Accept and except are homophones and can confuse a reader because of sound similarity but both words are very different in their meanings.
Meanings of Accept and Except:
- Accept: Receive willingly
- Except: Exclude
Synonyms of Accept and Except
- Accept: approve, have, take, allow, get
- Except: apart from, but, other than, outside, aside from
Pronunciation of Accept and Except
- Accept: /ek-ˈsept/
- Except: /ik-ˈsept/
Explanation and Use of Word; Accept
The word accept is a verb and its core meaning is “to receive (or take) something intentionally and willingly”. A person may receive a practically thing like a gift, money, or he may receive a responsibility like duty, an obligation, a risk, or an opportunity of a job, or he may agree to the idea of another person like a decision, a theory, a suggestion or a proposal.
Look at the given examples to comprehend the meaning of accept.
- I love Jenny and I am sure that she will accept my marriage proposal.
- Many economists have accepted that democracy is better than capitalism.
- The traffic warden denied to accept bribe and fined the driver for wrong parking.
The word accept has a wide range of its meanings. If a person asks his friend to join him on a long drive. His friend has two options: accept or deny, and most possibly, he will accept his proposal.
Explanation and Use of Word; Accept
The word except is used as a verb, preposition and conjunction in a sentence. Generally, we use the word ‘except’ as a preposition in a sentence. We use it when we have multiple things and want to exclude on or more from the main list of things. As In the example below.
- We have mixed all ingredients in the cake except sugar.
We use it also as a conjunction in a sentence. Look at the example below:
- No one is not allowed to leave party except in an emergency.
Bottom Lines
In a nutshell, the word accept and except are different in their meanings. The word accept is widely used in daily conversations but the use of word except is rare.