3 Common Near-Homophone Mix-ups

     Homophones!  From "Homo," meaning "Same," and "Phone," relating to sound.  Thus, Homophones are words that sound the same--the three they're/there/theirs of the apocalypse, for example.

     So what is a near Homophone?  It's those pesky words that sound or are spelled alike, but are not the same, and do not have the same meaning--this is sometimes just a misspelling, but more often arises because someone has confused or conflated the meaning of two very different words.

     These are a few of the most common mistakes I see, and what the correct usage is for each.

1.  Wreck Vs. Wreak

     I see this a lot in fanfiction, particularly with the phrase "____ Havoc."   This one bothers me a lot--not for any particular reason.  It's just one of those things that gets under my skin; a pet peeve.  So here I am to set the record straight!  Is is Wreak Havoc or Wreck Havoc?

Short Answer:  It's Wreak Havoc.

Long Answer:  Wreak is a verb which means "to inflict," whereas the verb form of Wreck means "to destroy."  What this means for us is that when you wreak havoc, you are inflicting it on others, but if you were to wreck havoc, you would be destroying havoc itself, which is a much more heroic deed than is typically meant.


2.  Leer vs. Leery

     This one I've included primarily because it confused me for a long time.  "What the fuck," I kept saying to myself, stroking my imaginary mustache, "why are people using leery in place of wary?

     It turns out that leery does not mean to gaze upon another with a leer (an often sexual way of looking at someone slyly or maliciously), but to look at them with well-earned suspicion, as though wary.

     So there, ME, in your face!


3.  Weary vs. Wary

     This one is back to other people, though.  *shoves all my self-loathing at the monolithic masses*

     The words "weary" and "wary" are often confused for one another, especially by new writers.  Sometimes this is a typo [insert cautionary tale about double-checking your documents for errors spellcheck didn't catch], but sometimes it's not--and you can tell when every single use of one, the other, or both is incorrect.

     In the interest of helping out everyone possible, herein lies the difference between the two; wary means cautious or suspicious.  Weary, however, means tired or sleepy--so one is wary of that sketchy dude stalking past your window in the dead of night, but grows weary of the act after the second month.



     So there you have it, folks!  Are there any near-Homophone mixups that irk you as you read?