Word Confusion: Accept vs Except vs Excerpt vs Expect

Posted October 26, 2015 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
16 Oct 2022

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The most common word confusion is that between accept and except.

And it is easy enough to mistype except and expect. God knows, I had to keep checking this post to make sure I had the proper juxtaposition of letters throughout! Hmm, maybe I should check again . . .

Tricks to Distinguish Between Accept, Except, Excerpt, & Expect

There’s something about the acc- in accept that feels comfortable, accepting which goes toward its definition of receiving something. The ex- in except has a negative feel . . .I always think ex-spouse. Someone I’d want to exclude from memory, lol.

As for excerpt, it’s the rpt. For some reason my mind jumbles that around to part, and since excerpt is only a part of something . . . well, it’s a no-brainer.

As for expect . . . it has a waiting-ish feel to it. I feel as though I’m hovering, waiting for the rest of the word to arrive.

I accept the terms of your offer, but I wish to except the clause calling for repayment of the deposit.

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end. Consider sharing this Word Confusion with friends by tweeting it.

Accept	Except	Excerpt	Expect
Convoca WMC is Saroshafzal’s own work under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. — Young woman at Wah Medical College accepting her diploma.	One Way, Except Bikes by Eric Fischer is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.	Torres Strait by U.S. Defense Mapping Agency Aerospace Center and in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. — An excerpt from an operational navigational chart of the Torres Strait Islands, Queensland, Australia.	Pregnancy Belly by Towle Neu <http://www.freestockphotos.biz/stockphoto/9350> is under the CC BY 2.5 license, via Wikimedia Commons. — She’s expecting a baby soon.
Part of Grammar:
Verb, intransitive & transitive Third person present verb: accepts Past tense or past participle: accepted Present participle: accepting	Conjunction ¹; Preposition ²; Verb, transitive ³ Third person present verb: excepts Past tense or past participle: excepted Present participle: excepting	Noun ¹; Verb, transitive ² Noun plural: excerpts Third person present verb: excerpts Past tense or past participle: excerpted Present participle: excerpting	Verb, intransitive & transitive Third person present verb: expects Past tense or past participle: expected Present participle: expecting
Take what’s offered Verb, intransitive: Consent to receive a thing offered Give an affirmative answer to an offer or proposal Say yes to a proposal of marriage from a man Verb, transitive: Consent to receive a thing offered Give an affirmative answer to an offer or proposal Say yes to [Dated] Say yes to a proposal of marriage from a man Receive as adequate, valid, or suitable Regard favorably or with approval Welcome [Of a thing] Be designed to allow something to be inserted or applied Believe or come to recognize an opinion, explanation, etc., as valid or correct Take upon oneself a responsibility or liability Acknowledge Tolerate or submit to something unpleasant or undesired	Exclude Conjunction: Used before a statement that forms an exception to one just made ¹ [Archaic] Unless Preposition: Not including ² Other than Verb, transitive: [Formal] Specify as not included in a category or group ³	Part Noun: A short extract from a film, broadcast, or piece of music or writing ¹ Verb, transitive: Take a short extract from a text ² Take an excerpt or excerpts from a text Select a passage for quoting	Wait Verb, intransitive: [Archaic] Wait Stay To look forward To be pregnant Await the birth of one’s child Verb, transitive: Regard something as likely to happen Regard someone as likely to do or be something Believe that someone or something will arrive soon Look for something from someone as rightfully due or requisite in the circumstances Require someone to fulfill an obligation [Informal; used with I expect] Used to indicate that one supposes something to be so, but has no firm evidence or knowledge [Archaic] Await Anticipate or look forward to the coming or occurrence of
Examples:
Verb, intransitive: Tim offered Brian a lift home and he accepted. Verb, transitive: He accepted a pen as a present. He would accept their offer and see what happened. Ronald is a good match and she ought to accept him. The college accepted her as a student. Credit cards are widely accepted. The Harvard literati never accepted him as one of them. Vending machines that accepted 100-yen coins for cans of beer are few and far between. This tentative explanation came to be accepted by the group. It is accepted that aging is a continuous process. Jenkins is willing to accept his responsibility. He accepts that he made a mistake. They accepted the need to cut expenses.	Conjunction: I didn’t tell him anything, except that I needed the money. Our berets were the same except mine had a leather band inside. She never offered advice, except it were asked of her. You will languish in Hell except you repent. The town of Hilarity was inaccessible except by boat. I would go except that you’ll be gone longer than I can be away. Preposition: I was naked except for my socks. They work every day except Sunday. We get the paper daily except Sundays. The stores are open daily except the major holidays. Verb, transitive: He excepted from his criticism a handful of distinguished writers.	Noun: Triskell put together an excerpt of the story. This is an excerpt of the whole. Just read the excerpt. It’ll give you an idea of what it’s about. Verb, transitive: The notes are excerpted from his forthcoming biography.	Verb, intransitive: She’s expecting next month. Verb, transitive: We expect the best. He expects the stock market to sink further. He expect that farmers will harvest 63 million acres of hay. They were not expecting him to continue. Celia was expecting a visitor. We expect great things of you. We expect employers to pay a reasonable salary. They’re just friends of his, I expect. I expect you know them? Mary is expecting a baby. It’s only to be expected. You know her mama . . . What can you expect? We were expecting them any minute now. I had expected the cab to be here by now.
Derivatives:
Adjective: accepted Adverb: acceptedly Noun: acceptation, accepter, accepting Verb: preaccept Verb, transitive: reaccept	Adverb: unexceptionably Adjective: exceptionable, exceptional, unexceptionable, unexceptional Noun: exception, exceptionality, unexceptionableness	Adjective: excerptible Noun: excerption, excerpter, excerptor	Adjective: expectable, unexpected Adverb: expectably, expectedly, unexpectedly Noun: expectedness, expecting, unexpectedness
History of the Word:
The first known use was in the 14th century. Late Middle English from the Latin acceptare, an iterative of accipere meaning take something to oneself, from ad- (to) + capere (take).	Its first known use was in the 15th century. The first known use was in the 14th century. Late Middle English from the Latin except- meaning taken out, from the verb excipere, from ex- (out of) + capere (take).	The first known use was in 1627. Mid-16th century from the Latin excerpt- meaning plucked out, from the verb excerpere, from ex- (out of) + carpere (to pluck).	The first known use was in 1560 and based on the sense defer action or wait from the Latin exspectare meaning look out for, from ex- (out) + spectare (to look) (iterative of specere meaning see).

