analyst, annalist

Analyst or analyst most commonly means a psychiatric doctor ( psychoanalyst ), or, in a more general sense,  someone who examines a problem by breaking it down into parts and defining the functions of each one--
He has been seeing the same analyst for years now, but he doesn't seem to be getting any better.
"My analyst told me, that I was right out of my head, but I said 'dear doctor, I think that it's you instead'..."
An analyst would approach the problem by first taking the machine apart.
He learned to be a mere analyst in a high school literature class, but he doesn't seem to like anything he reads.

Annalist or annalist ( rhymes with analyst ) means someone who keeps a record or chronicle of events ( annals )--
The name of the annalist who kept this chronicle isn't recorded in the book.
He keeps a record the most popular web page from each day, and hopes to be remembered as the annalist of the internet.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"His analyst has suggested that he treat his own life as an annalist would, by keeping a record of the important events of each day."

Note--not to be confused with "Anna, list", maning a female given name ( Anna ), told to keep or make a series or sequence of names or items ( list )--
Anna, list ten things you did during your vacation.
OR, a ship called the "Anna" could tilt to one side ( list )--
Does the "Anna" list?

liken, lichen

Liken or liken is an informal word meaning to compare, or to see a similarity to someone or something--
It's not a good idea to liken her to her sister--she thinks they don't even look alike.
He gets annoyed if we liken his music to something we've heard on the radio.

Lichen or lichen ( rhymes with liken ) means a small plant, something like a fungus or an alga, that grows on trees or rocks the way moss does--
He painted several studies, trying to show the colors of the lichen on the rocks.
That looks like a green and yellow hill from a distance, but it's really a large rock covered in lichen.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"If I could write a poem, I would liken the yellow lichen on the rocks to a bouquet of flowers."

propriety, proprietary

Propriety or propriety means adherence to a code of correct conduct, good behavior or manners--
"But with propriety, society will say "Marie"..."
Many people think that strapless gowns in church are an offense to propriety.
Propriety may also mean justice or right thinking--
For the sake of propriety, we ought to make sure that he has competent counsel at trial.

Proprietary or proprietary describes something having to do with ownership or legal rights to property--
The firm has been in the mail order business for decades, and has a proprietary interest in the new web site.
He has a proprietary interest in the business, and spends a lot of his time thinking about ways to improve it.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"A man with a proprietary interest in the firm should have a sense of propriety; his brother shouldn't be on the payroll."

fellow, felloe

Fellow or fellow means a man or boy; a guy--
Hello there, little fellow. Where are your parents?
Tell the fellow at the next table to be quiet!
Fellow may also mean a graduate student, or a member of an academic society--
He will be a graduate fellow for the next two years.
Fellow may also describe people who are in the same state or condition--
He chats on line with his fellow sufferers.

Felloe or felloe ( rhymes with fellow ) means the rim of a wheel, into which the spokes are inserted--
The felloe is bent, and one of the spokes keeps coming loose.
The number of holes in the felloe should equal the number of spokes.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"Ask the fellow at the garage if he thinks he can straighten out the felloe so the spoke will stay in place."

spelled, spelt

Spelled or spelled is the past tense ( yesterday, or some time ago ) of "spell", meaning to arrange the letters in the proper order to form a word, or to to express a word or words letter by letter--
You spelled that wrong. There's no apostrophe when "its" is possessive, meaning belonging to it.
He spelled every word correctly, and got an "A" on the spelling test.
Spelled may be used figuratively--
He didn't understand, so she spelled it out for him.
Spelled may also be the past tense of "spell", meaning to signify or amount to--
He knew the leak in the boat spelled disaster.
Spelled may also be the past tense of "spell", meaning to relieve from work or duty for a span of time--
The guard was getting tired, but then a fellow soldier spelled him until dawn.

Spelt or spelt means a kind of wheat, generally used as a health food--
Spelt may be hulled and boiled for porridge.
She was on a gluten-free diet, but now she eats spelt and millet.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"She wanted some spelt from the market, but she spelled it wrong, and he didn't know what to buy."

Note--"spelt" may be British English for "spelled". In America this would be archaic, affected, or just wrong, in any formal writing.

anesthetic, anaesthetic, an aesthetic, an esthetic

Anesthetic or anesthetic ( one word, sometimes spelled anaesthetic ) means a substance used to produce physical insensibility or insensitivity, such as ether, choloroform, or narcotics--
He fought the anesthetic stubbornly, but he lost consciousness anyway.
The dentist uses a topical anesthetic before injecting novocaine.

Anesthetic may also describe the state of being physically insensible or insensitive, or something that causes this state--
It may take several minutes to produce an anesthetic state.
His dentist uses an anesthetic gas, and it hasn't worn off yet.

An aesthetic or an aesthetic ( two words, sometimes spelled an esthetic ) describes something that relates to the sense of the beautiful, or characterized by a love of beauty--
These curtains offend my aesthetic sensibilities. Let's get rid of them.
He is attending a lecture that promises to help him develop an aesthetic sensibility in general, and an appreciation of modern art in particular.

An aesthetic may also mean a philosophical theory of the beautiful, especially what is accepted as beautiful in a particular place, or at a particular time--
He is working on defining an aesthetic for the modern age.
The student wrote an aesthetic for the digital age, and it was published in one of the journals.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"As the anesthetic began to work, he was sure he felt an aesthetic appreciation of the ceiling tiles in the operating room--or maybe it was only the gas."

troop, troupe

Troop or troop means a group or set of soldiers, police officers, or scouts--
The local boy scout troop is selling snacks to raise money for a camping trip.
Some of the soldiers were wounded while still on the troop transport.
Troop may also be a verb ( action word ), meaning to move in a group, or to march in something like a military style--
The students lined up to troop out onto the field.

Troupe or troupe ( rhymes with troop ) means a group or set of actors or performers--
The troupe played in each little town, usually to an enthusiastic audience.
When he was sixteen, he ran away and joined a circus troupe.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The troop of motorcycle cops becomes a performing troupe once a year, when they put on a show to benefit the Police Athletic League."

Note--"trooper" means a member of a troop. "Trooper" is most commonly used to mean a state police or highway patrol officer--
He was pulled over by a state trooper, but he didn't get a ticket.
"Trouper" means a member of an acting or performing group, especially one who continues with a performance under adverse conditions--
She went on tonight even though she's been sick. She's a real trouper!
Note # 2-- "troops" usually means soldiers or members of the armed forces in general--
There's been civil unrest there; our government is thinking of sending troops.
"Troops" may also be the third person singular ( he, she, it ) form of the verb ( action word ) "troop", meaning to march in a military style--
The way he troops about the house, I almost feel like saluting him.
Note # 3--not to be confused with "trope", meaning a literary device, in which words are used in sense other than literal--
He was still learning the language, and each trope made a stumbling block.
He refused to understand the trope, and was sure that pearly teeth ought to be round.