When we first started my Comm 160 class we were taught the differences between words that sound and look the same. For example, its and it's, effect and affect and two, to, and too. For this post i am going to write about the differences we learned between these types of words.

First we will talk about its and it's. It's is of course a contraction of it is, for example, it's time to go. Its is the possessive form of it, for example, the cat lost some of its fur. Next is your and you're. Your is the second person progressive adjective and it is always followed by a noun or gerund. For example, is this your pen? You're is the contraction of you are. For example, you're going to be early. Next is their, there and they're. There is a noun that names a place, and adjective that empathizes which person and a pronoun that introduces a noun or a clause. Their is the third person plural possessive adjective. They're is the contraction of they are. Then we have affect and effect. Affect has several different meanings, such as, to have an influence on, to touch or move or to simulate. Effect is mostly used as a noun and it is something brought about by someone or something or something that gives the impression of someone or something else. Next is lose and loose. Loose is and adjective and it means the opposite of tight or contained. Lose is a verb and means to suffer the loss of something. Next is lie and lay. The difference between lie and lay is that lay requires a direct object and lie does not. Next is two, to and too. To has two functions, it is a preposition and indicates an infinitive when it precedes a verb. Too also has two meanings and they are, to mean also, or to have a excess of something. Lastly, two is a number. Finally we have then versus than. Than is a conjunction used in comparisons. Then can mean at that point at time, next or afterward and in addition or also.

Hopefully this helps many people out when they are trying to distinguish between the different meanings of these words.