border, boarder

Border or border means the edge or part of a surface forming an outer boundary--
He wants the sign painted blue, with a red border.
I'm looking for some fabric with a floral border.

Border also means the dividing line between two countries or states--
You'll have to stop at the border, where they'll ask if you have anything to declare.
We'll have to show our passports at the border.

Boarder or boarder ( rhymes with border ) means a lodger or paying guest--
He was a boarder in an old house, and had his dinner there every night.
The old woman wanted to take in a boarder, to help make ends meet.

Boarder might also mean a person who gets on a ship, particularly an enemy ship in time of war--
The doughty sailor knocked  first one boarder overboard, and then another.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"The boarder helped his landlord put up a wallpaper border in the dining room."

Note--"bored her", said of a female ( her ), means wearied or tired by dullness or repetition ( bored )--
She tried to pay attention, but the lecture bored her.
"Board her" would mean to get on a ship--
When he saw the strange ship, the captain determined to board her, and learn her identity.

concept, conception

Concept or concept means an idea; a thought or mental construct--
The concept is simple--we provide appealing content, and make money by selling ad space.
The students may need to act this out, to really understand the concept of one person, one vote.

Conception or conception means the beginning, invention, or origination of something, --
This product is the conception of a team of scientists. 
The conception of the United Nations began with the founding of the League of Nations. 

Conception also means the beginning or inception of pregnancy--
A human being is born about 40 weeks after conception.
She was sure of the date of conception, and the baby was born on its due date.

Conception may mean a mental notion, such as a plan or design, particularly while still an idea--
His conception of the new building is more modern, with a lot of glass.
This is an artists's conception of how the site will look when the building is finished.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"His conception of how to explain the concept of procreation included a drawing of the specifics of conception, as well as images of the stages of development."

felt, felted, felled

Felt or felt is the past tense of "feel", meaning to perceive by touch or sensation, or to be emotionally affected--
He felt the bricks of the doorway, and found the door handle.
He felt the old sweater, his favorite.
He felt cold, so he put on a sweater.
He felt angry when his boss ignored his suggestions.


Felt ot felt also means a non-woven fabric, matted together under pressure, used to make decorations, slippers, coats, and hats--
Our grandfather always wore a felt hat.
She wore a coat made of heavy felt.

Felt also means to make something into a fabric similar to felt--
If you felt that old sweater, you can make it into a pair of slippers.

Felted or felted is the past tense of "felt", meaning to make something into a fabric similar to felt--
She felted some old wool sweaters, and used them to make mittens.
She shrank that in hot water and felted the surface, to make a warm hat.
Felted also describes something altered to give it a surface that looks similar to felt fabric--
This is made of some old wool that has been felted.

Fell or fell is the past tense of "fall", meaning to tumble or drop down--
The leaf fell from the tree.
He fell off the ladder.

Fell also means to cut down a tree, or to knock or take down something, as when shooting an animal--
He used his axe to fell a tree.
He used his gun to fell a deer.

Fell also means to turn over a seam and sew it flat, like the seam on blue jeans--
Those pants will be sturdier if you fell the seams.
She made plain seams, because she didn't know how to fell them.

Felled is the past tense of "fell", meaning to cut down a tree--
He felled the tree with his axe.
Felled is also the past tense of "fell", meaning to sew a seam flat--
She felled all of the seams, to make pants that would last a long time.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"She fell off the chair, and felt a pain in her knee, trying to reach a box of felt decorations."
"She felted the old sweater, and felled the seams of the new mittens she made."
"He felt sad when he felled the tree, and a bird's nest fell out of it."

Note--not to be confused with "felt it", meaning perceived something ( it ) by touch or sensation--
He knew it was his old sweater when he felt it.
OR--"felt it", meaning altering something ( it ) to make a surface similar to felt fabric--
You could make that sweater into a hat the way it is, or you could felt it first.

leased, least

Leased or leased is the past tense ( yesterday, or some time ago ) of "lease", meaning to rent or let--
He doesn't want to buy a new car, so he leased one instead.
We leased the cabin to some people from the city.

Least or least ( rhymes with leased ) means the smallest in number, amount or quantity out of a given number or set--
This puppy barks the least, but he whines the most.
The least you could do is pick up after yourself!

Now that you know that, you can say--
"If you leased the property, you could still vacation there at least once a year."

a symetrical, asymetrical

A symetrical or a symetrical  ( two words ) describes one ( a ) design or arrangement that has an even number of elements, identical on both sides of a line in the center--
I think a symetrical design looks better, but he thinks it's boring.
The human body is an example of a symetrical design.

Asymetrical or asymetrical ( one word ) describes something that is not arranged with the same elements on each side--
An asymetrical design looks modern to most people.
It's an asymetrical design, with different shapes scattered over the surface.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"Would you like the plants arranged in a symetrical design, or in an asymetrical design?"

rough, ruff

Rough or rough describes a coarse texture; an uneven surface; something crude or unpolished, or not smooth, literally or figuratively--
This shirt is as rough as sandpaper; it's uncomfortable.
Now sand all of the rough edges; then we'll paint it.
He had a rough way of speaking, but no one ever took offense.

Ruff or ruff ( rhymes with rough ) means a neckpiece worn in Elizabethan England, with pleats or folds making a stiff circle around the neck--
He used an air cleaner from an auto parts store to make a ruff for his costume.
He dressed like an Elizabethan courtier, in a ruff and leg hose.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"He wore a velvet jacket and a lace ruff, but his manner was rough and his speech was plain."

minion, minyan

Minion or minion, most commonly used in a disparaging way, means a subordinate official; someone who does the bidding of a person in power--
We don't want to deal with a minion; let us talk to your boss.
She's sure the little brat is a minion of Satan.

Minyan or minyan is a Hebrew word, commonly found in print in English, meaning a set of 10 male Jews over the age of 13, the required minimum needed to conduct a religious service--
We need one more to make a minyan for the funeral; will you come?
Sorry, the rabbi said that a woman can't be counted for a minyan; we need another man.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"We need ten men for a minyan, even a minion or a hired hand will do."

Note -- Not to be confused with "mignon", a French word meaning little --
I'll have the filet mignon, medium rare.