Advise vs. Advice

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Understanding the difference between commonly confused words will help you avoid making errors in English usage. Let’s examine the difference between the following:

advise

Advise is a verb meaning to offer suggestions or counsel to someone, or to inform someone formally of a fact or situation. Advise is pronounced to rhyme with wise, with a z sound.

advice

Advice, a noun, is the guidance or recommendation given to someone. Advice is pronounced to rhyme with twice, with a c sound.

This sentence uses both advise and advice:

Natasha’s doctor advised her to quit smoking, but she was addicted to cigarettes and found it very difficult to follow his advice.
One woman is advising the other by giving her advice.

☛ Here’s a memory trick to help tell these words apart that is connected to how they’re pronounced:

Remember that you should consult wise people to advise you, and that people usually only follow advice when they’re told at least twice!

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