Different words for one word

One Word Substitutions is one of the most important areas of Verbal section in various bank and government exams. Additionally, it is a great way to enhance your vocabulary and make a mark in any competitive exam.

In this series of articles, you will get to know about common one word substitutions according to the specific categories. You will know the right way to retain and learn around 15-40 words used for each particular category of things and ideologies.

One Word Substitutions

What is One Word Substitution? Word Substitution simply means using a specific word to replace a wordy phrase or sentence and making it shorter, more concise and clearer to understand. This way, the word becomes identical to the sentence thus providing the same meaning as the wordy sentence. The best way to master this concept is to learn their meanings by putting them in a particular sentence or visualising them through an interesting story. One-word substitution questions frequently occur in many competitive exams such as SBI PO, UPSC, CAPF, CDS, RRB, SSC etc. Read this blog to find 100+ one-word substitutions with examples as well as practice questions and quizzes for competitive exams.

What is One Word Substitution in the English Language?

One-word substitution is the use of one word in place of a wordy phrase in order to make the sentence structure clearer and avoid lengthy sentences. The meaning, with the replacement of the phrase, remains identical while the sentence becomes shorter. 

How to Solve One-Word Substitution?

Before checking on the examples for one word substitutions, let’s see how to solve them. These can be solved by identifying its ‘root word’ or core meaning and then identifying the prefix and suffix. Many words like Anthropology come from the root word anthrōpos which means humans (Here ‘Anthro’ is the prefix and ‘ology’ is the suffix). Hence anthropology means the study of humanity. To gain mastery in understanding root words, you should be familiar with the etymology and linguistics of the words.

Why Do We Need One-Word Substitutions?

One-word substitutions are important as they make communication in the English language much more concise, lucid, and easy. People can remember words and communicate bigger meanings through simple words. For example, saying “She is someone who puts forth an idea which she herself doesn’t believe” is much harder as compared to just saying “She is a Hypocrite”. One-word substitutions make our sentences more precise and reduce complexity. These substitutions also help us to classify words based on the suffixes which makes it easy to categorize them and put similar words together.

Categories of One Word Substitution

There are different categories of One Word Substitution:

• Study-related
• Terms-related
• Group/Collection
• Government/Political Systems-related
• People/Person
• Profession/Occupation
• Science/Research
• Killing/Death-related
• Sound/Event/Spots

100+ One Word Substitutions with Examples

Here is the complete list of 100+ One Word Substitutions for competitive exams:

Study-related	One Word Substitution	Examples
Study of Stars	Astronomy	I love this book on Astronomy.
The study of statistics is known as	Demography	The demography of the whole town’s population has been mapped.
The study of ancient writing and scriptures	Palaeography	These three university professors have been immersed in the research and study of Paleography for over a decade.
The study of rocks and soil	Geology	My Geology homework is not going to be completed by the final submission date.
The ancient search for a universal panacea, and of the philosopher’s stone. The medieval version of the study of Chemistry	Alchemy	The magician wanted to learn Alchemy to master some ancient spells.
The study of the evolution of mankind	Anthropology	Anthropological research helps us trace our civilization.
The study of the Human Mind	Psychology	I am really interested in studying Psychology and how the mind works.
The practice of writing dictionaries	Lexicography	She works in the Lexicography department of the publishing house.
The study of plants	Botany	Her interest in plants motivated her to pursue this course in Botany.
The study of rocks and soils	Geology	Do I need to study Geology before going rock climbing?
The study of languages	Philology	How many languages does Philology cover?

One-Word Substitution For Government/Systems

One Word Substitutes	Government/System
A state of disorder due to the absence or non-recognition of authority or other controlling systems	Anarchy
A form of government in which power is held by the nobility	Aristocracy
A system of government by one person with absolute power	Autocracy
A self-governing country or region	Autonomy
A system of government in which most of the important decisions are taken by state officials rather than by elected representatives	Bureaucracy
A system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives	Democracy
A state, society, or group governed by old people	Gerontocracy
A state or country run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens	Kakistocracy
Government by new or inexperienced hands	Neocracy
Government by the populace	Ochlocracy
A small group of people having control of a country or organization	Oligarchy
Government by the wealthy	Plutocracy
Government not connected with religious or spiritual matters	Secular
A form of government with a monarch at the head	Monarchy
A political system based on the government of men by God	Thearchy

