Commonly confused sound-alike words: Vols. G and H
Here’s the latest installment on word pairs that confound many writers and speakers.
Narrowing the list to 10 is difficult, but here are 10 words beginning with the letters G and H that are frequently mixed up in speaking and/or writing.
1. gambit/gamut
Perhaps it’s the first syllable that leads to confusion between these two nouns.
In the game of chess, a gambit is an opening move in which a player offers a sacrifice, usually of a pawn, in order to gain an advantage.
By extension, a gambit is a ploy intended to gain an advantage, especially at the beginning of a contest or negotiation.
As a musical term, a gamut is the full range of notes that a voice or instrument can produce. Figuratively, a gamut is the full range or scope of something.
His handyman skills run the gamut from carpentry to plumbing.
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2. genial/congenial
These adjectives derive from the same source.
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