Bear with me, but does one bear it all or bare it all? And speaking of bears, if a bear pays me a compliment, can I complement his compliment with a compliment? Or would that negatively affect the intended effect?

The English language is full of cruel tricks. There are many examples of English words that have totally different meanings and yet are nearly the same, sometimes only distinguished by a single letter. Proofreader @chronicleflask recently tried to demystify the English language in an educational thread. She also offered some very useful tips on how to remember the difference between commonly mixed up words like «forgo» and «forego.» Everyone can use a good pneumonic device.