One Word Substitution For Venue Or Spot

List of One-Word Substitutions	Venue/Spot
A collection of historical documents or records providing information about a place, institution, or group of people	Archives
A large cage, building, or enclosure to keep birds	Aviary
A building where animals are butchered	Abattoir
A place where bees are kept; a collection of beehives	Apiary
A building containing tanks of live fish of different species	Aquarium
A place or scene of activity, debate, or conflict	Arena
A collection of weapons and military equipment	Arsenal
An institution for the care of people who are mentally ill	Asylum
A hole or tunnel dug by a small animal, especially a rabbit, as a dwelling	Burrow
A collection of items of the same type stored in a hidden or inaccessible place	Cache
A public room or building where gambling games are played	Casino
A large burial ground, especially one not in a churchyard	Cemetery
A room in a public building where outdoor clothes or luggage may be left	Cloakroom
A place where a dead person’s body is cremated	Crematorium
A Christian community of nuns living together under monastic vows	Convent
The nursery where babies and young children are cared for during the working day	Creche
A stoppered glass container into which wine or spirit is decanted	Decanter
A large bedroom for a number of people in a school or institution	Dormitory
The nest of a squirrel, typically in the form of a mass of twigs in a tree	Drey
A room or building equipped for gymnastics, games, and another physical exercise	Gymnasium
A storehouse for threshed grain	Granary
A large building with an extensive floor area, typically for housing aircraft	Hangar
A box or cage, typically with a wire mesh front, for keeping rabbits or other small domesticated animals	Hutch
A place in a large institution for the care of those who are ill	Infirmary
A small shelter for a dog	Kennel
A place where wild animals live	Lair
A place where coins, medals, or tokens are made	Mint
A collection of wild animals kept in captivity for exhibition	Menagerie
A building or buildings occupied by a community of monks living under religious vows	Monastery
A place where bodies are kept for identification	Morgue
A piece of enclosed land planted with fruit trees	Orchard
A large natural or artificial lake used as a source of water supply	Reservoir
A small kitchen or room at the back of a house used for washing dishes and other dirty household work	Scullery
A close-fitting cover for the blade of a knife or sword	Sheath
A room or building for sick children in a boarding school	Sanatorium
A place where animal hides are tanned	Tannery
A large, tall cupboard in which clothes may be hung or stored	Wardrobe

One-Word Substitutes For Profession/Research

One Word Substitution	Profession/Research
The medieval forerunner of chemistry	Alchemy
A person who presents a radio/television programme	Anchor
One who studies the evolution of mankind	Anthropologist
A person who is trained to travel in a spacecraft	Astronaut
The scientific study of the physiology, structure, genetics, ecology, distribution, classification and economic importance of plants	Botany
A person who draws or produces maps	Cartographer
A person who writes beautiful writing	Calligrapher
A person who composes the sequence of steps and moves for a performance of dance	Choreographer
A person employed to drive a private or hired car	Chauffeur
A person who introduces the performers or contestants in a variety show	Compere
A keeper or custodian of a museum or other collection	Curator
The branch of biology concerned with cyclical physiological phenomena	Chronobiology
A secret or disguised way of writing	Cypher
The study of statistics	Demography
The use of the fingers and hands to communicate and convey ideas	Dactylology
A person who sells and arranges cut flowers	Florist
A line of descent traced continuously from an ancestor	Genealogy
The therapeutic use of sunlight	Heliotherapy
The art or practise of garden cultivation and management	Horticulture
One who supervises in the examination hall	Invigilator
The theory or philosophy of law	Jurisprudence
A person who compiles dictionaries	Lexicographer
The scientific study of the structure and diseases of teeth	Odontology
One who presents a radio programme	Radio Jockey
The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing	Rhetoric
The branch of science concerned with the origin, structure and composition of rocks	Petrology
One who studies the elections and trends in voting	Psephologist
An artist who makes sculptures.	Sculptor
The scientific study of the behaviour, structure, physiology, classification and distribution of animals	Zoology

Group/Collection	One Word Substitution	Examples
A group of sheep	Flock	I saw a shepherd down the hill with a flock of sheep.
A family of young animals	Brood	Mr Styles like spending hours bathing the brood of horses in the stable.
A number of people travelling together in a big van or jeep	Caravan	A caravan of hippies just passed by.
A series of stars	Constellation	This constellation looks like a burger!
A large group of people	Horde	A horde of college students was gathered around the voting booth.
A temporary police force	Posse	Jake went to arrest the criminal with his posse.
A group of cattle or sheep	Herd	Keep your herd of cows in the backyard.
A number of fish swimming together	Shoal	I saw a shoal of mackerel on that side of the river.
A group of worshippers	Congregation	The congregation will happen at St. Mary’s Church at 4pm tomorrow.

