damn, dam

Damn or damn means to condemn or doom--
He was taught that a mortal sin would damn him to hell for eternity.
Damn is often used as an expletive--
"Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" is a popular movie quote.

Dam or dam ( rhymes with damn ) means a structure to contain the flow of a river--
The Hoover Dam is a popular tourist attraction.
The dam was built to produce hydroelectric power.
Beavers build a dam across a stream, and then build their lodge inside the dam.
Dam also means the female parent of some farm animals--
His dam and his sire were both champions.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The people who were affected by the flood would like to damn the people who designed the dam."

levy, levee

Levy or levy means to impose a tax, or the tax itself--
The new levy on imported cars made him decide to buy a domestic model.
Another levy will be politically unpopular.

Levee or levee ( rhymes with levy ) means a breakwater on the banks of a river--
The flood began when the levee broke.
The storm did a lot of damage to the levee.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The city had passed a new levy to raise funds to repair the levee."

Note--"levée" ( leh vay, sometimes spelled levee, to rhyme with levy ) means a morning meeting, historically in the king's personal quarters--
Only the king's trusted advisers attended the levée.
Note # 2--the plural ( more than one ) of "levee" is "levees" ( lev eez )--
We hope the levees will hold back the flooding river.
The plural ( more than one ) of "levy" is "levies" ( lev eez )--
If the council approves any more levies, the people will vote for someone else next election.
"Levies" is also the third person singular ( he, she, it ) form of the verb ( action word ) "levy"--
If Congress levies imports, they will become more expensive.
Not to be confused with "Levi's" ( lee vize ), a brand of jeans--
These new Levi's are the wrong size.
Levi's is also the possessive ( belonging to ) form of "Levi" ( lee vye ) , a man's given name--
Are these Levi's Levi's, or Tom's Levi's?

wit, whit

Wit or wit means cleverness or humor, or a clever or humorous person--
He has a good sense of humor and a fine wit.
He fancied himself a wit, but his jokes were rarely funny.

Whit or whit ( rhymes with wit ) means an iota or small particle--
This does not look a whit better after all that work.
Do I mind? Not a whit.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"His so-called wit had not a whit of cleverness in it."

Note--"wits" may mean more than one clever person--
They considered themselves wits, although they were not amusing.
"Wits" more commonly means intelligence or mental resources--
Having no family, he was forced to live by his wits.
Note # 2--"witan" ( one word ) means the members of the "witenagemot", the parliament or council of Anglo-Saxon England--
The witan was made up of the aldermen, knights, bishops, and the king.
Not to be confused with "wit an" ( two words )--
He considered his wit an asset.

dowdy, doughty

Dowdy or dowdy means frumpy or unfashionable--
I want to go to the store so that I can exchange this dowdy blouse.
Does this dress look dowdy?

Doughty or doughty ( nearly rhymes with dowdy ) means brave or plucky--
She enjoyed reading the adventures of  the doughty girl detective.
The doughty old woman never lost her nerve during a crisis.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"He recognized the doughty woman by the dowdy coat she always wore."

Note--"pandowdy" is a kind of fruit cobbler--
We are having apple pandowdy for dessert.

season, seizin

Season or season means one of the four periods into which a year is divided--
Winter is the season for cold and snow.
Last summer they stayed at the beach for the entire season.
Season may also mean the term during which a sport is played--
It's the first day of baseball season.
Season may also mean a period of time marked by a holiday--
The Christmas season starts in December.
Season may also mean to spice or flavor food--
Season the meat with salt and pepper.

Seizin or seizin  ( sometimes spelled seisin, rhymes with season ) means possession of land or property, in a legal document--
He had to win the  lawsuit to establish his seizin.
The covenant of seizin assures the buyer that the seller owns the property.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The seizin question won't be settled until the holiday season is over."

Note--"seizing" is a participle ( used with a helper verb ) of "seize", meaning to grab and hold--
He stopped her from walking into traffic by seizing her arm.
Not to be confused with "seasoning", meaning salt or spices--
There is not enough seasoning in the stew.

shone, shown

Shone or shone is the past tense ( yesterday, or some time ago ) of "shine",  meaning to glow or gleam with light or its reflection--
"...and the glory of the lord shone round about them..."
A bright star shone over the stable.

Shown or shown ( rhymes with shone ) is a participle ( used with a helper verb ) of  "show", meaning to display or demonstrate--
They were shown how to wrap a present, but they forgot. 
When will our favorite holiday movie be shown?

Now that you know that, you can say--
"They were shown the way home by the holiday lights that shone all night."

pixie, pyxie

Pixie or pixie means a kind of elf or sprite--
Her new haircut makes her look like a pixie.
Are you hoping that a helpful pixie will come along to clean up this mess?

Pyxie or pyxie ( rhymes with pixie ) means an American  trailing evergreen plant--
We could plant a pyxie on each side of the walk.
The Christmas lights don't look right on the pyxie. Try them on the pine tree.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"We bought a potted pyxie for the little pixie next door to put in her garden."