We’re back to see which L-words we might be using wrong. Some of these are real pains in the you-know-what.
Ready? Let’s jump in.
Lay, lie
We’ll start off with one that frequently confuses even the best writer. Lay means to put, to place or to prepare. Its past and perfect forms are laid:
Nancy lays the baby in the crib. She laid him down carefully. She has laid his blanket next to him.
Lie means to recline. Its present perfect and past perfect forms are both lain. The problem comes with the past tense of lie, which is lay. Oh boy. No wonder I’m confused.
Bob went in to lie down on the couch. He lay on the recliner instead. He has lain there for an hour.
Here’s a saying to help you remember: “Lay = place, lie = recline.” Hope that helps.
Lead, led
Lead as a verb means to guide. Its past tense is led. When lead (pronounced the same as led) is used as a noun, it refers to the metal, which is also where the confusion begins.
Nancy led the group in a cheer for the home team.
Bob handles lead pipes at work.
Learn, teach
Learn means to gain knowledge. Teach means to impart knowledge.
Nancy knew she would have to teach (not learn) her younger sister to dance.
Lets, let’s
Lets is the present tense (singular) form of to let and means to permit, allow or make possible. Let’s is the contraction for let us.
Nancy lets her cat out every morning when she gets up.
Bob said, “Let’s go to the movies tonight.”
Liable, likely
Liable means obligated or responsible. Likely means having a high probability of occurring or being true. Don’t use liable in place of likely.
Nancy is likely (not liable) to trip if she doesn’t watch her step.
Like, as
The word like is a preposition and should be followed by a noun or noun phrase. As is a subordinating conjunction used to introduce a subordinate clause. When we speak to each other, we commonly use like incorrectly. Here’s an example:
Nancy looks like she hasn’t eaten enough recently.
While that’s acceptable in everyday language, when writing, the proper usage is to use as.
Nancy looks as if she hasn’t eaten enough recently.
Loan, lend
Loan is a noun meaning something given for temporary use. Lend is a verb referring to the action of giving something for temporary use.
Nancy needed a loan to buy the house she wanted.
Bob said he could lend (not loan) her the down payment.
Loose, lose
Loose means not securely fastened or not tight-fitting. Lose means to misplace or to not win.
Nancy wore a loose sweater for her date.
Bob was sure he would lose the bet on the game.
Lots, lots of
These words are colloquial replacements for many, much, or a lot. Don’t use them in formal writing. But use lots of them in casual writing.
That’s it for L words. They were definitely a challenge. Next time, we’ll dig in to M and N words. See ya then.