Must Read: 50 Common Difficult Idioms with Examples

Person/People	One Word Substitution	Examples
The one who loves mankind	Philanthropist	He became a renowned philanthropist after joining Buddhism.
The one who looks at the brighter side of everything	Optimist	Louis has always been the biggest optimistic person I know.
The one who looks at the negative/dark side of everything.	Pessimist	I am always on the edge of becoming a total pessimist.
The one who does not believe in God.	Atheist	I am neither an Atheist nor a religious person.
The one who eats human flesh	Cannibal	The police caught these cannibals from the jungle.
Someone who regards the world as their country	Cosmopolitan	Globalisation will give rise to more cosmopolitans.
The one who loves good food and knows a lot about it	Gourmet	I could have been a Gourmet if I liked spicy food!
Someone who lives in solitude	Recluse	I want to become a recluse after I retire.
Someone who speaks more than one language	Polyglot	I took up Turkish to become a Polyglot.
A person who boasts of one’s achievements	Egotist	She saw him as a thoughtless egotist.
People who can vote in an election:	Electorate	Last year’s electorate comprised of many first-time voters.
A person who loves himself the most	Narcissist	John is a narcissist and will never love anyone else but himself.
A person who draws maps	Cartographer	A cartographer can help you find the right way through a complex forest land through his mastery of maps.
A person who abandons his religion	Apostate	Watching his daughter die of cancer made Steve become an apostate.
A person was appointed to settle a dispute between two parties	Arbitrator	In their final judgement, the jury presented that it is necessary for the parties to have an arbitrator to reach mutual consent.
The one who knows everything	Omniscient	He is such a know-it-all but he is not an omniscient.
The one who is all powerful	Omnipotent	We often stereotype a superhero as an Omnipotent but it’s important to have some flaws to make them human.
The one who is present everything	Omnipresent	Technology has become synonymous with omnipresent nowadays.
Someone who is eighty years old.	Octogenarian	My grandpa is an octogenarian.
The one who settles in another country.	Immigrant	It isn’t easy being an immigrant in the USA.
Someone who cares about mankind.	Humanitarian	She is known for her humanitarian efforts.

Person/People	One Word Substitution	Examples
Someone trained to travel and operate a spacecraft.	Astronaut	Kalpana Chawla is one of the greatest women astronauts.
The one who makes maps or charts	Cartographer	We need a cartographer to decode these cryptic maps.
Someone who sells or grows flowers or studies or writes about flowers.	Florist	Harry is my favorite florist and I like how he gives unique facts about what every flower symbolises.
Someone with a beautiful handwriting	Calligrapher	I started as a calligrapher and then became a tattoo artist.
The supervising person during an examination	Invigilator	The invigilator is too lazy to even check the students in the back.
Someone who presents or hosts a radio show	Radio Jockey	A radio jockey needs to have brilliant communication skills.
Someone who choreographs dances attuning certain sequences of steps and movements along music	Choreographer	Can you find me a wedding choreographer?
Someone who is the custodian or the keeper of a museum	Curator	I like being a curator as I get to meet artists from different parts of the world.
A person who doesn’t like humankind devoids himself of human society	Misanthrope	Grinch wasn’t the mean-spirited misanthrope most of us took him to be.
A person who collects coins as a hobby	Numismatist	As a Numismatist, I have a huge collection of currencies from almost all the countries around the world.
Someone employed to drive a hired car	Chauffeur	The chauffeur will come by 4 pm to the venue.
Someone who walks by foot.	Pedestrian	This side of the road is for Pedestrians.
Someone who is reserved and shy.	Introvert	I like being an introvert and I am happy with a small social circle.

Also Read: 50 Difficult Phrases with Meanings!

