Assume / Presume

Assume - to take on or to adopt

The Vice President will assume the President’s position when he has surgery.

Presume - to take for granted or to accept without proof.

The Heisman Trophy winning quarterback presumes he will be a first-round draft pick.

Assure / Ensure

Assure - to eliminate or relieve concern, worry or fear.

The doctor assured his patient that there was a course of treatment for his illness.

Ensure - to guarantee an outcome.

Ryan Howard’s second home run of the game ensured that the Phillies would win the ball game.

Bad/Badly

Bad - used as an adjective

I feel bad about missing school so much.

Badly - use as an adverb.

He performed badly at the recital because he did not practice.

Because/Since

Because - indicates a cause or a reason

The school was closed because of a power outage.

Since - refers to time, meaning between then and now.

The Cardinals are playing for an NFL championship for the first time since the 1940s.

Beside/Besides

Beside - by the side of.

My golden retriever was always beside me when we went to the shore.

Besides - in addition to.

There are more things to life besides money.

Bring/Take

Bring - to carry or lead TOWARD someone or something.

Bring me a copy of the latest news from home.

Take - to carry or lead AWAY from someone or something.

Be sure to take your book home with you to study for the exam.

Burglary/Robbery

Burglary - breaking into a building to steal. The victim(s) is either not present or not confronted.

The burglary was discovered when we showed up to work in the morning.

Robbery - the unlawful use of force to acquire something belonging to another

The robbery left the victim bruised and battered.

Cannon/Canon

Cannon - a mounted weapon.

The Union Army had three times as many cannons as the Confederacy.

Canon - a church law or rule, or a set of principles such as the canons of journalism.

Martin Luther did not agree with the canons of the Catholic Church

Capital/Capitol

Capital - the city where a government is located.

Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania.

Capitol - the building in which government business is conducted.

The House and Senate convened at the capitol.

Cite/Sight/Site

Cite - to quote someone or to refer to another source.

Make sure to cite all sources in your critical paper.

Sight - seeing or a view that is seen.

The Phillies World Series parade was a sight to behold.

Site - a location where something is positioned

The site for the new high school has not been determined.

Complement/Compliment

Complement - to complete or to supplement

The team was successful because its players complemented one another throughout the lineup.

Compliment - to praise

After the game, his manager complimented his pitching performance

How to writeThe basics

the 5 w’S

WHO... is the story about?

WHAT... happened?

WHEN...did it take place?

WHERE... did it take place?

WHY... did it happen?

The inverted pyramid

Stories are written in such a way that the important information comes across first, and slowly gets less and less important.

Effective for two reasons

If they can’t hear/read the whole story, they’ll the important facts first

If they need to shorten the story they don’t have to go line by line.

The inverted pyramid

Writing a lead

A lead is the opening paragraph of your story, or for broadcast, your opening story line.

Summary lead- Most traditional. Straight to the point, and factual.

Creative lead- Creative hook, or brief entertaining statement.

lead Re-Write

Original: U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop died peacefully at his home on Monday, Dartmouth College said. He was 96. He died at his home in Hanover, New Hampshire, the college said in a news release.

Better: Former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop died at his home Monday afternoon at the age of 96.

Lead Re-Write 2Original: Funny. Sexist. Sassy. Awkward.Seth MacFarlane was referred to with all these adjectives and more after his gig as host of the 85th Academy Awards on Sunday night. The "Family Guy" and "American Dad" creator received mixed reviews for his singing, dancing and jokes, with Time TV critic James Poniewozik dubbing MacFarlane "American Dud."

Better: The 85th Academy Awards were held on Sunday with hosting duties given to “Family Guy” creator Seth McFarlane.

Lead Re-write 3

Original: "This is the Charm Blow, we are abandoning ship." With that message -- delivered at 4:20 p.m. Sunday -- radio communication between the boat and the Coast Guard went dead. Since then, searchers have been scouring the waters off San Francisco for the reported occupants of a 29-foot sailboat -- a couple, their 4-year-old child and the child's cousin, who the Coast Guard said is younger than 8.

Better: A family of four was forced to abandon their 29-foot sailboat on Sunday, 65 miles off the coast of San Francisco.