It’s sometimes hard to convey just what we mean to say using only the written word, particularly if the reader has no visual cues to go by to see if you’re joking or serious—whether you’re being factual or facetious (aside from a semi-colon and parenthesis, which I’ll try to use more often;)
And there’s the problem that so many words sound the same, but are spelled differently and have vastly different meanings, like pray and prey, sleigh and slay, flee and flea, see and sea, might and mite, dye and die, right and rite, seed and cede, fir and fur, sell and cell, spade and spayed, knotty and naughty or gorilla and guerilla.
Also, some words like tense, bill or colon that can denote two or three drastically dissimilar things which are spelled exactly the same.
Then there are words that look similar, but should never be mistaken for one another. Here are ten examples of that phenomenon—the first of the two has good connotations, the second…not so much;)
Photos Jim Robertson
1) Obvious — Oblivious
2) Likeable — Liable
3) Inhabitable — Inhospitable
4) Straitlaced — Straitjacketed
5) Riffle — Rifle
6) Crab — Crabber
7) Seal — Sealer
8) Whale — Whaler
9) Wolf — Wolfer
10) Humane — Human
Exposing the Big Game 
Ooh, the English major in me loves this post.
It’s obvious to me that hunters and trappers are oblivious to the torture and destruction of wildlife they cause.
Although hunters and trappers may be human they’re not very humane.
Hunters and trappers are not very likeable and should be held liable for the ecological rape of which they’re guilty.
Wolfers should pack themselves and their wolf hysteria into a time machine and transport themselves back to where they belong: the 19th century.
Do I get a gold star, Professor Robertson? 😀
Yep, a gold star for you–you were obviously (as opposed to obliviously) paying attention.
As an ex-teacher I am thrilled to see someone point out the obvious to the oblivious!!!
( Maureen has done so well I dare not compete, although the 19th century is not far enough in the past to send them. I prefer the era of the sabre tooths…lol))
or perhaps the pre-cambrian?
You know what? Let’s send them back to The Big Bang. We need to give them as much time as possible to evolve before they’re fit to be called human.
But there still wouldn’t be any guarantees…