Terms	One Word Substitutions	Example
Indefinite period of time	Aeon	Those days became boring, aeon and too long to pass.
Appreciation of beauty, by a set of principles.	Aesthetics	I found this website quite appealing especially because of its aesthetics
Spartan snowstorms with uncontrollable winds	Blizzard	On our way back to the hotel, we got caught in a blizzard.
An eccentric manner of living	Bohemian	She felt embarrassed when her friends made fun of her bohemian clothing.
Huge fire for celebration	Bonfire	The campers spent their night by the bonfire.
Dwarfed varieties of trees and shrubs in pots	Bonsai	Her room was filled with bonsai plants.
The remote regions of a country which are far away from the rivers	Hinterland	Her cottage was situated in a hinterland deprived of any beautiful scenery.
Complex situation or a mix-up	Imbroglio	The romantic imbroglio happened when he met my landlords assuming they were my parents.
Make someone feel young	Rejuvenate	This exfoliating scrub can completely rejuvenate your skin.
Not showing enough care and attention	Remiss	I realised that she was totally remiss in finishing her daily tasks.
A shelter for a Dog	Kennel	Our new pup spent all his day hiding inside the kennel.
Where wild animals live	Lair	I found a hidden lair in the forest but was too afraid to go inside it.
A place where coins are made	Mint	This industrial facility is actually a mint which manufactures coins.
Ordinary and Dull	Mundane	I am bored with the mundane life of the quarantined days.
Published after someone’s death	Posthumous	Mr Smith’s posthumous works brought him an immense number of accolades.
The profession of teaching or the approach or style of teaching	Pedagogy	It was his unique approach to pedagogy that made him every student’s favourite.
The symbols of royalty	Regalia	The queen was adorned in full regalia.
A political system solely based on the government of men by God	Thearchy	The village was ruled by the system of thearchy.
A person promises to tell the truth in court	Oath	I couldn’t disrespect the oath and thus revealed everything.
Beginning to exist and evolve	Nascent	Biotechnology bloomed from a nascent sector to a booming industry.
Ethically good behaviour one has	Virtue	Patience is seen as the virtue of a man.
Humour that describes the weaknesses	Satire	Ghasiram Kotwal is an incredibly written satire on the political scenario of Maharashtra in the early 20th century.
Changing the direction of one’s path suddenly	Veer	He veered the car in the other direction as the deer came in the way.
Enjoy something for an extended time	Savour	Don’t forget to savour this delectable wine!
Someone who is wrongly blamed for things that others have done	Scapegoat	They used him as a scapegoat to accuse him of the whole conspiracy
Space where animal hides are tanned	Tannery	The leather for this coat has been skinned in the tannery.
Determined to achieve something	Tenacious	She was tenacious enough to chase after her dream of becoming a film actor.
The sound of Parrots	Screech	I woke up to the screeching of birds by the window.
Using a word or name that is inappropriate	Misnomer	It’s quite a misnomer to call it a victory since he scored the lowest marks in the test.
A government that has a monarch as the head	Monarchy	With a king ruling the country, the Monarchy is different from a democracy.
The sound of Camels	Grunt	In the vastness of the desert, the only sound you can hear is the constant grunting of camels from far away.
Events manifested by festivities	Fiesta	Last night’s party was a total fiesta.
The ranting of a person	Whine	Aakriti is always whining about the weather.
People who are extremely poor	Destitute	Ajay grew up in a destitute existence.
Absolute freedom to act as one wishes	Carte blanche	Her mother gave her carte blanche to follow the career path she wants to.
A person who is unsure about God’s existence	Agnostic	Though he was raised in a conservative Hindu family, he remained agnostic most of his life.
Extreme physical or mental sufferings	Agony	He fell to the ground in agony.
Japanese form of self-defense with the usage of locks holds	Aikido	He has mastered Aikido and his next goal is to learn Kung fu.
A soldier who fights for the sake of money	Mercenary	You are a mercenary and you kill people with any guns!
An accolade or honour bestowed in recognition for an achievement:	Laurel	She enjoyed the laurels of her acting achievements.
A person who behaves without moral principles	Immoral	Lying is completely immoral even if it is done for a good purpose.
Charging a politician with a serious crime	Impeach	Trump was impeached recently but it didn’t really affect his position as the president.
Government instructions that limit trade in some way	Embargo	With the danger of virus hovering over the whole world, an embargo on international trade was mutually decided upon.
Believer of fate	Fatalist	I am fatalist for I believe that our destiny has already been written.
Loves being social and enjoys the company of others	Gregarious	Gurleen is a gregarious girl and we often call her the social butterfly of our class!
Trees grow without underbrush.	Grove	This garden is filled with beautiful groves that amazingly complemented the tall trees
An office with high salary but no work	Sinecure	After listening to the perks that Seema has at her office, Vishal assumes as if she works at a Sinecure.
A person who betrays and descents and organisation or country	Renegade	It is currently flashing in the news that a renegade policeman shot three innocent people.
One who is much concerned about details and accuracy	Fastidious	Virat is fastidious about his hair. He makes sure that he visits the salon at regular intervals.
A place for storage of arms and ammunition	Arsenal	The officer informed the soldier about his new posting in Arsenal.
One who is expelled from a religious community	Excommunicate	His misconduct at the previous religious gathering led to his ex-communication.
A person who eats too much	Glutton	As soon as the guests left, Riya didn’t miss a chance to call our cousin glutton.
Something which can be copied	Immitable	As the captain’s approach for the finale was imitable, he is still called a legend.

