PSAT: Commonly Confused Words: List 4

Learn the correct meanings and usages of these commonly confused words you may encounter on the PSAT exam.
10 words 84 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. parameter
    any factor defining a system and determining its performance
    I had to find an approach, figure out if we could land there, figure out the performance parameters, and tell the company what we were doing. Outliers
    To see more usage examples of "parameter," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "parameter" and "perimeter," click here.
  2. perimeter
    the boundary line or area immediately inside the boundary
    Thick hedges created a rectangular perimeter along the property line. The Last Last-Day-of-Summer
    To see more usage examples of "perimeter," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "parameter" and "perimeter," click here.
  3. parody
    a composition that imitates or misrepresents a style
    When the French artist Marcel Duchamp drew a mustache on a copy of the Mona Lisa, he made the most famous parody in art history. The Mona Lisa Vanishes
    To see more usage examples of "parody," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "parody" and "parity," click here.
  4. parity
    functional equality
    Whites outnumbered slaves two to one in North Carolina, but in Louisiana and Georgia the populations neared parity. The Underground Railroad: A Novel
    To see more usage examples of "parity," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "parody" and "parity," click here.
  5. pitiable
    deserving or inciting a feeling of sympathy and sorrow
    There must have been something desperate or pitiable in my voice, for he slung his coat back over the partition. Native Speaker
    To see more usage examples of "pitiable," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "pitiable," "pitiful," "piteous" and "pitiless," click here.
  6. pitiful
    inspiring mixed contempt and sorrow
    He pushes my pitiful linoleum block aside and gently sets down an enormous book. Speak
    To see more usage examples of "pitiful," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "pitiable," "pitiful," "piteous" and "pitiless," click here.
  7. piteous
    deserving or inciting a feeling of sympathy and sorrow
    Runt began to whimper, a piteous sound that made Pax want to comfort him, but Bristle warned him to keep away. Pax
    To see more usage examples of "piteous," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "pitiable," "pitiful," "piteous" and "pitiless," click here.
  8. pitiless
    without mercy or sympathy
    His pitiless and hate-filled eyes locked with mine as he threw the daisy garland to the floor and crushed it with his foot. Ophelia
    To see more usage examples of "pitiless," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "pitiable," "pitiful," "piteous" and "pitiless," click here.
  9. prescribe
    issue commands or orders for
    “Did the doctor prescribe any treatments for you, Mother?” Fever 1793
    To see more usage examples of "prescribe," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "prescribe" and "proscribe," click here.
  10. proscribe
    command against
    In Britain, 39 local authorities proscribed it, with a Cornish councillor demanding that all of those involved in its production should be locked up in Broadmoor. The Guardian
    To see more usage examples of "proscribe," click here.
    To learn more about the commonly confused words "prescribe" and "proscribe," click here.
Created on Thu Jun 05 11:30:16 EDT 2025 (updated Thu Jun 05 11:30:46 EDT 2025)

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