Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Favour and favor are two ways of spelling the noun used to refer to an act of kindness or to mean โapproval.โ It can also be used as a verb to mean โprefer.โ The spelling depends on the type of English you use.
In British English, โfavourโ is standard.
In American English, โfavorโ is correct.
It’s important to choose one type of English and use it consistently. The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help you with this.
Examples: Favour or favor in a sentenceSarah asked her friend for a favour/favor, hoping he would have some good advice.
My manager seems to favour/favor innovative projects that impact the organization.
The politician promised to work in the public’s favour/favor.
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
March 17, 2026
Advice is a noun that refers to guidance, both formal and informal. Advise is the verb that refers to the act of giving guidance.
The words are often considered homonyms, but โadviceโ is pronounced with an โsโ sound at the end, and โadviseโ is pronounced with a โzโ sound.
The related noun adviser or advisor refers to the person who gives you guidance.
Examples: Advice in a sentence
Examples: Advise in a sentence
My teacherโs advice is that I should more thoroughly check my work for errors.
Can you advise me on the best way to prepare for the interview?
Iโd like your advice on what I should wear on my first date.
The doctor advised me to take the medication twice a day.
My grandmotherโs advice on cooking has always been to season generously!
Why are you advising him to spend more money on clothes?
โAdviceโ and โadviseโ are often confused but serve different grammatical roles that impact sentence clarity.
Adviceโ is a noun referring to guidance or recommendations, while โadviseโ is a verb meaning to give that guidance, with a helpful pronunciation distinction (โiceโ vs. โwiseโ).
Simple explanations and examples make it easy to choose the correct form and improve accuracy in everyday writing.
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Judgment and judgement are two ways of spelling the same noun, which means โopinion,โ โthe act of forming an opinion,โ or โthe ability to form an opinion.โ
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Defence and defense are two ways of spelling the same noun, which is used to refer to the legal plea of someone on trial for a crime, to a sports tactic used to prevent the other team from scoring, and to the act of protecting something.
The spelling depends on the type of English you use.
In British English, โdefenceโ is standard.
In American English, โdefenseโ is the only correct spelling.
Itโs important to choose one spelling and use it consistently. The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help you with this.
Examples: Defence vs defenseCarl was granted a new trial after his defence/defense was deemed incompetent.
I was rooting for the defence/defense to stop the opponent from scoring.
Lorelei came to her friendโs defence/defense when he was accused of shoplifting.
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Travelling and traveling are both correct spellings of the present participle and gerund of the verb โtravel,โ which means โgo from one place to another.โ
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Kneeled and knelt are two ways of spelling the past tense and past participle of the verb โkneel,โ which means โto place one or both knees on the ground.โ People often kneel to respect or worship an entity, which makes it similar to genuflecting.
In American English, โkneltโ and โkneeledโ are both used, but โkneltโ is preferred.
In British English, โkneltโ is standard.
Itโs important to choose one spelling and use it consistently. The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help you with this.
Examples: Kneeled or knelt in a sentenceDamian kneeled/knelt to pick up the wallet that someone dropped.
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Smelled and smelt are two ways of spelling the past tense of the verb โsmell,โ which means โto produce an odorโ or โto detect somethingโs scent.โ The spelling depends on the variant of English you use.
In American English, โsmelledโ is standard.
In British English, โsmelledโ and โsmeltโ are both used.
Itโs important to choose one spelling and use it consistently. The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help you with this.
Examples: Smelled or smelt in a sentenceThe books I found in the attic smelled/smelt musty.
The burned food smelled/smelt so bad!
The dog smelled/smelt something interesting and ran off into the woods.
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Offence and offense are two ways of spelling the same noun, which refers to a sports tactic aiming to score on the opponent, a breach of rule or illegal act, or a state of resentment due to a perceived insult.
The spelling depends on the type of English you use:
In British English, โoffenceโ is standard.
In American English, โoffenseโ is most common.
Itโs important to choose one spelling and use it consistently. The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help you with this.
Examples: Offence vs offenseThe offence/offense of the losing team just wasnโt good enough.
Committing a criminal offence/offense can result in various penalties.
Despite his good intentions, I took offence/offense to his comment.
Published on
July 1, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
December 16, 2025
Realise and realize are two ways of spelling the same verb, which means โbecome aware ofโ or โmake (something) happen.โ The spelling depends on the type of English you use.
In British English, both โrealiseโ and “realize” are acceptable. Oxford style requires โrealize.โ
In American English, โrealizeโ is the only correct spelling.
Itโs important to choose one spelling and use it consistently. The QuillBot Grammar Checker can help you with this.
Examples: Realise or realize in a sentenceLeo didnโt realise/realize the value of time management until he missed a deadline.
After two months, Logan started to realise/realize how much he loved his girlfriend.
Debbie went to Scotland to realise/realize her dream of petting a Highland cow.
Published on
June 29, 2024
by
Julia Merkus, MA.
Revised on
November 5, 2025
Former is used to refer to the first item mentioned in a list of two or more things, and latter is used to refer to the last item in a list. This way, repetition can be avoided.
Former refers back to the first thing or person in a previously mentioned list. It can also be used to refer to a past state or to mean โpreviousโ (e.g., โmy former coworkerโ).
Latter refers back to the last thing or person in a previously mentioned list. It can also refer to a later time or period (e.g., โthe latter half of this lifeโ).
Examples: Former in a sentence
Examples: Latter in a sentence
I could choose between a free bag or belt, but I chose the former.
Samsung and Apple are both nice brands, but the latter is much more popular.
My former girlfriend is now competing on The Voice!
We will focus on paid marketing in thelatter half of the year.
You can remember the difference between โformerโ and โlatterโ by looking at the letters they start with. โFormerโ and โfirstโ both start with โf,โ and โlatterโ and โlastโ both start with โl.โ