Killing-related	One Word Substitution	Examples
When someone kills their own father	Patricide	Jean was arrested for patricide.
The act of killing a king	Regicide	The monarchy fell with the regicide.
The killing of a person by another	Homicide	He went to jail on the charge of homicide.
The killing of one’s child	Filicide	The police filed a report about filicide that happened in the C block.

Top 40 One-Word Substitutions Asked in Competitive Exams

One-Word Substitution Sample Questions

Now that you have understood the concept of one-word substitution, let us sample some sample questions so that you develop a strong command over it!

Q1. An individual who is unable to express or interact easily

A) Extrovert
B) Introvert
C) Ambivert
D) None of the Above

Q2. A stream of water moving very fast

A) Current
B) Tide
C) Torrent
D) Storms

Q3. Shikha spends a lot of money on clothes. Her cousins call her a:

A) Frugal
B) Economical
C) Miser
D) Spendthrift

Q4. Asmita works really hard for the upliftment of poor children. She even donates half of her salary to NGOs. She is:

A) Philanthropist
B) Selfish
C) Tightfisted
D) None of the Above

Q5. It is impossible to see through it.

A) Translucent
B) Fragile
C) Opaque
D) Transparent

Q6. Aman is really scared of thunderstorms. He suffers:

A) Acrophobia
B) Ophidiophobia
C) Nephophobia
D) Astraphobia

Q7. She caught the robbers

A) Courageously
B) Frightened
C) Cowardly
D) None of the above

Q8. Lalit has a good knowledge of Music. His father calls him:

A) Incompetent
B) Amateur
C) Maestro
D) Beginner

Q9. After attending a career counseling session, he understood that his ____ was cooking:

A) Niche
B) Supplant
C) Replacement
D) None of the above

Q10. You can’t park your truck here. It is:

A) Lawful
B) Allowed
C) Unauthorized
D) None of the Above

Answers:

1. B
2. C
3. D
4. A
5. C
6. D
7. A
8. C
9. A
10. C

[BONUS] One Word Substitution Quiz

FAQs

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There are some rules for joining two different words into one, but they do not cover all cases

AREAS OF UNCERTAINTY ABOUT JOINING WORDS TOGETHER

Is it correct to write bath tub, or should it be the single word bathtub? Is every day a correct spelling, or everyday? Uncertainties like this are widespread in English, even among proficient users. They are made worse by the fact that in some cases both spellings are correct, but mean different things.

Are there any guidelines for resolving such uncertainties? It seems that in some cases there are and in some there are not. I wish here to indicate some of these guidelines. They mostly involve combinations that can make either one word or two, depending on meaning or grammar.

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ORDINARY COMPOUNDS

Ordinary compounds are the area with the fewest guidelines. They include words like coursework, which I like to write as a single word but my Microsoft Word spellchecker tells me should be two. As a linguist, I usually disregard computer advice about language (see 68. How Computers Get Grammar Wrong), but the question of why ordinary compound words give especial problems is interesting. First, these words need to be defined.

One can think of a compound as two or more words joined together. Linguists, though, like to speak of joined roots or stems rather than words, partly because the joining into a compound stops them being words (a few are not even words by themselves, e.g. horti- in horticulture).

