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THE WRITE STUFF
Writing & Grammar Blog
 
DIANE HUGHES • NASHVILLE, TN
WRITER, EDITOR, CREATIVE PROFESSIONAL

Is your stationery resting on a stationary object?

4/13/2014

9 Comments

 
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We have more homophones for this installment. This time it's stationary and stationery, two words that are easily and often confused. Here's the scoop:

Stationery — with an e — is paper used for writing. 

Stationary — with an a — is something that is not moving.

For an easy memory aid, I like to relate the e in stationery with the e (or e's) in letter. You could also tell yourself the a in stationary stands for the a in "at rest." 

Do you have a better memory aid for distinguishing between these two words? If so, please share your thoughts in the comments.

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    DIANE HUGHES

    I blog about grammar, style, punctuation & more

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