Alex Stetsenko

Guys at PM Hut (amazing blog on project management) came up with a great list of the 32 most commonly misused words and phrases.
Although the post is titled Even a Project Manager Needs Good Grammar, I believe such list can work as a good ‘flashcard’ for anyone including those who studies either for SAT or GRE exams.

Some notable of those words are quoted below:

Affect/Effect – The way you “affect” someone can have an “effect” on them. “Affect” is usually a verb and “Effect” is a noun.
Complement/Compliment – I often must compliment my wife on how her love for cooking perfectly complements my love for grocery shopping.
Discreet/Discrete – We can break people into two discrete (separate) groups, the discreet (secretive) and indiscreet.
Elicit/Illicit – Some people post illicit things on message boards to elicit outrageous reactions from others.
Flair/Flare – A flair is a talent, while a flare is a burst (of anger, fire, etc.)
Inflammable – Don’t let the prefix confuse you, if something is inflammable it can catch on fire.
Imply/Infer – A reader infers what an author implies. In other words, when you imply something, you hint at it. When you infer something, you draw a conclusion based on clues.
Literally – If you say “His head literally exploded because he was so mad!” then we should see brains splattered on the ceiling.
Lose/Loose – If your pants are too loose you may lose them. That would be almost as embarrassing as misusing these two words.
Percent/Percentage – The word “percent” should only be used when a specific number is given. “Percentage” is more of a general term.
Stationary/Stationery – You are stationary when you aren’t moving. Stationery is something you write on.
Unique – Something can’t be “kind of unique” or even “very unique.” It’s either one of a kind or it isn’t. There is no in between when it comes to unique.
Lie/Lay – After you lay the books on the table, go lie down on the couch.
Allude/Elude – When someone alludes to something in conversation (indirectly references), if you aren’t paying attention the meaning may elude you (escape you).