Another problem with “joined words” is that some, such as fearless, are not considered compounds at all. The -less ending is called not a “root” but an “affix”, a meaningful word part added to a root to modify its meaning. Most affixes (some named suffixes, e.g. -less, -ness, -tion, -ly, -ing; some prefixes, e.g. -un-, in-, mis-, pre-) cannot be separate words, but a few like -less can (see 106. Word-Like Suffixes and 146. Some Important Prefix Types). Thus, words like fearless, unhappy and international are not compounds because they have fewer than two roots. Other compounds are swimsuit, homework and eavesdrop.

Suggestions for recognising a compound are not always very helpful. The frequency of words occurring together is no guide because it ignores the fact that many frequent combinations are not compounds (e.g. town hall and open air). The grammatical classes of the words and the closeness of the link between them are sometimes mentioned, but are unreliable. The age of a combination is also suggested, the claim being that compounds originate as two separate words, and gradually evolve through constant use first into hyphenated expressions (like fire-eater or speed-read – see 223. Uses of Hyphens), and eventually into compounds. However, some quite recent words are already compounds, such as bitmap in computing.

Much more useful is the way compounds are pronounced. Single English words generally contain one syllable that is pronounced more strongly than the others (see 125. Stress and Emphasis). This means compounds should have just one strong syllable, while non-compounds should have more. The rule applies fairly universally (see 243. Pronunciation Secrets, #3). For example, home is the only strong syllable in homework, but one of two in home rule. I write coursework as one word because course- is stronger than work.

The only problem with this approach is that you have to know pronunciations before you start, which is not always the case if English is not your mother tongue. The only other resort is a dictionary or spellcheck!

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NOUNS DERIVED FROM PHRASAL VERBS

Happily, some compound words have some other helpful features. Most are words whose roots, if written as two words, are also correct but have different meaning and grammar, so that the meaning indicates the spelling or vice versa. A particularly large category of such words is illustrated by the compound noun giveaway (= “obvious clue”). If its two roots are written separately as give away, they become a “phrasal” verb – a combination of a simple English verb (give) with a small adverb (away) – meaning “unintentionally reveal” (see 244. Special Uses of GIVE, #12).

There are many other nouns that can become phrasal verbs, e.g. takeover, takeaway, makeup, cutoff, breakout, setdown, pickup, washout, login and stopover. In writing there is always a need to remember that, if the two “words” are going to act as a verb, they must be spelled separately, but if they are going to act as a noun, they must be written together.

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OTHER CHOICES THAT DEPEND ON WORD CLASS

In the examples above, it is the choice between noun and verb uses that determines the spelling. Other grammatical choices can have this effect too. The two alternative spellings mentioned earlier, every day and everyday, are an example. The first (with ev- and day said equally strongly) acts in sentences like a noun or adverb, the second (with ev- the strongest) like an adjective. Compare: 

(a) NOUN: Every day is different.

(b) ADVERB: Dentists recommend cleaning your teeth every day.

(c) ADJECTIVE: Everyday necessities are expensive. 

In (a), every day is noun-like because it is the subject of the verb is (for details of subjects, see 12. Singular and Plural Verb Choices). In (b), the same words act like an adverb, because they give more information about a verb (cleaning) and could easily be replaced by a more familiar adverb like regularly or thoroughly (see 120. Six Things to Know about Adverbs). In (c), the single word everyday appears before a noun (necessities), giving information about it just as any adjective might (see 109. Placing an Adjective after its Noun). It is easily replaced by a more recognizable adjective like regular or daily. For more about every, see 169. “All”, “Each” and “Every”.

Another example of a noun/adverb contrast is any more (as in …cannot pay any more) versus anymore (…cannot pay anymore). In the first, any more is the object of pay and means “more than this amount”, while in the second anymore is not the object of pay (we have to understand something like money instead), and has the adverb meaning “for a longer time”.

A further adverb/adjective contrast is on board versus onboard. I once saw an aeroplane advertisement wrongly saying *available onboard – using an adjective to do an adverb job. The adverb on board is needed because it “describes” an adjective (available). The adjective form cannot be used because there is no noun to describe (see 6. Adjectives with no Noun 1). A correct adjective use would be onboard availability.

Slightly different is alright versus all right. The single word is either an adjective meaning “acceptable” or “undamaged”, as in The system is alright, or an adverb meaning “acceptably”, as in The system works alright. The two words all right, on the other hand, are only an adjective, different in meaning from the adjective alright: they mean “100% correct”. Thus, Your answers are all right means that there are no wrong answers, whereas Your answers are alright means that the answers are acceptable, without indicating how many are right.

