Commonly Confused Words

Capital vs. Capitol

1 min read

Capital and capitol sound identical, but their meanings are very different. One is used in many contexts, while the other is used in only one very specific situation.

Capital

Capital has several common meanings:

The main city of a country or region: Paris is the capital of France.
Money or assets used for investment: The company raised more capital.
Uppercase letters: Please write your name in capital letters.
Excellent or important (older usage): That’s a capital idea!

Capitol

Capitol refers only to a specific type of building:

The building where a government’s legislature meets.
Most famously, the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

In the United States, “Capitol” is capitalized when referring to the actual U.S. Capitol building.

💡 Tip

Capitol → building has a dome (think of the “o”).
Capital → everything else (city, money, letters).

Test your knowledge 📝

Question 1 sur 8Score: 0/8

Washington, D.C., is the ___ of the United States.

Discover the app: Shaky English

Join 100,000 people who are improving their English skills on the Shaky English app

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Common mistakes

Conditional Forms (Zero, First, Second, Third)

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Common mistakes

Since vs. For

We use since and for to talk about how long something has been happening — but they are used in different ways depending on the type of time reference. When to use “since” Since is used with a speci...

A bit of theory

A lot vs. Allot vs. Alot

Do you write a lot, allot, or even alot? 😬 Only two of those are real words — and one is a mistake you’ll want to avoid! A lot A lot (two words) means “a large amount” or “many.” It’s informal but...

Conjugation

Too vs. Enough

Too and enough both talk about quantity, but they work in opposite ways — and they appear in different places in a sentence. When to use “too” Too means “more than needed” or “more than is good.” It...

Vocabulary

Em Dash vs. En Dash vs. Hyphen

These three marks may look similar, but they each have their own job in writing. Let’s break them down so you know exactly when to use a hyphen, an en dash, or an em dash. Hyphen (-) Use a hyphen to...

Conjugation

Subject-Verb Agreement with Indefinite Pronouns (e.g. everyone is)

Some subjects in English may look plural, but they take a singular verb. This is especially true with indefinite pronouns — words like everyone, somebody, each, none. Understanding whether these prono...

Common confusions

Like vs. Such as

“Like” and “such as” are both used to give more information — but they don’t mean the same thing! Learning the difference helps you sound more clear and natural. 🙂 When to use “like” Like is used to...

Common confusions

Who vs. Whom

Let’s learn the difference between who and whom in a simple way! Who Who is used as the subject of a sentence or question. It does the action. Who called you last night?(Someone did the calling.)...

Commonly Confused Words

Capital vs. Capitol

1 min read

Capital and capitol sound identical, but their meanings are very different. One is used in many contexts, while the other is used in only one very specific situation.

Capital

Capital has several common meanings:

The main city of a country or region: Paris is the capital of France.
Money or assets used for investment: The company raised more capital.
Uppercase letters: Please write your name in capital letters.
Excellent or important (older usage): That’s a capital idea!

Capitol

Capitol refers only to a specific type of building:

The building where a government’s legislature meets.
Most famously, the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

In the United States, “Capitol” is capitalized when referring to the actual U.S. Capitol building.

💡 Tip

Capitol → building has a dome (think of the “o”).
Capital → everything else (city, money, letters).

Test your knowledge 📝

Question 1 sur 8Score: 0/8

Washington, D.C., is the ___ of the United States.

Discover the app: Shaky English

Join 100,000 people who are improving their English skills on the Shaky English app

Other similar rules

Common mistakes

Conditional Forms (Zero, First, Second, Third)

Common mistakes

Since vs. For

A bit of theory

A lot vs. Allot vs. Alot

Conjugation

Too vs. Enough

Vocabulary

Em Dash vs. En Dash vs. Hyphen

Conjugation

Subject-Verb Agreement with Indefinite Pronouns (e.g. everyone is)

Common confusions

Like vs. Such as

Common confusions