Except

Excerpt

Expect

Head of college in a green crushed velvet robe trimmed in yellow and white wearing a yellow and grey fez with a long yellow tassel giving a woman in teal crushed velvet robe trimmed in white and wearing a blue, purple, and white scarf with a matching fez with a long white tassel accepting a diploma.

Convoca WMC is Saroshafzal’s own work under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.

—

Young woman at Wah Medical College accepting her diploma.

A sign posting stating that this is a one way street except bikes can go either direction.

One Way, Except Bikes by Eric Fischer is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.

Torres Strait by U.S. Defense Mapping Agency Aerospace Center and in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

—

An excerpt from an operational navigational chart of the Torres Strait Islands, Queensland, Australia.

Pregnancy Belly by Towle Neu <http://www.freestockphotos.biz/stockphoto/9350> is under the CC BY 2.5 license, via Wikimedia Commons.

—

She’s expecting a baby soon.

Part of Grammar:

Verb, intransitive & transitive

Third person present verb: accepts
Past tense or past participle: accepted
Present participle: accepting

Conjunction ¹; Preposition ²;
Verb, transitive ³

Third person present verb: excepts
Past tense or past participle: excepted
Present participle: excepting

Noun ¹;
Verb, transitive ²

Noun plural: excerpts

Third person present verb: excerpts
Past tense or past participle: excerpted
Present participle: excerpting

Verb, intransitive & transitive

Third person present verb: expects
Past tense or past participle: expected
Present participle: expecting

Take what’s offered

Verb, intransitive:
Consent to receive a thing offered

Give an affirmative answer to an offer or proposal
Say yes to a proposal of marriage from a man

Verb, transitive:
Consent to receive a thing offered

Give an affirmative answer to an offer or proposal
Say yes to
[Dated] Say yes to a proposal of marriage from a man
Receive as adequate, valid, or suitable
Regard favorably or with approval
Welcome
[Of a thing] Be designed to allow something to be inserted or applied

