their ____ push to Havana.In 1958, a Spanish photographer accompanied Fidel Castro and his band of revolutionaries during their ____ push to Havana.
- A.
  
  Historic
- B.
  
  Historical
8.

The fact that some geniuses were laughed at does not _____ that all who are laughed at are geniuses.
- A.
  
  Imply
- B.
  
  Infer
9.

All births are _____ moments, but some are more momentous than others.
- A.
  
  Incredible
- B.
  
  Incredulous
10.

Facebook has about 300 million users and Twitter a tenth of that number, but the _____ has been winning the headline battle in recent months.
- A.
  
  Later
- B.
  
  Latter
11.

Night after night, the president _____ over memos arguing for and against the choice that confronted him.
- A.
  
  Pored
- B.
  
  Poured
12.

A higher salary was Sol's _____ reason for accepting the job offer.
- A.
  
  Principal
- B.
  
  Principle
13.

He _____ his brains to remember, but he could not call to mind a single thing!
- A.
  
  Racked
- B.
  
  Wracked
14.

The beauty of Moroccan palaces is made up of details of ornament and refinements of _____ delight too numerous to record.
- A.
  
  Sensual
- B.
  
  Sensuous
15.

"English usage is sometimes more than mere taste, judgment, and education--sometimes it's _____ luck, like getting across a street." (E.B. White)
- A.
  
  Shear
- B.
  
  Sheer
16.

Much of what we thought we knew about the evolution of dinosaurs turns out to be _____ or out-and-out wrong.
- A.
  
  Simple
- B.
  
  Simplistic
17.

The train passengers spent the night in the makeshift hotels of ____ carriages parked on railway sidings.
- A.
  
  Stationary
- B.
  
  Stationery
18.

Jay-Z always sounds bold and confident, but then of course _____ is rarely a character trait in the world of hip-hop.
- A.
  
  Temerity
- B.
  
  Timidity
19.

Be it a Jeep Cherokee or a Ford Explorer or supersized to a Humvee, the SUV soon became the _____ and luxurious symbol of boomer excess throughout the 1990s.
- A.
  
  Veracious
- B.
  
  Voracious
20.

"_____ the gods wish to destroy they first call promising." (Cyril Connolly)
- A.
  
  Who
- B.
  
  Whom