
Here’s a list of a few to get you started:
Your/you’re – ‘your’ is a possessive adjective (“your car”); ‘you’re’ is an abbreviation for “you are” (“you’re kidding, right?”).
Its/it’s – ‘its’ is a possessive adjective (“the cockroach moved its antennae”); ‘it’s’ is an abbreviation for “it is” (“it’s disgusting”).
Complement/compliment – ‘complement’ refers to an element that completes something (“the glass of Riesling was an excellent complement to the meal”); a ‘compliment’ is an expression of admiration (“his compliment regarding my work made me smile”).
Affect/effect – ‘affect’ refers to influence (“her healthy diet has affected me”), whereas ‘effect’ refers to a result or the ability to produce a result (“a fail mark was the effect of his insolence”).
Their/there/they’re – ‘their’ is a possessive noun (“their aggravating dog”); ‘there’ refers to a particular place (“put the dog there”); and ‘they’re’ is an abbreviation for 'they are' (“they’re not walking that thing enough”).
Who’s/whose – ‘who’s’ is an abbreviation for 'who is' (“who’s speaking tonight?”) and ‘whose’ is another possessive adjective (“whose brochure is that?”).
One of my recent discoveries:
Busyness/business – ‘busyness’ is the state of being busy, while ‘business’ refers to someone’s source of revenue (“I'm enjoying running a business”).
While writing, look out for these commonly misused words. In addition to this, Google “commonly misused words” to find longer lists that will help you revolutionise your writing.
Editing Tip for Fluency No #7: take action with regards to frequently confused words.