Confusing Verbs

What are confusing verbs and why do English learners mix them up?

Confusing verbs are pairs of English verbs that learners frequently use incorrectly because they share similar meanings, translations, or grammatical forms. In many languages, a single word covers both meanings — for example, Spanish uses "hacer" for both "make" and "do", and German uses "sagen" for both "say" and "tell". This L1 interference is the primary reason learners struggle with these pairs.

Research from the Cambridge Learner Corpus shows that confusing verb errors account for a significant portion of vocabulary mistakes at the A2-B2 level. The good news is that most confusing verb pairs follow clear rules — once you learn the underlying pattern, you can apply it consistently. This page covers confusing verb pairs plus commonly mixed-up words and structures with 690 practice questions and sentences.

Core Pairs

Make/Do, Say/Tell

The most frequent errors in learner writing

Direction Pairs

Bring/Take, Come/Go

Depend on speaker's position

Perspective Pairs

Lend/Borrow, Learn/Teach

Same action, different viewpoint

Grammar Pairs

Rise/Raise, Lie/Lay, Rob/Steal

Transitive vs intransitive differences

Make vs Do — How do you know which one to use?

The make vs do distinction is one of the most common confusing verb challenges for English learners. The general rule is: use "make" when you create, produce, or construct something new, and use "do" for tasks, activities, and general work. However, many expressions are fixed collocations that must be memorised rather than derived from rules.

Research from the English Collocations in Use corpus shows that "make" typically collocates with nouns related to creation and production (make a decision, make a mistake, make progress), while "do" collocates with nouns related to work and duties (do homework, do business, do the washing up). When in doubt, ask yourself: "Am I creating something new?" If yes, use "make". If you are performing a task, use "do".

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Say vs Tell — What is the recipient rule?

The say vs tell distinction is governed by one simple rule: "tell" always requires a personal object (you tell someone something), while "say" does not require a person (you say something). This is called the "recipient rule" because "tell" always needs a recipient. For example: "She said it was late" (no person needed) vs "She told me it was late" (person required).

Beyond the basic rule, there are important fixed expressions. We always say "tell the truth", "tell a lie", "tell a story", and "tell the time" — even though these do not follow the person-object pattern. Similarly, we say "say hello", "say goodbye", "say sorry", and "say a prayer". In reported speech, "said" is used for direct quotes while "told + person" introduces indirect speech.

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Bring vs Take — How does direction affect the choice?

The bring vs take distinction depends on direction relative to the speaker. Use "bring" for movement towards the speaker or listener (similar to "come"), and "take" for movement away from the speaker (similar to "go"). A simple memory trick: "bring here, take there." If someone is coming to you, they bring things. If they are going somewhere else, they take things.

Context matters with this confusing verb pair. At a party, the host says "Bring a bottle" (towards the host). A parent tells a child "Take your lunch to school" (away from home). On the phone, you might say "I'll bring the documents to your office" (towards the listener). Swan's Practical English Usage notes that in informal American English, "bring" is sometimes used in both directions, but this is considered non-standard in British English.

BRING (towards speaker)

• "Bring me the salt, please."
• "Can you bring a dessert to the party?"
• "She brought flowers when she visited."

TAKE (away from speaker)

• "Take this letter to the post office."
• "Don't forget to take your umbrella."
• "He took the children to school."

Lend vs Borrow — What is the perspective rule?

The lend vs borrow distinction is about perspective. "Lend" describes the action from the giver's point of view (to give something temporarily), while "borrow" describes it from the receiver's point of view (to receive something temporarily). You lend TO someone, and you borrow FROM someone.

The most common error is using "borrow" in place of "lend": "Can you borrow me your pen?" is incorrect — it should be "Can you lend me your pen?" or "Can I borrow your pen?" This confusing verb pair trips up learners because many languages use a single word for both actions. Remember: if you are giving, you lend; if you are receiving, you borrow.

Come vs Go — How does the speaker's position matter?

Like bring/take, the come vs go pair depends on the speaker's position. Use "come" for movement towards the speaker or listener, and "go" for movement away. If someone invites you to a party, you say "I'll come to your party" (towards the listener), not "I'll go to your party" (unless speaking to a third person).

A particularly confusing verb scenario is on the phone. If your friend calls and says "I'm at the cinema," you reply "I'll come to the cinema" (towards the listener). But if you tell a third person, you say "I'm going to the cinema" (away from the current location). The rule is consistent: "come" = towards the person you are talking to; "go" = towards somewhere else.

COME (towards speaker/listener)

• "Come here, please."
• "Can I come to your house?"
• "She came to see me yesterday."

GO (away from speaker)

• "I need to go to the bank."
• "They went to France last summer."
• "Let's go shopping."

Rise vs Raise and Lie vs Lay — What is the object test?

These two confusing verb pairs follow the same grammatical pattern: one verb is intransitive (no object) and the other is transitive (requires an object). The "object test" is simple: if the sentence has a direct object after the verb, use the transitive form (raise, lay). If there is no object, use the intransitive form (rise, lie).

"Rise" means to go up on its own (The sun rises), while "raise" means to lift something up (She raised her hand). "Lie" means to recline (I lie on the bed), while "lay" means to put something down (I lay the book on the table). The lie/lay pair is especially tricky because the past tense of "lie" is "lay" — identical to the present tense of the other verb! Past forms: lie → lay → lain; lay → laid → laid.

Rob vs Steal, Win vs Earn, Learn vs Teach — What are the key distinctions?

These three confusing verb pairs each follow a distinct pattern. Rob vs steal differs in what follows the verb: you rob a person or place, but you steal a thing. Win vs earn differs in how you obtain something: you win through competition or luck, but you earn through work and effort. Learn vs teach differs in direction: you learn (receive knowledge) but you teach (give knowledge).

What are the most common confusing verb mistakes?

Analysis of the Cambridge Learner Corpus reveals that certain confusing verb errors are far more frequent than others. The top five mistakes appear consistently across learners from all language backgrounds, suggesting these confusing verb pairs are inherently difficult rather than caused by specific L1 interference alone.

How can I remember which confusing verb to use?

The best strategy for mastering confusing verbs is to learn the underlying rule for each pair, then reinforce it with practice. Research shows that spaced repetition and contextual practice are far more effective than rote memorisation. Here are proven memory techniques for each confusing verb pair.

For direction-based pairs (bring/take, come/go), always ask: "Towards me or away from me?" For perspective pairs (lend/borrow, learn/teach), ask: "Am I the giver or receiver?" For object-dependent pairs (rob/steal, rise/raise, lie/lay), ask: "Does this verb need an object?" For collocation pairs (make/do, say/tell), focus on learning common fixed expressions as chunks.

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