Improprieties.—Suppose, now, that a writer uses a good English word, but uses it in a sense not found in the best authors. In this case he uses the word improperly; he commits an impropriety. Sometimes two words sound so much alike that they are mistaken one for the other; for instance, accept and except. Sometimes the two words mean nearly the same thing, and so come to be confused; for example, continual and continuous. The following list gives the words that are most frequently mistaken for each other. In the illustrative sentences each such word is correctly used, and in all cases the other word would be incorrect or at least less desirable if substituted for it.
Nouns
Ability, capacity.
1. The capacity of man’s memory is great.
2. Capacity for learning and ability for doing are secrets of success.
What idea do these words share?
Acceptance, acceptation.
1. His acceptance was graceful.
2. You use the word in its usual acceptation.