Believe or come to recognize an opinion, explanation, etc., as valid or correct

Take upon oneself a responsibility or liability
Acknowledge
Tolerate or submit to something unpleasant or undesired

Exclude

Conjunction:
Used before a statement that forms an exception to one just made ¹

[Archaic] Unless

Preposition:
Not including ²

Other than

Verb, transitive:
[Formal] Specify as not included in a category or group ³

Part

Noun:
A short extract from a film, broadcast, or piece of music or writing ¹

Verb, transitive:
Take a short extract from a text ²

Take an excerpt or excerpts from a text
Select a passage for quoting

Wait

Verb, intransitive:
[Archaic] Wait

Stay

To look forward

To be pregnant

Await the birth of one’s child

Verb, transitive:
Regard something as likely to happen

Regard someone as likely to do or be something
Believe that someone or something will arrive soon
Look for something from someone as rightfully due or requisite in the circumstances
Require someone to fulfill an obligation
[Informal; used with I expect] Used to indicate that one supposes something to be so, but has no firm evidence or knowledge

[Archaic] Await

Anticipate or look forward to the coming or occurrence of

Examples:

Verb, intransitive:
Tim offered Brian a lift home and he accepted.

Verb, transitive:
He accepted a pen as a present.

He would accept their offer and see what happened.

Ronald is a good match and she ought to accept him.

The college accepted her as a student.

Credit cards are widely accepted.

The Harvard literati never accepted him as one of them.

Vending machines that accepted 100-yen coins for cans of beer are few and far between.

This tentative explanation came to be accepted by the group.

It is accepted that aging is a continuous process.

Jenkins is willing to accept his responsibility.

He accepts that he made a mistake.

They accepted the need to cut expenses.

Conjunction:
I didn’t tell him anything, except that I needed the money.

Our berets were the same except mine had a leather band inside.

She never offered advice, except it were asked of her.

You will languish in Hell except you repent.

The town of Hilarity was inaccessible except by boat.

I would go except that you’ll be gone longer than I can be away.

Preposition:
I was naked except for my socks.

They work every day except Sunday.

We get the paper daily except Sundays.

The stores are open daily except the major holidays.

Verb, transitive:
He excepted from his criticism a handful of distinguished writers.

Noun:
Triskell put together an excerpt of the story.

This is an excerpt of the whole.

Just read the excerpt. It’ll give you an idea of what it’s about.

Verb, transitive:
The notes are excerpted from his forthcoming biography.

Verb, intransitive:
She’s expecting next month.

Verb, transitive:
We expect the best.

He expects the stock market to sink further.

He expect that farmers will harvest 63 million acres of hay.

They were not expecting him to continue.

Celia was expecting a visitor.

We expect great things of you.

We expect employers to pay a reasonable salary.

They’re just friends of his, I expect.

I expect you know them?

Mary is expecting a baby.

It’s only to be expected. You know her mama . . .

What can you expect?

We were expecting them any minute now.

I had expected the cab to be here by now.

Derivatives:

Adjective: accepted
Adverb: acceptedly

Noun: acceptation, accepter, accepting
Verb: preaccept
Verb, transitive: reaccept

Adverb: unexceptionably
Adjective: exceptionable, exceptional, unexceptionable, unexceptional
Noun: exception, exceptionality, unexceptionableness

Adjective: excerptible
Noun: excerption, excerpter, excerptor

Adjective: expectable, unexpected
Adverb: expectably, expectedly, unexpectedly
Noun: expectedness, expecting, unexpectedness

History of the Word:

The first known use was in the 14th century.

Late Middle English from the Latin acceptare, an iterative of accipere meaning take something to oneself, from ad- (to) + capere (take).

Its first known use was in the 15th century.
The first known use was in the 14th century.
Late Middle English from the Latin except- meaning taken out, from the verb excipere, from ex- (out of) + capere (take).

The first known use was in 1627.
Mid-16th century from the Latin excerpt- meaning plucked out, from the verb excerpere, from ex- (out of) + carpere (to pluck).

The first known use was in 1560 and based on the sense defer action or wait from the Latin exspectare meaning look out for, from ex- (out) + spectare (to look) (iterative of specere meaning see).

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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