Words often confused and misused - 9

1.    Disease and Decease

Disease /dɪˈziːz/(noun)                   Ailment or illness
Smoking can cause fatal diseases.
Decease dɪˈsiːs (noun)                     Death ( rarely used as a noun)
Deceased /dɪˈsiːst/( adjective)/(pronoun)
There was a large crowd at the funeral as the deceased was a highly respected person.

2.    Differ  and Defer

Differ /ˈdɪfə(r)/                       to be different from something else; to disagree
Cultures differ from country to country.
Defer  /dɪˈfɜː(r) / (stress on the second syllable)          to postpone / to acknowledge the merit of
I defer to your superior knowledge.

3.    Difference and Deference

Difference  /ˈdɪfrəns/                       distinguishing feature
What is the difference between these two washing machines?
Deference /ˈdef(ə)rəns/                    Respect
Out of deference for his teacher, Rahul stopped arguing further.

4.    Disability and Disability

Disability /ˌdɪsəˈbɪləti/          Inability to perform some or all the tasks of daily life
Dyslexia is a learning disability.
Inability /ˌɪnəˈbɪləti/              Lack of ability, means or power to do something
Her inability to face the situation made her lose her sanity.

5.    Disinterested and  Uninterested

Disinterested  /dɪsˈɪntrəstɪd/          Impartial, not interested
Mr. Mukund is famous as a disinterested judge.
Uninterested /ʌnˈɪntrəstɪd/             Unconcerned; bored
Being uninterested in politics, my sister hardly reads the newspapers.