Some time ago, a friend told me they often have problems knowing when to use ‘too’ and when to use ‘to’. They understand they have different meanings and acknowledge they are very different words—the problem is, they still struggle with knowing which one to use.

Let’s take a look at the answer to the question—two, too or to? Three little words that all sound the same. Well, most of the time.

Two

This is the easy one. This is the number 2.

Too

This one are two meanings. The first being ‘as well’, or ‘also’.
Here’s a simple test: If you can replace the word too or to in your sentence with ‘also’, then too is the correct word to use.

Example one:
Which: Mike cooked with coconut oil too/to.
Test: (replace the word) Mike cooked with coconut oil also. The sentence has the same meaning. Therefore, too is the correct word to use.
Correct: Mike cooked with coconut oil too.

Example two:
Which: Mary went too/to visit her family.
Test: Mary went also visit her family. This sentence makes no sense. Therefore, to is the correct word to use.
Correct: Mary went to visit her family.

Secondly, too is used to describe excess. As in, too hot, or too much salt.

To

The word to is used in a variety of places and ways. In short, if it’s not a number you’re writing about, it’s not being used to indicate excess, and if the test for the other too does not fit, you can safely use to.

When stressed, to is pronounced /tu/ (as is too)
When unstressed, to is pronounced /tə/ (as in, ‘he used to own a car’, pronounced: ‘he usta own a car’). In this instance the ‘o’ in to is pronounced as schwa.

Example of stressed:
Come over here—to where I can see you.

Example to unstressed:
Come to dinner.

To be honest, I wonder sometimes if the ‘stressed’ or ‘unstressed’ are perhaps a matter of accent and often an indication of how lazy we can be with our pronunciation!

Examples where two, too and to are all used:

• Aunt Sophie was too late to catch the bus, but her two sisters said they would come to pick her up.
• Two hours later, Matthew arrived to join the party too.
• The two men had too many drinks to drive safely.
• Jason had bought too many clothes to fit into his suitcase. He wished he’d remembered to bring his two overnight cases too.

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Loose or lose? Do you know the difference between these two words and when it’s appropriate to use them?

Loose

Loose: (adjective) means not tight, not held together, or able to be taken apart.
Loose: (verb) means to set free.
Loose: (noun) means free, not confined.

Pronunciation: rhymes with ‘goose’, ‘juice’ or ‘moose’. (sss sound)

Other forms:

Loosen: (verb) untighten.
Loosing: (verb) setting free.
Loosed: (verb) set free.

Examples
Her tooth was so loose it was about to drop out.
The screw came loose, and the part fell off!
News came over the radio that the prisoners were on the loose.
She handed him the jar, asking him to loosen the lid so she could open it.

Lose

Lose: (verb) means to be deprived of something or cease to have something. Past tense = lost.

Pronunciation: rhymes with ‘whose’, ‘moos’ or ‘ooze’. (zzz sound)

Other forms:

Losing: (verb or adjective) also mean deprived of something—as in not winning.
Lost: (verb or adjective) cannot be found.

Examples
They played so badly he said they were sure to lose the game.
She couldn’t afford to lose any more money gambling.
He was trying to lose weight.
It was easy to lose count as the sheep ran past so quickly.
She was fast losing her patience with her brother.
He was fed up with always being on the losing side.
He lost his wallet the other day.
The lost property basket was full of clothing left behind after the event.

More examples
Her bikini top was so loose she was sure she’d lose it in the waves.
Why would she lose her wheels? Because the nuts were loose!

Memory Aids

Too loose and it will fall off. (Two o’s)
Double o (oo) looks a bit like handcuffs; a prisoner needing to be set loose.

Lose and lost – different tenses; present and past. (One o) Think about your sentence. If it happens, will you have lost something? If yes, use lose = one o.

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Sight, Site or Cite

These three words sound exactly the same yet have very different meanings. Most people understand the first one well, but I’ve seen times of confusion with the other two.

Sight (n) – to do with the eyes and seeing
She had very good sight

Sight (v) – catch a glimpse of, or take aim
His boss used to sight the invoices before approving payment

Site (n) – a place (building site, campsite, website)
Warnings advised people to stay out of the construction site

Site (v) – to place something
She was told to site the resource table in a high-traffic area

Cite (v) – refer to (a passage, book or author) as an example or to help justify your argument; or praise
It is helpfully to cite your sources of information
He was cited for bravery during the war

Sight, Site and Cite in the same sentence (showing different meanings)

I don’t expect you would generally find all three of these words in the same sentence. It could be confusing to have the same sound repeated three times in a short space! However, to show the difference in meaning: “As he caught sight of his reflection in the shop window, he recalled this was the site where he’d been cited for bravery the previous year”.

Sight, site or cite? I hope this has helped you decide which to use when you next need to use one of them.

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I was reading about the most common grammar mistakes last week, and although the correct usage of “your” and “you’re” wasn’t listed, it seems to be an error I often see. So here is a quick response to that—if this is a pair of words that causes you confusion, I hope it will be helpful.

“Your” indicates possession. As with “my”, “his”, “her”, “their” and “our”.

“You’re” is a contraction of “you are”. It has an apostrophe in the middle of the word, indicting a missing letter or letters—in this case, the letter “a”.

How to decide which to use

Ask yourself the question:

• Can I write “you are” instead? If the sentence would still say what you want it to say, then “you’re” is the correct choice.
• Is this about possession—something belonging to a person? Then “your” is correct.

Examples of correct usage

• You’re not wearing that, are you?
• You’re coming with me.
• Your glass needs refilling.
• Give me your hand.
• When you’re ready, I’ll take you to your car.

 Test Yourself

1. Bring me _______ papers.
2. When do you think _______ going to be ready?
3. Is that _______ child over there?
4. Are _______ parents coming to the party?
5. If _______ buying _______ first home, _______ probably going to need a mortgage.
6. When _______ alarm clock rings, _______ meant to get out of bed.

Answers

1. your
2. you’re
3. your
4. your
5. you’re – your – you’re
6. your – you’re

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Regarding the use of “fewer” or “less”, you may have heard this rule:

If you’re talking about amounts or something countable, use “fewer”. Otherwise, use “less”. Often that is the case, but it is not always a reliable guide.

An easier and more accurate way to decide which is correct

Use “fewer” with plurals and use “less” with something that’s singular or doesn’t have a plural, such as air, time or money.

For example, “fewer drinks of water”, “fewer sunny days”, and “fewer papers”; whereas “less water”, “less sunshine”, and “less paper”.

An exception

“Less” should be used in front of counting nouns or plurals that signify distance, amount, or time. For example, “less than two weeks”, “less than $20”, or “the journey was 10 miles less than expected”.

Here’s another one that can cause some dispute

Use “less” in the phrase, “one less”. Although many would argue that “fewer” should be used in instances where the reference is to something countable, according to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage, common usage dictates “one less” is more correct. So, “one less apple” is better than “one fewer apple”. However, “fewer apples” (note the plural here) is better than “less apples”. It seems that although this particular example is often cause for argument, the singular and plural rule can still be applied successfully.

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