Uninterested or Disinterested?

If you’re a grammar nerd, here’s a fun vocabulary quiz that I picked up from a writer friend’s Facebook post. Think you know them all? See how you do:

1. Do you know the difference between “uninterested” and “disinterested”?
2. Do you know the difference between “reticent” and “reluctant”?
3. Do you know the difference between “enormousness” and “enormity”?
4. Do you know the difference between “poring” and “pouring”?
5. Do you know the difference between “compliment” and “complement”?
6. Do you know the difference between “born” and “borne”?
7. Do you know the difference between “allude” and “elude”?
8. Do you know the difference between “altar” and “alter”?
9. Do you know the difference between “ambivalent” and “ambiguous”?
10. Do you know the difference between “ascribe” and “subscribe”?
11. Do you know the difference between “asocial” and “antisocial”?
12. Do you know the differences among “assure,” “ensure,” and “insure”?
13. Do you know the difference between “bullion” and “bouillon”?
14. Do you know the difference between “cache” and “cachet”?
15. Do you know the difference between “canon” and “cannon”?
16. Do you know the difference between “canvas” and “canvass”?
17. Do you know the difference between “capital” and “capitol”?
18. Do you know the differences among “carat,” “caret,” “carrot,” and “karat”?
19. Do you know the difference between “disburse” and “disperse”?
20. Do you know the differences among “censer,” “censor,” “censure” and “sensor”?

Since Luis didn’t provide the answers, I had to look them all up. That’s how much of a nerd I am! Here are the answers with some examples:

1. Uninterested- not interested in or concerned. Uninterested means you don’t give a fat quack. Disinterested – not influenced by. Let’s ask a disinterested person to settle this quacking feud.
2. Reticent – unwilling to share thoughts or feelings. I’m reticent to tell you what I think. Reluctant – unwilling to do something. You are reluctant to settle the feud. 
3. Enormousness – being great in size, number, or degree. The enormousness of his appetite is stunning. Enormity- the same thing, although it usually refers to something monstrous or wicked. The enormity of his appetite for human flesh is stunning.
4. Poring – to read or study. I was poring over the internet to find these definitions! Pouring – flowing liquid.
5. Compliment – a kind comment. You can compliment me on my hard work. Complement – something, when added to another, that makes a complete or pleasing union. Your quacking complements his honking. 
6. Born- the past tense of the verb “bear” as it relates to birth. The ducklings were born yesterday. Borne – also past tense of bear, but not related to birth. The ducklings contracted a food-borne illness.
7. Allude – to refer to something. I will no longer allude to your quacking as awful. Elude – to escape. I elude your awful quacking by hiding in the henhouse.
8. Altar – a place for religious ceremony. He preached at the altar of quackery. Alter – to change. You better alter your answer right now.
9. Ambivalent – having mixed feelings. I’m ambivalent about your quacking in public. Ambiguous – having more than one meaning, or being unclear. Moaning is more ambiguous than quacking.
10. Ascribe – to credit or attribute a quote or belief. We ascribe that quote to McDuck. Subscribe – to agree with. I subscribe to McDuck’s philosophy.
11. Asocial – no capacity or desire for social interaction. Antisocial – hostile toward society.
12. Assure – to relieve a person’s doubt. Be assured that I’ll clobber you if you leave the door open. Ensure – to guarantee something will happen. Please ensure the door is closed. Insure – to assume financial liability. State Farm will insure me if you leave the gate and I’m robbed, but I’ll still clobber you.
13. Bullion – Gold bricks. Bouillon – soup stock. You can’t make an edible bouillon out of bullion.
14. Cache – a hiding place for valuables. Your computer holds a cache of information about your quacking habits. Cachet – a mark of prestige. Walmart does not have the same cachet as Target.
15. Canon – a code of religious laws, a principle or a group of works. Cannon – a weapon.
16. Canvas – a heavy cloth used for paintings and to make sails and tents. Canvass – to carefully search or examine. Canvass every aisle of every single store to find a sturdy canvas.
17. Capital –  monetary worth, or a city that serves as a center for government. Capitol – the actual government building. Capitol buildings are in the state capital.
18. Carat – a unit for measuring the mass of stones. Caret – a proofreader’s mark to show where something is missing. Karat – a unit for measuring the purity of gold. If you don’t know what a carrot is, I can’t help you.
19. Disburse – to pay out funds. Always refers to money. The bank will disburse the settlement money. Disperse is to cause something to vanish. The rain will disperse the ice cream on the sidewalk. I could also disperse that bank-disbursed money for you.
20. Censer – an incense burner in church. Censor – to prevent speech or writing from reaching the public. Censure – to officially denounce an offender. You are censured from quacking at the jury during a trial. Sensor – a device that senses change.

I hope that clears a few things up for you. Finding the definitions helped me.

Here’s one to do on your own:
Do you know the difference between principal and principle? Can you use them in a sentence? Please share in the comments!