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Accept vs except

Accept = receive or agree to. Except = apart from.

accept

verb: to receive, agree to, or believe

Test: Can you swap in “receive” or “agree to”?

Please accept my apology.
We accept cards.

except

preposition or conjunction: excluding, apart from

Test: Can you swap in “apart from”?

Everyone came except Sam.
Open daily except Sunday.

EXcept EXcludes.

Test yourself

Five sentences. Apply the test above to each one before you pick.

I _____ your offer.
All the rooms _____ one were booked.
The shop doesn’t _____ cash.
I eat everything _____ olives.
It’s hard to _____ criticism.

Pick an answer for each sentence.

Except as a verb

“Except” can be a rare, formal verb meaning “to exclude”: “children are excepted from the fee”. In everyday writing you’ll almost always want “accept” for the verb.

Catch it automatically

The grammar checker flags common mix-ups like this one by looking at the words around them, and the sentence checker can explain any sentence you’re unsure about.

Questions people ask

Is it “accept for” or “except for”?

“Except for”, meaning “apart from”.

Other grammar guides

Affect vs effectAffect is usually the verb. Effect is usually the noun.Its vs it’sIt’s = it is / it has. Its = belonging to it.Your vs you’reYou’re = you are. Your = belonging to you.Their, there and they’reTheir = belonging to them. There = place / “there is”. They’re = they are.Advice vs adviseAdvice is the noun (rhymes with “nice”). Advise is the verb (rhymes with “prize”).Then vs thanThan compares things. Then tells you when.Whose vs who’sWho’s = who is / who has. Whose = belonging to whom.Principal vs principlePrinciple = a rule or belief. Principal = main, a head person, or a loan amount.Lose vs looseLose = misplace or not win (rhymes with “shoes”). Loose = not tight (rhymes with “goose”).Who vs whomWho does the action (he). Whom receives it (him).I.e. vs e.g.E.g. = for example (some of many). I.e. = that is (the exact thing).Farther vs furtherFarther = physical distance. Further = degree, time or “more”.Everyday vs every dayEveryday = ordinary (an adjective). Every day = each day.Complement vs complimentCompliment = praise. Complement = something that completes or suits.Into vs in toInto = movement inside or a change. In to = “in” (part of a verb) + “to”.Lay vs lieYou lay something down. You lie down yourself.Fewer vs lessFewer for countable things. Less for uncountable amounts.To, too and twoTo = direction or verb marker. Too = also / excessively. Two = 2.