Claire Whitmore 
in route vs en route can be confusing because both expressions contain familiar English words and both can appear to describe movement. The standard expression for saying that someone is on the way is en route. For example, you can say, The package is en route to your home. The confusion exists partly because English … Read more
Suing or sueing is a common spelling problem because the base word is sue and adding ing seems as simple as putting the ending directly onto the original word. At first glance, sueing looks logical. However, standard English spelling removes the final silent e before adding ing, giving us suing. The confusion comes from the … Read more
The choice between busses or buses can be confusing because both spellings appear in English. If you mean more than one vehicle used to carry passengers the standard form is buses. For example you would write Three buses arrived at the station. The spelling busses can also be found in dictionaries but it may represent … Read more
Ballon or balloon is an easy spelling mistake to make because the two forms look almost identical. The correct spelling is balloon. The form ballon is normally incorrect in standard American English when you mean the familiar inflatable object or a hot air aircraft. The confusion often comes from the unusual letter pattern. The word … Read more
Disfunction or Dysfunction can be confusing because both forms look reasonable at first glance. The correct spelling is dysfunction. The form disfunction is generally a spelling error in standard modern English when you mean something that is not working properly or is operating in an unhealthy way. The confusion comes partly from the familiar prefix … Read more
skillset or skill set is a common spelling question because both forms appear frequently in modern English. The short answer is that skill set is the traditional and widely accepted form for describing a group of abilities. Skillset also appears as a closed compound noun and has gained noticeable use, especially in workplace language, recruiting, … Read more
roll call or role call can be confusing because the two phrases sound exactly the same in ordinary American English. If you’re talking about a teacher checking attendance or a group leader confirming who is present the correct expression is roll call. The word roll refers to a list of names while role refers to … Read more
usage or useage is a common spelling question because the incorrect form looks perfectly reasonable at first glance. The correct spelling is usage. Useage is a misspelling that often appears because people naturally connect the word with the verb use and assume that the extra vowel should remain in the written form. The confusion becomes … Read more
Latter or ladder is a common English confusion because the two words sound the same for many speakers. The spelling is different and so is the meaning. Latter refers to the second of two things or people already mentioned, while ladder is a structure with steps or rungs that people use to climb. The confusion … Read more
The choice between onsite or on site often looks like a tiny spelling question, but grammar is doing most of the work here. The two forms are closely related, yet they don’t always fit in the same place in a sentence. If you’re writing an email, report, job description, school paper, or business document, choosing … Read more