PSAT: Commonly Confused Words: List 5

Learn the correct meanings and usages of these commonly confused words you may encounter on the PSAT exam.
12 words 79 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. pretentious
    creating an appearance of importance or distinction
    Now there was talk of medical college, which after a literature degree seemed rather pretentious. Atonement
    To see more usage examples of "pretentious," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "pretentious" and "portentous," click here.
  2. portentous
    of momentous or ominous significance
    Before me stretched the portentous menacing road of a new decade. The Great Gatsby
    To see more usage examples of "portentous," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "pretentious" and "portentous," click here.
  3. reluctant
    not eager
    Mama Mwanza shouted again and clapped her hands, bringing a reluctant son out of the house, dragging the flat, pinkish soles of his feet. The Poisonwood Bible
    To see more usage examples of "reluctant," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "reluctant" and "reticent," click here.
  4. reticent
    reluctant to draw attention to yourself
    He had been a reticent child, and later became a timid man. The House of the Spirits: A Novel
    To see more usage examples of "reticent," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "reluctant" and "reticent," click here.
  5. adverse
    contrary to your interests or welfare
    People are probably familiar with the adverse effects of sleep deprivation: You’re groggy, cranky, unable to focus. Salon
    To see more usage examples of "adverse," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "adverse" and "averse," click here.
  6. averse
    strongly opposed
    He seemed uninterested in and even averse to the dramas unfolding before us, but I was fascinated. Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing
    To see more usage examples of "averse," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "adverse" and "averse," click here.
  7. amoral
    lacking principles based on a sense of right and wrong
    Scientists were seen not as immoral, but amoral — immune to what’s outside the field of their microscopes. Washington Post
    To see more usage examples of "amoral," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "amoral" and "immoral," click here.
  8. immoral
    deliberately violating principles of right and wrong
    Alex knew immediately that this would be something gruesome and disgusting, and if not illegal, most certainly immoral. The Dead and the Gone
    To see more usage examples of "immoral," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "amoral" and "immoral," click here.
  9. amuse
    occupy in an agreeable, entertaining or pleasant fashion
    It had been years since he’d gone a whole night without television, and he wasn’t sure how else to amuse himself. Hoot
    To see more usage examples of "amuse," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "amuse" and "bemuse," click here.
  10. bemused
    perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements
    She studied me with an extra, bemused curiosity, as if trying to place where I came from and how precisely I’d landed on her doorstep. Becoming
    To see more usage examples of "bemused," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "amuse" and "bemuse," click here.
  11. ascent
    a movement upward
    None of the boys had ever ridden an elevator more than a few floors in a hotel, and the rapid ascent both thrilled and frightened them. The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
    To see more usage examples of "ascent," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "ascent" and "assent," click here.
  12. assent
    agreement with a statement or proposal to do something
    When I ask if I can serve myself, he nods assent. The Hunger Games
    To see more usage examples of "assent," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "ascent" and "assent," click here.
Created on Tue Jun 10 12:28:12 EDT 2025 (updated Tue Jun 10 12:29:05 EDT 2025)

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