Consider also upstairs and up stairs. The single word could be either an adjective (the upstairs room) or an adverb (go upstairs) or a noun (the upstairs). It refers essentially to “the floor above”, without necessarily implying the presence of stairs at all – one could, for example, go upstairs in a lift (see 154. Lone Prepositions after BE). The separated words, by contrast, act only like an adverb and do mean literally “by using stairs” (see 218. Tricky Word Contrasts 8, #3).

The pair may be and maybe illustrates a verb and adverb use:

(d) VERB: Food prices may be higher.

(e) ADVERB: Food prices are maybe higher.

In (e), the verb is are. The adverb maybe, which modifies its meaning, could be replaced by perhaps or possibly. Indeed, in formal writing it should be so replaced because maybe is conversational (see 108. Formal and Informal Words).

My final example is some times and sometimes, noun and adverb:

(f) NOUN: Some times are harder than others.

(g) ADVERB: Sometimes life is harder than at other times. 

Again, replacement is a useful separation strategy. The noun times, the subject of are in (f), can be replaced by a more familiar noun like days without radically altering the sentence, while the adverb sometimes in (g) corresponds to occasionally, the subject of is being the noun life.

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USES INVOLVING “some”, “any”, “every” AND “no”

The words some, any, every and no generally do not make compounds, but can go before practically any noun to make a “noun phrase”. In a few cases, however, this trend is broken and these words must combine with the word after them to form a compound. Occasionally there is even a choice between using one word or two, depending on meaning.

The compulsory some compounds are somehow, somewhere and somewhat; the any compounds are anyhow and anywhere, while every and no make everywhere and nowhere. There is a simple observation that may help these compounds to be remembered: the part after some/any/every/no is not a noun, as is usually required, but a question word instead. The rule is thus that if a combination starting with some, any, every or no lacks a noun, a single word must be written.

The combinations that can be one word or two depending on meaning are someone, somebody, something, sometime, sometimes, anyone, anybody, anything, anyway (Americans might add anytime and anyplace), everyone, everybody, everything, everyday, no-one, nobody and nothing. The endings in these words (-one, -body, -thing, -way, -time, -place and –day) are noun-like and mean the same as question words (who? what/which? how? when? and where? – see 185. Noun Synonyms of Question Words).

Some (tentative) meaning differences associated with these alternative spellings are as follows: 

SOME TIME = “an amount of time”

Please give me some time.

SOMETIME (adj.) = “past; old; erstwhile”

I met a sometime colleague

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SOMETHING = “an object whose exact nature is unimportant”.

SOME THING = “a nasty creature whose exact nature is unknown” (see 260. Formal Written Uses of “Thing”, #2).

Some thing was lurking in the water.

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ANYONE/ANYBODY = “one or more people; it is unimportant who”

Anyone can come = Whoever wants to come is welcome; Choose anyone = Choose whoever you want – one or more people.

ANY ONE = “any single person/thing out of a group of possibilities”.

Any one can come = Only one person/thing (freely chosen) can come; Choose any one = Choose whoever/whichever you want, but only one.

ANY BODY = “any single body belonging to a living or dead creature”.

Any body is suitable = I will accept whatever body is available.

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ANYTHING = “whatever (non-human) is conceivable/possible, without limit”.

Bring anything you like = There is no limit in what you can bring; Anything can happen = There is no limit on possible happenings.

ANY THING = “any single non-human entity in a set”.

Choose any thing = Freely choose one of the things in front of you.

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EVERYONE/EVERYBODY = “all people” (see 169. “All”, “Each” and “Every” and 211.General Words for People).

Everyone/Everybody is welcome.

EVERY ONE = “all members of a previously-mentioned group of at least three things (not people)”.

Diamonds are popular. Every one sells easily.

EVERY BODY = “all individual bodies without exceptions”.

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EVERYTHING = “all things/aspects/ideas”.

Everything is clear.

EVERY THING = “all individual objects, emphasising lack of exceptions”.

Every thing on display was a gift.

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NO-ONE/NOBODY = “no people”

No-one/Nobody came.

NO ONE = “not a single” (+ noun)

No one answer is right.

NO BODY = “no individual body”.

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NOTHING = “zero”.

Nothing is impossible.

NO THING = “no individual object”. 

There are other problem combinations besides those discussed here; hopefully these examples will make them easier to deal with.