A councilor is a member of a council, such as, typically, a city council (a council is a group of people who meet to make decisions or advise, usually, industry or government): I will not vote for him for city council, because he is too self-centered to be a good councilor. A counselor is a […]

Corrode and Erode both describe gradual destruction—of two different kinds.Erode means “to gradually destroy, reduce, or wear down, by abrasion”; abrasion means any action that removes tiny pieces of something bit by bit, such as the action of wind and water on rocks: The Utah desert contains many beautiful rock formations created by wind or […]

These two adjectives mean almost the same thing, but there is a difference.  Continuous describes something that goes on without pausing, stopping, or breaking.  Continual refers to something that happens very regularly—so that it might feel almost continuous: Their continual arguing drove everybody crazy.There is a continuous highway going along the entire west coast of America. […]

These two adjectives both describe diseases, referring to the way in which a person can get a disease.  Contagious means “can be spread from person to person.” Infectious means “can give a person an infection; can infect someone.” Practically speaking, these are almost the same thing, but technically there is a great difference.Contagious refers only to the […]

These three words all have meanings related to helpful advice. They all describe people who advise and help other people, but each word is different.Consul is the most specific; it refers to a specific government job—in the modern era, to the person who represents a nation’s commercial and social interests in a foreign country. This […]