Do English Words Like Accept/Except, And Allusion/Illusion Perplex You? Here's The Difference And When And How To Use Them

Mastering the pronunciation of English words has consistently posed a challenge, particularly for those using it as a second language.

English Grammar Class: Know difference between confusing words. (Representative Image)

By Nandini Pradeep J

Pronunciation of English language words has always been a challenging affair, especially for second language users. The tapestry of English language comprises of a variety of pronunciations for similar-seeming words and likewise, divergent spellings for similar-sounding words. A compelling reason for this is the rich ancestry of colonization, and the tasteful looting of vocabulary (as well!), among other things.

In order to accurately grasp the meanings and usage of certain perplexing words, such as "accept/except" and "allusion/illusion," a deep understanding of their lexical nuances is essential. Let us delve into the first pair, starting with "accept," a verb that conveys the idea of willingly receiving something.

For example: I accept the terms of the contract

(Meaning: I am happy with the contract and I am willing to sign it).

Conversely, "except" is primarily used as a preposition to indicate the exclusion of specific entities or elements. However, in legal contexts, it can also function as a verb meaning "to exclude," and as a conjunction, often followed by the subordinating conjunction "that."

For example: I accept everything in the contract except the clause on dress code.

(Meaning: Here, aside from the dress code, everything will be accepted by the subject).

In fact, there are discernible phonetic differences between these terms, making it easier to differentiate between them. The verb “accept” is pronounced as /əkˈsept/, phonetically, whereas the preposition “except” has the phonetic pronunciation /ɪkˈsept/. As it can be observed, even though there is a notable difference in pronunciation, they are often considered as homophones. Even native speakers of English often mispronounce the two, creating a semantic disjunction to the listener.

Moving on to the next set of words, “allusion” and “illusion” are both nouns derived from the same Latin word root “ludere” which means “to play.” They have distinct verb forms “allude” and “illude,” respectively. “Allusion” is a reference made indirectly to something not literally implied otherwise, whereas “illusion” is a misleading notion or vision. The word “allusion” is used mostly in literature, and the verb form is more frequently used in common parlance.  For instance, look at the following sentences:

• “When the poet mentioned sonneteers, it was an allusion to Shakespeare.”
• “You must be under the illusion that he meant Shakespeare when he made that comment on sonneteers”

These sentences clearly differentiate between the two words.

“Illusion” is a much more common term and is used in a variety of contexts, especially in relation to magic or trickery of any sort. In terms of phonetics, “allusion” is pronounced /əˈluː.ʒən/ whereas “illusion” is /ɪˈluː.ʒən/. Like the former pair, these two words also have a definite distinction, with the former taking “ə” or “schwa” and the latter taking the short “ɪ” (pronounced similar to the letter “e”). These two are not homonyms or homophones, yet owing to the likeness in pronunciation, especially because of the ‘-lusion’ ending, there often occurs a confusion.

In conclusion, to effectively communicate and write proficiently, it is vital to possess a nuanced comprehension of such ‘tricky’ word pairs. Each word holds a unique meaning and is suitable for specific situations, emphasizing the significance of precise lexical choices in academic conversations and language understanding.

(The author is an Assistant Professor, Dept. of English, KLH Hyderabad, Bowrampet Campus)